It doesn’t take a genius to work out that an Elton John live show is going to be magnificent.
After a career spanning more than 50 years, it’s outrageous to assume otherwise, even taking his age of 75 into account, as well as recent hip difficulties and his own admissions of being knackered and ready to hang up his jazzy jackets and tuck that piano stool away for good. Reports of him being ‘frail’ are completely unfounded.
Sir Elton is a showman of another level, a real virtuoso, and it’s evident he still adores it, despite making the decision to wind down the touring part of his life to spend more time with sons Zachary and Elijah and husband David Furnish (who were all in attendance on Friday night and got a special shout-out from dad/the other half). He admitted on stage he was elated to be back at it, despite fearing he’d hate it – and thank goodness.
Sir Elton’s headline set on the opening day of London’s BST Hyde Park festival was a love letter from himself to his fans of the highest degree, his elation radiating out of him.
The weather was surprisingly steady, despite the constant threat of rain, and the vibes in Hyde Park were perfect, thousands of fans quite frankly buzzing to be back out at a proper outdoor music event again after two years of pandemic misery.
Sir Elton was a joyous star of his own show, part of his Farewell Yellow Brick Road tour, which he started in 2018 but which has been beset by pandemic and health-related delays following an operation on his hip.
Following sets from his support acts including Rina Sawayama, Gabriels, Let’s Eat Grandma, Berwyn and Thomas Headon, he and his long-time backing band (including Davey Johnstone on guitar and Nigel Olsson on drums) kicked off his lavish two-hour-long set with Bennie and the Jets and Philadelphia Freedom. From then on, the die was cast for an outstanding few hours in his world of megahits. Those aforementioned jazzy jackets were on point, his white coat-tails a particular highlight, with his fabulously flamboyant style finished off with several pairs of his iconic sparkly specs.
The setlist was long and winding, taking us through ballads including I Guess That’s Why They Call It The Blues, Rocket Man, Tiny Dancer, Candle In The Wind, Sorry Seems to Be The Hardest Word, and his uptempo classics Crocodile Rock, The Bitch Is Back, I’m Still Standing and Saturday Night’s Alright For Fighting.
It was an absolute party and a reminder he really is one of the greatest to ever do it.
The high point for this reviewer was Don’t Let The Sun Go Down On Me, an emotional rendition following a tribute to the late,= George Michael, who famously collaborated with Sir Elton on the track in the early 1990s. Did I cry a bit? Quite possibly.
The show ended with Cold Heart, his recent number one hit with Dua Lipa, a reworking of some of his biggest hits including Rocket Man and Sacrifice. His first chart-topping single was a poignant addition to the encore, coming before he launched into his first-ever hit from more than 50 years ago, Your Song.
The night ended with Goodbye Yellow Brick Road, of course, his big farewell that had the thousands of revellers in the middle of London swept off their feet, nobody ready for the night to end.
Sir Elton still has a long way to go on his farewell tour, with dozens and dozens of shows left to play across the UK, Ireland, North America and Europe until it comes to an end next summer. But his energy is still there and, based on his Hyde Park show, he’s got a lot left to give.
I think we’ll be seeing Sir Elton playing live concerts of this magnitude for longer than he originally thought – he loves it too much, as do we.
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