Charts: UK #24, AUS #4, CAN #38, GER #21, NLD #34, NOR #12, NZ #34, SWE #31, US #91. UK: Gold.
In 2001, Elton regarded "Heartache All Over the World" as the worst song he had ever recorded, calling it "pretty insubstantial"; in 2006, he would declare Jackets his least favourite of all his albums, saying "Gus Dudgeon did his best but you can't work with a loony."
He would also call its biker-inspired cover "very butch but a total disaster. I was not a well budgie, I was married and it was just one bag of coke after another."
(In spite of this, lyricist Bernie Taupin believes The Big Picture deserves the honour of worst album.)
In 2000, Gus Dudgeon said: "There was a chance he could polish himself off. He'd go out and do some coke and it'd be all over his mouth, his nose would be running and I'd go: 'Oh God, this is just awful'."
John has also stated in his 2019 autobiography Me that "it was about as close to an unmitigated disaster than anything I've ever released" and "overall, Leather Jackets had four legs, a tail, and barked if a postman came to the door".
"Heartache All Over the World" was the only single to achieve chart success in the US, though it failed to crack the top 50. "Slow Rivers" is a collaboration with Cliff Richard that was released as a single in the UK. Cher collaborated with "Lady Choc Ice" (actually John himself) to write "Don't Trust That Woman". Roger Taylor and John Deacon of Queen play drums and bass guitar respectively on the track "Angeline"; songwriting credit is shared with backup singer Alan Carvell, who composed the "oh-oh-oh's" that can be heard at the beginning and end of the track.
(en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leather_Jackets_(album))