In 1971, Elton John released a song that was almost entirely forgotten. Since then, it has been streamed 1,000,000,000 times

Elton John’s ‘Tiny Dancer’, first released on his 1971 album *Madman Across the Water*, was initially a commercial disappointment but has since surpassed one billion Spotify streams. Its later popularity shows how a song can find a much larger audience decades after its release.

Bernie Taupin wrote the lyrics after visiting California, drawing on people he met there, including his then-wife Maxine Feibelman. Released as a US single in 1972, the song struggled partly because its six-minute length was difficult for radio and some stations objected to its “Jesus freaks” reference; it reached number 41 on the Billboard Hot 100. Its resurgence gathered pace after it featured in the 2000 film *Almost Famous*.