| "Honky Cat" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 One of side-A labels of the US single | ||||
| Single byElton John | ||||
| from the albumHonky Château | ||||
| B-side | "Slave" | |||
| Released | 31 July 1972 | |||
| Recorded | 17 January 1972 | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 5:12 | |||
| Label | Uni (USA),DJM (UK) | |||
| Songwriter(s) | ||||
| Producer(s) | Gus Dudgeon | |||
| Elton John singles chronology | ||||
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| Audio | ||||
| "Honky Cat" onYouTube | ||||
"Honky Cat" is a song written by English musicianElton John and songwriterBernie Taupin, and performed by John. It was used as the opening track for John's fifth studio album,Honky Château, released in 1972.[3]
"Honky Cat" was also released as the A-side of John's thirteenth single.[3] The single reachedNo. 31 in the United Kingdom, and fared better in the United States, peaking atNo. 8 on theBillboard Hot 100 just as John launched an American tour in September 1972.[4]
John has performed this song numerous times in the 50+ years since its release.[5] A live version of the song was released on the Here side of theHere and There live set in 1976 (and its expanded CD version in 1995), and a solo piano version appeared on the EltonJohn.comLive in Madison Square Garden Vol. 1 limited edition CD, recorded in October 1999 duringhis 1999 solo tour.[6]
Record World said that the "sparkling mix and funky backbeat suit Elton's slidy vocal down to the ground."[7]Cash Box said "Faster than a speeding 'Rocket Man,' and more powerful for the rinky-tink fun of it all, this track from [John's] #1 LP should be his biggest ever."[8] Winston Cook-Wilson ofSpin called it John's "most underrated" single.[9]
In 2018, Dave Simpson ofThe Guardian ranked the song No. 48 on his list of the 50 greatest Elton John songs.[10] The following year, Justin Kirkland ofEsquire ranked the song No. 27 on his list of the 30 best Elton John songs, calling it a "funky, horn-laden hit" and writing that "it's hard to compare the odd mix of electric piano and wheezing saxophone to any other single in Elton's songbook."[11]
Lee Ann Womack covered the song on the 2018 tribute albumRestoration: Reimagining the Songs of Elton John and Bernie Taupin.
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