"The Last Song" is a song by English musician Elton John, released as the third single from his 23rd studio album, ''

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'' (1992). It was composed by John, with lyrics provided by Bernie Taupin. The song marked the first of John's American singles to benefit his

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. It reached 7 in Canada and No. 21 in the United Kingdom while peaking within the top 40 in several countries worldwide, including Australia, Ireland, New Zealand, and the United States.

Background

John's lyricist, Bernie Taupin, faxed the lyrics to him in Paris, shortly after

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lead singer Freddie Mercury had died the previous year. He said: "I was crying all the time as I wrote the music", John told '' The Advocate'', "and it was very hard for me to sing it". Taupin went on to explain:

"We didn't go for the obvious. I tried to do something lyrically that would thaw the intolerance of not understanding. That's why I used the idea of a father coming to terms with his son's status in life and his sexuality, but unfortunately understanding too late. If you can melt a little intolerance along the way, I'm happy with that."

Originally titled "Song for 1992", it was renamed to avoid dating it.

Music video

A music video, directed by Gus Van Sant, was made for the song, but he was not the first director considered;

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and Madonna had previously declined the offer.

Personnel

* Elton John – piano, vocals *

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– keyboards

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Release history

In popular culture

"The Last Song" was used during a closing montage at the end of the 1993 film ''

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'', which featured images of notable people who had contracted AIDS. It has also been mentioned numerous times on ''

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''; whose producer

Gary Dell'Abate Gary Patrick Angelo Dell'Abate (born March 14, 1961), also known by the nickname Baba Booey, is an American radio producer who has been the executive producer of ''The Howard Stern Show'' since 1984. His autobiography, '' They Call Me Baba Booey'' ...

said that the song and music video reminded him of his brother, who died of AIDS around the time ''The One'' was released. When they first played the song on the air, Dell'Abate broke out in tears during the first verse. Dell'Abate, Gary (31 May 2011)
''They Call Me Baba Booey''
Spiegel & Grau. p 159. Archived at

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. Retrieved 2 October 2015.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Last Song 1992 singles 1992 songs Elton John songs LGBT-related songs MCA Records singles The Rocket Record Company singles Song recordings produced by Chris Thomas (record producer) Songs about HIV/AIDS Songs with lyrics by Bernie Taupin Songs with music by Elton John