Ice on Fire
| Ice on Fire | ||||
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| Studio album by Elton John | ||||
| Released | 4 November 1985 | |||
| Recorded | January 1985 | |||
| Genre | Soft rock, pop rock, new wave | |||
| Length | 46:17 | |||
| Label |
Geffen (US) Rocket (UK) |
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| Producer | Gus Dudgeon | |||
| Elton John chronology | ||||
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| Singles from Ice on Fire | ||||
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| Professional ratings | |
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| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |    |
| Rolling Stone | (not rated) |
Ice on Fire, released in November 1985, is the nineteenth official album release for Elton John. Recorded at Sol Studios, it was his first album since Blue Moves produced by his original long-time producer, Gus Dudgeon, who was responsible for John's success in that timespan, but it was met with little praise, and only reached #48 on the US charts, although it reached #3 in the UK. George Michael, then of Wham!, appears on two tracks on the album: "Nikita" and "Wrap Her Up".
Despite the mediocre sales of the album in the US, "Nikita" and "Wrap Her Up" became top 20 hits, the former reaching #7 in the US and #3 in the UK. Roger Taylor and John Deacon of Queen play drums and bass guitar respectively on "Too Young". In the US it was certified gold in June 1986 by the RIAA.
All songs written by Elton John and Bernie Taupin, except where noted.
The remastered 1999 version did not include "Act of War"; the 1985 original CD issue and the 1999 remaster have a longer intro to "Satellite" than the LP issue, and has a slightly different vocal mix. The live version of "Sorry Seems to Be the Hardest Word" is not the version found on the 12" single of "Nikita", but is an unreleased version from 1977 (Live at Rainbow Rock in May). It is unknown why the switch occurred. The other two live tracks were recorded at Wembley Stadium during the tour for the album Breaking Hearts.
According to Elizabeth Rosenthal in her book, His Songs: The Musical Journey of Elton John, the LP's closing track, "Shoot Down the Moon", was considered for the James Bond film A View to a Kill, but the producers instead decided to go with the title track as performed by Duran Duran.
"The Man Who Never Died" is a song written about John Lennon, in addition to "Empty Garden (Hey Hey Johnny)", from Elton John's album Jump Up!
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