The True Story Behind Elton John's 'Daniel'

Featured on Elton John's album Don't Shoot Me I'm Only the Piano Player, "Daniel" was inspired by the lives and struggles of Vietnam veterans returning home from the war. Songfacts relates that the song's lyricist, Bernie Taupin, revealed the origins of the song: "I'd seen this article in Time magazine on the Tet Offensive, and there was a sidebar next to it with a story about how many of the soldiers that were coming back from 'Nam were these simple sort of down home country guys who were generally embarrassed by both the adulation and, depending on what part of the country you came from, the animosity that they were greeted by."

Written from the point of view of a veteran's younger brother, "Daniel" tells the story of its titular character leaving America for Spain, in the hopes that they might find some peace after the war. While many believe the song's last verse — which John cut from the final version — may have changed or altered the narrative of the song itself, Taupin told Billboard that he didn't remember the verse, which means it probably didn't change the song in any tangible way.

As it stands, "Daniel" remains a unique entry in John's discography, a song that offered an empathetic perspective of the struggles of Vietnam War veterans that continues to feel relevant to this day.

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