Tumbleweed Connection was Elton John’s third studio album. It was released in 1970 in the UK and 1971 in the US. Concept albums were big at the time and this record is infused with country and western/Americana themes. It remains one of my favorite Elton John albums.
The cover evokes rural America BUT a closer look at the signs indicates that it was taken at a railway station in Sussex. It’s an indelible image from photographer David Markham.
The YouTube playlists are a mess so here are my two favorite tunes from the album instead:
I would say that it does not evoke rural United States as much as it shows the closeness between the two rural cultures. I reckon that if there were not such a strong Spanish influence in the rural language of the U.S., we would have raised out livestock on stations, rather than ranches.
Love this album.