This should be sacrificed to the Devil for the good of Humanity
Still in his hat wearing phase of life, Sir Elton stepped up to the plate in 1989 and delivered this turgid lump of schlock. Obviously feeling the heat from such giants of the world of music like Celine Dion and Phil Collins, he decided it was time to go all out and see if he (and lyrical partner Bernie Taupin) could go where no man had gone before and deliver the world’s worst piece of music.
I’m pleased to say that they emerged triumphant in their almost mystical quest for the lowest of the low and Sacrifice (backed by the equally horrific “Healing Hands”) was the result.
The verses are fairly irrelevant – but what will stick in your mind (and in your throat) is the truly awful chorus, which sounds like it was taken directly from the “sorry your son/daughter has died” range of Hallmark cards:
But, it’s no sacrifice
No sacrifice
It’s no sacrifice, at all
No sacrifice, at all
No sacrifice, at all
No sacrifice, at all
No sacrifice, at all
For me, there is almost something primally awful about the way he intones the word “sa-cri-fice” – it reminds me of the “terrible word” that HP Lovecraft was always going on about – something so horrific that it can cause grown men to weep.
Ironically, this was Sir Elton’s first ever number 1 record in the UK – it’s just a pity that he evidentially had to sell his soul to Cthulhu to get it.
Our Opinion: The sort of record that abusive husbands give their battered wives for Christmas
