Everyone knows this ain't one of the best Elton albums-- he regularly disowns it during interviews-- but it does have some great material on it. Why is 'Victim Of Love' remastered and not 'Leather Jackets'? It's about as good as 'Ice On Fire' and 'Breaking Hearts'. Songs like 'Paris', 'Slow Rivers' and 'Angeline' deserve better treatment, along with those missing b-sides. Rocket has done a fine job with all those discs missed by the so-called Classic Years. Get onto it, Rocket!

When I originally listened to Jackets in 1987 I thought it was not ever going to be played again. Then Stevie Winwoods song "I'm the Same Boy I used to Be" came out and it had a similar organ to the title song "Leather Jackets". In fact I thought it was "Leather Jackets". So I gave the album another play and got hooked to the title song's catchy rhythm.

Then "Hoop of Fire" came on, and after a few plays, it became known to me as a great song. As a matter of fact, most great Elton Songs take a few plays to really enjoy, but they have such holding power. I've been listening to Elton for almost 20 years repeatedly.

Other really great songs are Slow Rivers, Paris and Gypsy Heart.

If you're an 80's elton fan, this is one of his best of that decade, although it's a sleeper at first. Give it a few spins and you'll see it's a fun album. Of course his 80's music is no comparison to his early 70's music, but it's still quite good.

For the 80's collection I recommend Jump Up, Too Low for Zero, Leather Jackets, and Sleeping With the Past.

For the 70's, all up before Rock of the Westies, Gr.Hits Vol 2, Part-Time Love on "A Single Man", "Ego" and the Thom Bell Sessions.

In many countries around the world this album sold very well at the time it was released.It is not a bad album.It does take a number of listens before it grows on you.Many of elton johns albums years later are appreciated and this means that in my opinion he is always years ahead of the music of the year he releases his albums.During the 80s it was only in america elton did not have a top ten album.In many countries around the world he had many top ten albums.A good example of this is Australia.In australia during the 80s these albums made top ten:

Jump Up,Too Low For Zero,Breaking Hearts,Ice On Fire,Leather Jackets,Live In Australia,Reg Strikes Back,Sleeping With The Past And a year later in 1990 Sleeping With The Past Made Number One.

Not a good effort,this is as far as elton got from a quality album,but ther are some brief,i mean breif,shining moments.Hoop of fire,Heartache....,I Fall Apart and Slow Rivers is the shining moments.But this is just my opinion,others may be defferent.

In 1985, Elton reunited with Gus Dudgeon, the producer who had helmed Elton's classic 70's period, from the "Elton John" album up through "Blue Moves". However, the "Ice on Fire" album was hardly a return to EJ's classic piano based sound. Rather, Dudgeon tried to update the sound by smothering the songs in synthesizers, sequencers and drum machines that a lot of people were using then. The result was pretty cheesey, despite a couple of hits. Just as importantly, Elton and Bernie Taupin's songwriting had hit the pits, coming up with some of the worst songs they ever wrote.

This followup album continues in the same direction, with some equally dire results, despite better lyrics from Taupin. There are more lame attempts at dance tracks with "Don't Trust That Woman" (bad lyrics by Cher, of all people) and "Go It Alone" (a clone of the last album's "Act of War"). Over half of the album consists of ballads. The overdone synths make songs like "Memory of Love" (lyrics by late 70's/early 80's collaborator Gary Osborne), "Gypsy Heart", and the pleasant but unmemorable trifle "Paris" (one of the few songs here that were performed live) sound really tacky.

Unlike most people (including Elton himself), I do think there are a few decent songs here that are undermined by Dudgeon's work. The title track and the non-hit single "Heartache All Over the World" are upbeat, catchy numbers, with some really good harmony vocals in the latter. It would have been better to hear Elton pounding on the piano instead of a Yamaha synth, however.

When Elton turns the synths way down in a couple of cases, it also improves things. "Slow Rivers" is the best ballad here, with a good duet vocal with Cliff Richard, real strings from another old buddy, James Newton-Howard, and actual audible Elton acoustic piano. Finally, "Angeline" is a bluesy number that has Elton playing a lone synth while Queen's bassist and drummer play a lock-step rhythm. Another very fun number, despite some appallingly sexist lyrics from Taupin and backing vocalist Alan Carvell.

This album came at the end of Elton's deteriorated relationship with Geffen Records. Geffen wasn't inclined to promote it, it bombed, and Elton has said he should have never released it. Even so, I don't think it's nearly as bad as the last one or his excursions into black music ("The Thom Bell Sessions", "Duets" or the catastrophic "Victim of Love").

Still, this is definitely a low priority for Elton fans. Unless you want every single song ever recorded by the man, download "Leather Jackets", "Heartache..", "Angeline" and "Slow Rivers", and forget about the rest.