| "Island Girl" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 Sleeve for UK single | ||||
| Single by Elton John | ||||
| from the album Rock of the Westies | ||||
| B-side | "Sugar on the Floor" | |||
| Released | 29 September 1975 | |||
| Recorded | June–July 1975 | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 3:42 | |||
| Label | MCA (US) DJM (UK) | |||
| Songwriter(s) | ||||
| Producer(s) | Gus Dudgeon | |||
| Elton John singles chronology | ||||
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| Official audio | ||||
| "Island Girl" on YouTube | ||||
"Island Girl" is a 1975 song by English musician Elton John. It was written by John and his songwriting collaborator Bernie Taupin and released as the first single from the album Rock of the Westies (1975). It reached number one for three weeks on the Billboard Hot 100 in the U.S. (John's final No. 1 single as a solo artist for 22 years),[2] selling over one million copies. It also reached the top five in Canada and New Zealand, as well as the top twenty in Australia and the UK.
John has not performed the song since 1990. While no official reason has been given, Andy Greene of Rolling Stone surmises it is due in part to controversial lyrics about a Jamaican prostitute in New York City and a Jamaican man who wants to take her back to Jamaica.[3]
- ^ Breihan, Tom (12 August 2019). "The Number Ones: Elton John's "Island Girl"". Stereogum. Retrieved 26 June 2023.
"Island Girl," with its steel drums and its chunky beat, sounds a bit like a reggae song...
- ^ "Weekly Billboard Hot 100 No. 1 Songs from the First 50 Years", Billboard. 2008.
- ^ "Flashback: Elton John Plays His Forgotten Number One Hit 'Island Girl'". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 7 June 2022.