Elton John
County Ground, Hove, East Sussex
There are some things you can rely on an old rocker not to lose. Their judgment may wobble, their vocals too, but they never forget three things: how to work a crowd, how to play their instrument, and how to make a splash.
Elton John’s showmanship is undimmed, all gush and Gucci. His hands on the piano are still chubby, bejewelled and capable of magic, as they conjure up the music he knows like the back of them.
And, at 72, he still grabs headlines. Before these British dates, he said he was ‘sick to death’ of Brexit and ‘ashamed of my country’; once here, he declares that ‘we need to leave or we’ll still be divided’.
Elton John’s showmanship is undimmed. His hands on the piano are still chubby, bejewelled and capable of magic, as they conjure up the music he knows like the back of them
Never mind the U-turns, he remains a crowd-puller. The balconies around Sussex’s cricket ground are packed, the streets full of families getting a free glimpse of the big screen, the seats on the pristine outfield sold out.
Elton’s audience runs from mums with babies in slings to couples with walking sticks. A small boy practises his bowling action. This is Middle England.
The opening track, Bennie And The Jets, rings out at 6.30pm, like evensong. ‘Good evening, Hove,’ says Elton. ‘Welcome to the first UK show on the Farewell Yellow Brick Road tour.
Elton returns for the encore in a pink dressing gown, with something up his sleeve: a cameo from Taron Egerton, his screen doppelgänger. They tackle Your Song touchingly
There will be many more…’ He can say that again: it’s the longest of goodbyes, spanning 300 dates. Do you detect a certain reluctance to leave the limelight?
He has also been working on what’s billed as his first autobiography. In fact he has three, in different media: the book, expected in October; the hit film Rocketman, telling his story not from rags to riches but from repression to rehab; and this tour, which is steeped in his past.
The screen displays photographs Elton has collected, from Muhammad Ali to Martin Parr. The band includes the twinkling Nigel Olsson, his drummer since 1972, and the live-wire percussionist Ray Cooper, Elton’s sidekick on tour in 1979 – just after his first retirement.
Of the 24 songs, 20 are from the Seventies, Elton’s galloping heyday. His greatest hits – Border Song, Daniel, Philadelphia Freedom – are joined by so-so album tracks and his greatest flop, Tiny Dancer, which reached only No 70 yet still lodged in the nation’s heart.
The finest southern-soul voice ever to emerge from a pub in Pinner is still glowing. He nails every ballad, especially if Bernie Taupin (the real hero of the film) hands him a complete sentence: Sorry Seems To Be The Hardest Word, Someone Saved My Life Tonight, Don’t Let The Sun Go Down On Me.
When he sings the last one, this being England in June, the sun hasn’t even come out.
The ballads, always outstanding, have competition tonight. Crocodile Rock gets the fans going – on video, trying on Elton’s costumes, and in person, adding crisp la-la-las and handclaps. It’s now officially rescued from wedding purgatory.
Elton returns for the encore in a pink dressing gown, with something up his sleeve: a cameo from Taron Egerton, his screen doppelgänger. They tackle Your Song, touchingly, but Taron is understandably tentative and no match for himself in the film, let alone Elton in full flow.
Where’s George Michael when you need him?
Earlier we had a rousing Rocket Man (the song) and a haunting Candle In The Wind, lit up by footage of Marilyn Monroe. To finish, there’s a piercing Goodbye Yellow Brick Road.
If that song came out now, it would be hailed as a sad banger. And its author as a superstar.
The Farewell Yellow Brick Road tour returns to Britain from November 4, 2020 to December 16, 2020, eltonjohn.com