I think it's gonna be a long, long time until we see another songwriter and performer like Elton John.
The British pianist and vocalist Elton John has brought to a conclusion his 50-year-long career with a farewell tour, in which he sang many of his hits.
I think it's gonna be a long, long time until we see another songwriter and performer like Elton John.
Wrapping up a 50-plus year career with a farewell tour, the British pianist and vocalist has created some of the most memorable and enduring music in the history of pop-rock, songs burned into the collective DNA of humanity.
They may be quite simple, like the basic four-chord glory of 바카라Crocodile Rock바카라, or dazzlingly complex like the 11-minute magnum opus 바카라Funeral For A Friend/Love Lies Bleeding바카라.
But now that it's almost done, I hope you don't mind that I put down in words how wonderful it has been to have Elton John on our radios and in our ears since the late 1960s.
The artist born 75 years ago as Reginald Kenneth Dwight kicked off the final leg of his North American farewell tour on Friday night at Citizens Bank Park, home of baseball's Philadelphia Phillies. And yes, he felt the love that night.
바카라America made me famous and I can't thank this country enough,바카라 he told the audience. 바카라Thank you for the loyalty, the love, the kindness you showed me.바카라
He has sold over 300 million records worldwide, has played over 4,000 shows in 80 countries, and recorded one of the best-selling singles of all-time, his 1997 reworking of 바카라Candle In The Wind바카라 to eulogize Princess Diana, which sold 33 million copies.
Sir Elton (he was knighted in 1998) has scored over 70 top 40 hits, including nine No. 1s, and released seven No. 1 albums in the 3 1/2-year period from 1972 to 1975, a pace second only to that of the Beatles.
He has five Grammy awards, as well as a Tony award for 바카라Aida바카라. His crooning of 바카라Can You Feel The Love Tonight바카라 in 바카라The Lion King바카라 motion picture has serenaded millions of children, and will entertain future generations of little ones.
The outrageous costumes and oversized glasses he was known for in his early 70s heyday are gone now (he dressed as Donald Duck, Pac-Man, the Statue of Liberty, Minnie Mouse, and a Los Angeles Dodgers baseball player, among others).
And while the man has not met a sequin or a feather he doesn't adore, his wardrobe is (by Elton standards) somewhat tamer these days.
He took the stage in a white tuxedo with black lapels, and purple sparkly glasses, walking somewhat tentatively to his shiny black piano to pound out the instantly recognisable opening chord to 바카라Benny And The Jets바카라.
Next up was 바카라Philadelphia Freedom바카라, which he dedicated to the hometown crowd as 바카라one of the greatest cities I've ever played in바카라. It was his 52nd concert in the City of Brotherly Love.
Throughout the night, John rolled out a dazzling array of smash hits spanning musical styles and genres. The gospel phrasings and cadences that so influenced his early work were evident on 바카라Border Song바카라 and 바카라Take Me To The Pilot바카라, and even the straightforward radio staple 바카라Levon바카라 got a come-to-meeting revved-up ending.
He showed off the prototypical power ballad, 바카라Don't Let The Sun Go Down On Me,바카라 with its close cousin 바카라Someone Saved My Life Tonight바카라.
And when longtime guitar sidekick Davey Johnstone donned an inverted Flying-V guitar, it was time for the power chord arena rockers, including Elton's hardest-rocking song ever, 바카라Saturday Night's Alright For Fighting,바카라 and the brash, boastful and Elton-to-the-bone anthem 바카라The Bitch Is Back바카라.
Elton largely eschewed his famous falsetto; he still has 100 shows to go on the worldwide farewell tour that runs through next year, and he's learned over the years how to conserve his voice without sacrificing his style and authenticity.
No matter: the crowd happily supplied the falsetto parts for him, including a mass sing-along of the 바카라la-la-la바카라 chorus on 바카라Crocodile Rock바카라.
He reached back for only one deep track, 바카라Have Mercy On The Criminal바카라, featuring Johnstone's bluesy guitar licks, tucking it amid the dozens of smash hits.
And he avoided tear-jerkers like 바카라Sorry Seems To Be The Hardest Word바카라 and the gut-wrenching 바카라The Last Song바카라 about a farewell between a father and his son who's dying of AIDS, in favour of an upbeat, celebratory mood.
바카라All The Girls Love Alice,바카라 one of the earliest mainstream rock songs to focus on lesbian relationships in the early '70s, is an enduring concert staple, as is the straight-from-the-heart 바카라Your Song.바카라
Before the closing number, 바카라Goodbye Yellow Brick Road,바카라 Elton peered toward the finish line of his final tour.
바카라I'm really looking forward to spending the rest of my life with my children and my husband,바카라 he said. 바카라Be kind to yourself. Love each other.바카라
The consummate showman to the very end, Elton finished the song, and was elevated into the sky on a hydraulic lift as a hole opened in a brick wall atop the stage, engulfed him, and closed again.
So while Elton John will soon be gone from the stage, thank God his music's still alive.
[With Inputs From PTI-AP]