Elton John Celebrates 60, Lavishly, in His Garden
Elton John basked in confetti on Sunday at his birthday show at Madison Square Garden. Guests included Bernie Taupin and Whoopi Goldberg.
Elton John has never seemed like the kind of guy to shrug off a big occasion. So it was natural, perhaps even inevitable, that he would celebrate his 60th birthday at Madison Square Garden. His sprawling concert on Sunday night featured no onstage candles — not even “Candle in the Wind” — but felt ceremonial enough without them. There were dedications, recollections and a shower of confetti. A banner was unfurled from the rafters, bearing a giant number 60 under his name.
That last flourish actually commemorated something other than a birthday: Mr. John’s 60th performance in this arena. That’s more than any other single artist, as the finer print under the numeral made clear. Small wonder that he wanted to spend his birthday at the Garden: it’s obviously a place where he feels at home.
The concert’s opening salvo was “Sixty Years On,” a conveniently titled song from one of his first albums. Immediately there was the ominous threat of showbiz bloat: Las Vegas-style lighting, ponderous synthesizers and cosmic graphics on an oversize screen. It was looking to be a big night, and not just in the festive sense.
Fortunately, things got better, and not too much bigger: the concert gathered strength as it steamrolled along, covering a wide range of material from an expansive career. Mr. John’s regular five-piece backing band, augmented by the cellist Martin Tillman, sounded crisp and engaged, only occasionally succumbing to pomp. And the Brooklyn Youth Chorus managed to bring a sense of uplift, along with some raw power.
Singing in an unfaltering voice, and projecting an exuberant air, Mr. John behaved more like a master of ceremonies than a guest of honor. His patter between songs was affable enough to defy the dimensions of the arena.
“We haven’t played this song in maybe 30 years,” he mused before starting into “Ballad of a Well-Known Gun,” the first of many gospel-inflected romps. He introduced “Mona Lisas and Mad Hatters” as “one of my all-time favorites,” almost as if he had nothing to do with writing it.
Of course, flamboyance has always suited Mr. John better than modesty. (Robin Williams, briefly taking the stage with Whoopi Goldberg, toasted him as “a man who used to make Liberace look Amish.”)
But he was understated on Sunday: black coat, white shirt. And though he struck one puckish pose atop the piano and took multiple victory laps across the stage, his performance was relatively subdued. Even on “Empty Garden,” his tribute to John Lennon, he conveyed a plainly mournful feeling, stripped of melodrama.
The evening’s biggest guest was a nonperformer: Bernie Taupin, Mr. John’s lyricist and creative partner of 40 years. Emerging on the heels of Mr. Williams — and upstaging him in the only possible setting where he could — Mr. Taupin led the audience in singing “Happy Birthday.”
Mr. John reciprocated by giving credit where it’s due: “Without Bernie Taupin, none of us would be here tonight. Because the words have always come first.”
Then came “Daniel,” one of the pair’s many successful collaborations, and the beginning of the concert’s stronger midsection. The band caromed through a number of the well-worn hits found on “Rocket Man — No. 1’s,” a compilation released today by Island/UMe, along with lesser-known fare like “All the Young Girls Love Alice.”
Mr. John and his cohorts kept getting lighter and leaner, sounding best during the last few songs before the encore: “The Bitch Is Back,” “Crocodile Rock” and “Saturday Night’s Alright (for Fighting),” each more emphatic than the last.
The song preceding that finish-line sprint was more telling, though. It was “I’m Still Standing,” accompanied by a video montage of album covers and outlandish old photographs. The song’s lyrics amount to a bitter reprisal, but Mr. John made them sound more jubilant than angry.
“Don’t you know I’m still standing better than I ever did,” he sang. “Looking like a true survivor, feeling like a little kid.”
Elton John Celebrates 60 Lavishly, in His Garden
|
|
Elton John never seemed like the kind of guy to shrug off a big occasion. So it was natural, perhaps even inevitable, that he would celebrate his 60th birthday at Madison Square Garden. His sprawling concert on Sunday night featured no onstage candles – not even "Candle in the Wind" – but felt ceremonial enough without them. There were dedications, recollections and a shower of confetti. A banner was unfurled from the rafters, bearing a giant number 60 under Mr. John's name.
That last flourish actually commemorated something other than a birthday: Mr. John's 60th performance in the arena. That's more than any other single artist, as the finer print under the numeral made clear. Small wonder that Mr. John wanted to spend his birthday at the Garden: it's obviously a place where he feels at home.
The concert's opening salvo was "Sixty Years On," a conveniently titled song from one of Mr. John's first albums. Immediately there was the ominous threat of show biz bloat: Las Vegas-style lighting, heavy synthesizers and cosmic graphics on an oversized screen. It was looking to be a big night, and not just in the festive sense.
Thankfully things got better, and not too much bigger: the concert gathered strength as it steamrolled along, covering a wide range of material from an expansive career. Mr. John's regular five-piece backing band, augmented by the cellist Martin Tillman, sounded crisp and engaged, only occasionally succumbing to pomp. And the Brooklyn Youth Chorus managed to bring a sense of uplift, along with some raw power.
Singing in an unfaltering voice, and projecting an exuberant air, Mr. John behaved more like a master of ceremonies than a guest of honor. His patter between songs was affable enough to defy the dimensions of the arena. "We haven't played this song in maybe 30 years," he mused before starting into "Ballad of a Well-Known Gun," the first of many gospel-inflected romps. He introduced "Mona Lisas and Mad Hatters" as "one of my all-time favorites," almost as if he hadn't been the one to write it.
Of course flamboyance has always suited Mr. John better than modesty. (Robin Williams, briefly taking the stage with Whoopi Goldberg, toasted him as "a man who used to make Liberace look Amish.") But he was understated on Sunday: black coat, white shirt. And though he struck one puckish pose atop the piano, and took multiple victory laps across the stage, his performance was relatively subdued. Even on "Empty Garden," a tribute to John Lennon, he conveyed a plainly rueful feeling, stripped of melodrama.
The evening's biggest guest was a non-performer: Bernie Taupin, Mr. John's lyricist and creative partner of 40 years. Emerging on the heels of Mr. Williams – and upstaging him in the only possible setting where he could – Mr. Taupin led the audience in singing "Happy Birthday." Mr. John reciprocated by giving credit where it's due: "Without Bernie Taupin none of us would be here tonight. Because the words have always come first."
Then came "Daniel," one of the pair's many successful collaborations, and the beginning of the concert's stronger midsection. The band caromed through well-worn hits like "Rocket Man," along with lesser-known fare like "All the Young Girls Love Alice." Mr. John and his cohorts kept getting lighter and leaner, sounding best during the last few songs before the encore: "The Bitch is Back," "Crocodile Rock" and "Saturday Night's Alright (For Fighting)," each more emphatic than the last.
The song preceding that finish-line sprint was more telling, though. It was "I'm Still Standing," accompanied by a video montage of album covers and outlandish old photographs. The song's lyrics amount to a bitter reprisal, but Mr. John made them sound more jubilant than angry. "Don't you know I'm still standing better than I ever did," he sang. "Looking like a true survivor, feeling like a little kid."
No comments:
Post a Comment