Climb to Fame

After the unsuccessful release of Empty Sky, Steven Brown pushed Elton to make a new album. On March 6, 1970, the album Elton John was launched at one of London's coolest clubs, the Revolution. Though the album ran over its budget by $5,000, the end result was worth it—people liked it and were buying it. Within a few months, it was on Britain's Top 50 while worldwide it was ranked number eleven. Overall, 10,000 copies were sold, which was enormous progress in comparison to Empty Sky.

Even in the studio, those working on the project knew it was going to mean something. Gus Dudgeon produced Elton John, and in an interview with Billboard magazine in 1997, he related his feelings as the album was being produced: “He [Elton] saw himself as a songwriter. I was primarily commissioned to do the Elton John album as sort of a glamorous demo. We cut the album in a week, and I never stopped grinning from beginning to end because it all fell into place so brilliantly.”

Dick James realized soon after the album's completion that it was time for Elton to get a band manager and go on tour. He wanted the world to know Elton John.