Candle in the Wind
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"Candle in the Wind" is a song with music by Elton John and lyrics by Bernie Taupin. Originally written in 1973, a later version of the song became the world's best-selling single of all time.
The original version was found on Elton John's 1973 album Goodbye Yellow Brick Road. The lyrics of the song are sympathetic portrayal of the life of Marilyn Monroe (the song's opening line "Goodbye Norma Jean" refers to Monroe's real name) and condemn exploitation by those around her, using the metaphor of a candle extinguished prematurely after the loneliness of her final years. The single release of the original song reached number eleven in the UK charts in early 1974, and a live recording reached number five in 1988.
On September 6 1997, John sang the song at the funeral of his friend Diana, Princess of Wales in Westminster Abbey, having rewritten the lyrics with Taupin to try to reflect the grief that many felt at the loss of the Princess (the opening line became "Goodbye England's Rose"), implicitly drawing parallels between her life and that of Monroe.
"Candle in the Wind '97", produced by George Martin, was released on September 13 1997 as a double A-side with "Something about the Way You Look Tonight", and instantly became the fastest-selling single in the UK, selling 658,000 copies in the UK on that day alone, over 1.5 million copies in its first week, and remaining at number one for 5 weeks.
It eventually sold 4.86 million copies in the UK, overtaking "Do They Know It's Christmas?" to become the best-selling single of all time in the UK. It also sold over 11 million copies in the U.S. (again the all-time best-selling single) after receiving advance orders of nearly 9 million, and was number one in most countries around the world (In Canada, it spent three years in the top 20, with 45 weeks at the top spot). In total, over 33 million copies were sold around the world, making it the best-selling single of all-time worldwide. All artist and composer royalties and record company profits were donated to the Diana, Princess of Wales Memorial Fund.
Elton John has never re-performed the 1997 version of "Candle in the Wind". The popular single was recorded from his funeral perfomance. At concerts, he performs the 1973 version.
Candle In The Wind is also the name of a 1941 play by Maxwell Anderson.