“Ego”: Elton John’s self-portrait during one of his boldest musical shifts In March 1978, Elton John released “Ego,” a stand-alone single where Bernie Taupin’s lyrics and Elton’s music deliver a sharp critique of celebrity mythology. Outside the album format, the track arrived as a one-off release, paired with an ambitious promo film and a production approach built around the core creative team working with him at the time. Release and reception “Ego” came out on March 31, 1978, with “Flintstone