Elton has had to postpone several concerts over the past 2 weeks because of illness. The final Red Piano shows in Europe, and the first few West Coast USA stops of the Face To Face tour are affected.

There’s a new Elton John biography on the bookstore shelves. “Elton John: The Bitch Is Back” by Mark Bego.

Check out the amazing set list that Elton and Ray Cooper are performing across Europe this Fall.

Continuing my series of concert reviews of the many times I’ve seen Elton John in concert, this installment recalls Elton’s 1984 tour, which was named after the album, Breaking Hearts. After the wildly energetic ‘82 tour, this time around showed no signs of slowing down the pace or level of spirit in Elton’s performance. Simply put, this show ramped it up a notch or two. Backed by the same original line-up of veteran band members Davey Johnstone, Nigel Olsson and Dee Murary, along with newcomer Fred Mandel on backing keyboards and guitar, it was another great example of how much fun an Elton John concert can be.

The show was at the Capitol Center near Washington DC in October and it was sold out. The new album had been a success with the help of the big hit Sad Songs Say So Much. My seat this time was pretty good but the view I had was of Elton’s back for the entire show. This allowed me to see his piano playing at an angle I’ve never seen before. And after most songs, he would turn around and wave to acknowledge those sitting behind him.

He walked out on stage in what can best be described as a rhinestone cowboy. A white cowboy hat, shimmering jacket with lots of sparkles and large white framed sunglasses. He made quite an entrance! He proceeded to start off with a couple of songs from Madman Across The Water: Tiny Dancer and Levon.

With the addition of Fred Mandel on backing keyboards, I could tell that he was going to bring something unique to the show. He complimented but never overstated his role and brought great funky organ flourishes to many of the songs performed that night. And Elton played with more muscle than on the previous tour as they tore through the classic rock song The Bitch Is Back and a couple of new songs: Restless and Lil’ ‘Frigerator. The latter, the weakest off the new album, was a surprise since the song, while having a great rock edge, it rather silly to sing with. But despite the clumsy words, Elton pounded away on the piano belting out “‘lil’ ‘frigerator you’re so cold!”

The vibe and mood of the audience was awesome. Everyone was on their feet having a great time. Elton performed many hits but also a good dose of songs from 1983’s Too Low For Zero (I’m Still Standing, Kiss The Bride, I Guess That’s Why The Call It The Blues, Too Low For Zero, One More Arrow). In some ways, that album got more of the spotlight than the album the tour was supposed to support.

For the encores, Elton came on stage in what is his trademark look of that decade: boater, suit and tails san glasses. As he launched into Saturday Nights Alright For Fighting, he was all over the stage and piano: jetting back and forth from one side to the other, on his knees with the other guitarists in a lineup making air guitar gestures, running under his piano, jumping on his piano and taking his jacket off and tossing it into the audience. It was crazy and unexpected as the band continued to play an extended version of this rave up song.

Elton returned for Goodbye Yellow Brick Road and Your Song before closing the show with some classic rock and roll favorites: Whole Lotta Shakin’ Going On, I Saw Her Standing There and Twist and Shout. The night ended with such a bang I wasn’t sure if there was still more to come.

But that was it. Elton clearly wanted to leave the audience wanting more and if that was the intent, it paid off. It was impossible to go home that night and not recall how much fun the show was for those nearly 2 hours. At the time, Elton said it was going to be the last big tour he was ever going to do. Thankfully, he was wrong.

I proudly wore my Breaking Hearts t-shirt to school the next day (I was in the 11th grade!) and some of my teachers were there to. It was pretty cool to know that by now Elton John was a staple on MTV, was perceived as somewhat hip again and regarded as a legend. Yea, my legend.

Elton will duet with Brandi Carlile on her upcoming album Give Up. The song is called Caroline. Look for an early October release.