About the song "Candle in the Wind, by Elton John":?

Question

I read the lyrics and it is also a tribute to Princess Diana apparently. What I don't get is that Elton sais "they made you change your name." Meaning Norma Jean to Marilyn Monroe? I don't get it...Simply, can you give me a detailed explanation of the lyrics of "Candle in the windby Elton John...A HIT!"

Answer 1

yes that was it.... he had originally meant the song for marylin monroe, and her real name was norma jeans baker, he later modified the song for princess di. her name was diana spencer,and she " changed" it when she got married.

Answer 2

It's Sir Elton John the original Candle in the Wind from the album Good By Yellow Brick Road track three (1970) Your right the song was reworded as a tribute to the Queen of Hearts Princess Diana but originally written about Marilin Monroe (Norma Jean) The first verse last line mentions that line " And they made you change your name "As with all actors they have stage names hence her name change

Answer 3

OK - there are 2 versions of Candle in The Wind. The first is the tribute to Marilyn Monroe. Hollywood producers made her change her name from Norma Jean to Marilyn Monroe. Hollywood was pretty rotten in general to its young actors and actresses just starting out back then - they got paid next to nothing and had little or no voice in what they did, even to changing their names.

Marilyn Monroe was seen primarily as a "sex symbol" - the "Blond Bombshell" ideal of the 50's and 60's. And that's pretty much all anyone saw in her - yet she was a compassionate, relatively intelligent woman.

Back to Hollywood and its abuses - Even in fairly recent times - James Earl Jones only made about $250K as the voice of Darth Vader - compare that with the outrageous sums paid to guys like Tom Cruise.........but I digress. I think that was something of what Elton John was ticked about with regard to Marilyn Monroe. That and the mystery surrounding her death. If you look at it, it doesn't seem logical she would commit suicide. She was just about to re-marry Joe Dimagio and she was actively planning a future. (Despite rumors to the contrary of her despondancy over JFK's death - as you may know they had been having an affair which he ended after the infamous singing of "Happy Birthday Mr. President". ) Suicides just don't PLAN futures. It has been speculated she was murdered, much as there has always been speculation Diana was murdered. Keep in mind it was RFK who found her dead. Interestingly, Marilyn and Diana were about the same ages at death - mid to late 30's, "Blonde bombshells," etc. etc.

Anyway, the SECOND version of Candle in the Wind, called Goodbye England's Rose, was the tribute to Diana. Elton John performed it at Diana's funeral........

Answer 4

The song was originally written about Norma Jean. Norma Jean is Marilyn Monroe. Norma Jean changed her name when she became an actress mush like many acotrs/actresses do today. Its what we call your "stage name" Michael Keaton had to change his real name Michael Douglas was already taken by Michael Douglas. When you become an actor, they need to check and make sure your name doesnt already exist...no actor have the same stage name. Now bak to the song. I'll try my best

Goodbye Norma Jean
(He is saying goodbye to Norma Jean because she is the innocent Marilyn Monroe...the girl from a small town)
Though I never knew you at all
You had the grace to hold yourself
While those around you crawled
They crawled out of the woodwork
And they whispered into your brain
They set you on the treadmill
And they made you change your name
(The Norma Jean was "poisoned" I guess by Hollywood and how Hollywood is. Pink sings a line about Hollywood in her song...mind you its about LA..her manager...and how they made promises...and corrupted her mind...filled them with fantasies and lies)

And it seems to me you lived your life
Like a candle in the wind
Never knowing who to cling to
When the rain set in
(Because noone knew how Marilyn was on the inside, she remained to be a very mysterious woman. The public sees a character she protrayed - Marilyn Monroe)
And I would have liked to have known you
But I was just a kid
Your candle burned out long before
Your legend ever did
(Elton or I guess US, are still very young and we wish we could have known her to tell her how to change her life. We could have been the positive reinforcement she needed in order to survive...but inthe end...her death itself made her the legend)

Loneliness was tough
The toughest role you ever played
Hollywood created a superstar
And pain was the price you paid
Even when you died
Oh the press still hounded you
All the papers had to say
Was that Marilyn was found in the nude
(same pretty much above...she was very mysterious...no one to this day understand if she killed herself...or she was murdered because people knew two people...Marilyn Monroe and Norma Jean)

Goodbye Norma Jean
From the young man in the 22nd row
Who sees you as something as more than sexual
More than just our Marilyn Monroe
(Like Elton, I see Marilyn Monroe to be more Marilyn Monre. We never got to know her. We only know her a sex symbol and her tragic death. That was a very sad thing to be remembered by, dont you think)

Hope that cleared it for you.

Answer 5

He originally made the song up about Marilyn Monroe but then used it again in a Princess Diana tribute, as he greatly admired them both.

Answer 6

The original song was about Marilyn Monroe (aka Norma Jean). After Princess Diana's death, he redid it for Di (english rose). Does that telp you out?

Answer 7

Goodbye Norma Jean (Monroe's real name)
Though I never knew you at all
You had the grace to hold yourself
While those around you crawled
They crawled out of the woodwork
And they whispered into your brain
They set you on the treadmill
And they made you change your name (changed from Norma Jean Mortensen to be more appealing)

And it seems to me you lived your life
Like a candle in the wind (dancing and jumping around erratically, seemingly without reason)
Never knowing who to cling to (married 3 times)
When the rain set in
And I would have liked to have known you
But I was just a kid
Your candle burned out long before
Your legend ever did

Loneliness was tough
The toughest role you ever played
Hollywood created a superstar
And pain was the price you paid
Even when you died
Oh the press still hounded you
All the papers had to say
Was that Marilyn was found in the nude (suicide primarily suspected)

Goodbye Norma Jean
From the young man in the 22nd row
Who sees you as something as more than sexual
More than just our Marilyn Monroe
**** This is the original version dedicated to Monroe ****

>>>

*** This is the 1997 revised version, dedicated to Princess Di. ***
Goodbye England's rose
May you ever grow in our hearts
You were the grace that placed itself
Where lives were torn apart
You called out to our country
And you whispered to those in pain
Now you belong to heaven
And the stars spell out your name

And it seems to me you lived your life
Like a candle in the wind
Never fading with the sunset
When the rain set in
And your footsteps will always fall here
Along England's greenest hills
Your candle's burned out long before
Your legend ever will

Loveliness we've lost
These empty days without your smile
This torch we'll always carry
For our nation's golden child
And even though we try
The truth brings us to tears
All our words cannot express
The joy you brought us through the years

And it seems to me you lived your life
Like a candle in the wind
Never fading with the sunset
When the rain set in
And your footsteps will always fall here
Along England's greenest hills
Your candle's burned our long before
Your legend ever will

Answer 8

It was about Marylin Monroe. Repurposed for Princess Di. Right around then Sir Elton made fun of the Rolling Stones and Keith Richards said something about Elton being "limited to writing songs about dead blondes." Classic.

Answer 9

well he originally wrote it for Marilyn Monroe, but he rereleased it for princess diana's death.

i got the best bits out of wikipedia's description for you:

The original version was found on Elton John's 1973 album Goodbye Yellow Brick Road. The lyrics of the song are a sympathetic portrayal of the life of Marilyn Monroe (the song's opening line "Goodbye Norma Jean" refers to Monroe's real name) and condemn exploitation by those around her, using the metaphor of a candle extinguished prematurely after the loneliness of her final years.
As a result of her death, John sank into a deep depression, and considered not going to the funeral due to the emotional trauma. In the end, he decided to attend after receiving support from other friends. Following the recovery, John decided he wanted to pay a tribute to Diana. With that in mind, he contacted his veteran writing partner, Bernie Taupin. Due to the limited time available, they felt it was not possible to write a new song, instead choosing to re-write the lyrics to "Candle in the Wind". George Martin was contacted to help produce the song, and added a string quartet and woodwinds to help balance the recording.
In this memorial anthem John expresses the grief felt not only by him but also from those around the world who admired Diana. With the new lyrics, John draws parallels between her life and that of the aforementioned Marilyn Monroe (the opening line of the song is changed from "Goodbye Norma Jean" to "Goodbye England's Rose
More comparisons between the two can also be seen as both Monroe and Diana had very difficult lives filled with many problems causing them both of them to suffer from depression. John sums up his feelings about Diana being like a candle in the wind, as he states "And it seems to me you lived your life, Like a candle in the wind...never fading with the sunset, when the rain set in. And your footsteps will always fall here..along England's greenest hills...your candle's burned out long before...your legend ever will...."

Answer 10

Marilyn Monroe's real name was Norma Jean Dougherty. She changed her name when she became an actress in order to sound more glamorous.

Answer 11

Do you know what the song is about, it was written by Elton John about Marilyn Monroe. Maybe in your dream you dream about your grandmother your brain is supplying this soundtrack to point out (from you to yourself) how much you admired her and miss her. It is a very sentimental and touching piece of music at that level