Elton John Said ‘Tiny Dancer’ Was ‘Resurrected’ By This Cameron Crowe Movie
“Tiny Dancer” is a song many would think about when referencing Elton John. However, the track was not immediately hit upon its release and needed help from other pop culture mediums. In 2000, a Cameron Crowe movie featured a scene with “Tiny Dancer” that John believes “resurrected” the catchy tune.
Elton John said ‘Tiny Dancer’ was ‘resurrected’ by ‘Almost Famous’
Almost Famous is a 2000 comedy-drama film directed by Cameron Crowe. The film stars Patrick Fugit, Billy Crudup, Frances McDormand, and Kate Hudson. It centers around a teenage writer for Rolling Stone who tours with the fictitious band, Stillwater, to write a cover story on the band. While the film wasn’t a box office smash, it received praise from critics and audiences alike and was nominated for four Academy Awards.
One iconic scene from the movie takes place on the tour bus, where the band engages in a spontaneous sing-along session of “Tiny Dancer”. It’s an excellent scene that stuck in the minds of audiences, reminding them just how good the song is. In an interview with Rolling Stone, Elton John recalled how Almost Famous gave “Tiny Dancer” new life.
“Jeffrey Katzenberg called me and said, ‘There’s a scene in this film which is going to make ‘Tiny Dancer’ a hit all over again,’” John said. “When I saw it, I said, ‘Oh my God!’ I used to play ‘Tiny Dancer’ in England, and it would go down like a lead zeppelin. Cameron resurrected that song.”
“Tiny Dancer” was first released on John’s 1971 album Madman Across the Water and was later released as a single in 1972. Upon its release as a single, it only reached No. 41 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100. However, it received a boost in popularity after Almost Famous and is one of John’s most recognizable songs. It was recently remixed in “Hold Me Closer,” a duet between John and Britney Spears.
Crowe spent two days filming the ‘Tiny Dancer’ scene
The “Tiny Dancer” scene holds so much significance because it showed that no matter how divided things got, they all still bonded over their love of music, even for this Elton John pop song. It was also a way for the main character to embrace the newfound family he had on the bus.
This was not a spontaneous moment, as it was included in the script. However, Crowe found the moment so euphoric that he wanted to capture shots of everyone singing it. This would require two days of filming, but the director knew it must be done perfectly.
“I talked to the cinematographer and said, ‘We gotta cover everybody singing ‘Tiny Dancer,’” Crowe told Rolling Stone. “And he’s like, ‘Did you hear what the studio told you recently? This is gonna take two days!’ And I’m like, ‘But you feel it, right? You feel it.’ He goes, ‘I feel it.’ And I go, ‘Is it two days?’ He goes, ‘It’s two days.’ I’m going, ‘We got to do it.’ And so we did spend two days chasing that feeling, and so much greatness happened out of it.”
