Elton John’s ‘Island Girl’ May or May Not Be Either

I love it when a song I've heard all my life turns out to be more than meets the ear. Witness "Island Girl," the 1975 Elton John smash which made it all the way to the top of the 170 different charts published at the time. The slide guitar riff, played by Elton's longtime axman Davey Johnstone, gets burned onto your brain the moment you hear it. But its the lyrics which prove most surprising.

Dig the lyric video:

See, it's not really about a tropical beauty. Not one with a john who stands 6'3" and lives in New York City. Draw your own conclusions.

Don't believe me? Surely you believe Wikipedia! (Note: That's a joke son.)

Here's a live version:

Now I know some folks will recoil at such subject matter of a "mah-toor" nature, especially when in their minds the song is merely an updated take on "Shimmy Shimmy Ko-Ko-Bop" or "The Girl From Ipanema." Good news is that the words in parts are unitelligible so you can keep on going believing what you wish.