ELTONSCHAUNG

Look, kid, I coulda discovered Elton John. No, really! I had the opportunity to be the very first person in America to announce the discovery of this singing, piano-playing geniussensation.

Now, every critic is given all kinds of opportunities to discover new sensations, and Elton John was only one of a dozen that crossed my desk in the six months I was an Associate Editor of Rolling Stone. Every week there was a newi hype. But Elton John's publicist was one Norm Winter, and 1 tell ya, he was persistent. It got so I gave the receptionist orders not to allow any more of his phone calls past the front desk, so she got stuck listening to the hype. He'd hype anybody. ,}