Elton John's entry into the rock-disco sweepstakes comes a year too late to make much of an impact. Moreover, Victim of Love doesn't contain any John songs: producer Pete Bellotte, best known for his work with Donna Summer, did most of the writing here, except for a mummified version of "Johnny B. Goode" that's too slow for dancing. Only two of the new numbers, the title tune and "Thunder in the Night," have catchy melodies. Otherwise, the album is empty of ideas.

The style here is anonymous, derivative, Los Angeles-cum-Munich pop disco with no climaxes, no interesting instrumental breaks, no novel twists whatsoever. Either John and Bellotte couldn't think of anything better to do than echo the synthesizer hook of Rod Stewart's "Da Ya Think I'm Sexy?" or they just wanted to get the product out in a hurry. Doesn't matter. Victim of Love hasn't a breath of life.

“Let My Love Open the Door”

A peppy, hopeful love song, "Let My Love Open the Door" became a U. S. Top Ten hit for Pete Townshend in 1980, anchored by the kind of repeating synthesizer figures that he'd used in some of the Who's recordings in the previous decade. Although Townshend brushed the song off as "just a ditty" in Rolling Stone shortly after its release, in 1996 he revealed it was about love of the holiest sort. "It's supposed to be about the power of God's love," he remarked. "That when you're in difficulty, whether it's major or minor, God's love is always there for you."