Navigation
  • Home
  • Recent
  • Most Active
  • Popular
  • Blog
  • Credits
  • RSS
    		•
      Interaction
  • Register
  • Statistics
    		•
      Help
  • Suggestions
  • Contact Us
  • How to Edit
  • Help
    		•



    [Edit]




    Sir Elton HerculesSteptoe and Son, appears little used (it only receives http://www.google.com/search?q    		%22Elton+Hercules+John%22 801 Google results as of 27/05/06), however http://www.bartleby.com/65/jo/John-Elt.html The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed. uses the name in its entry. It is officially part of his name, as reflected in
    Image:Deed poll certificate for Elton John.jpg
    ');" onMouseOut="nd();">• John, CBE (born Reginald Kenneth Dwight on 25 March 1947) is an English pop/rock singer, composer and pianist. In a career spanning five decades, Elton John has sold over 250 million records and has over 50 Top 40 hits, making him one of the most successful musicians of all time.

    John was one of the dominant commercial forces in the rock world during the 1970s, with a string of seven consecutive
    In the early 1990s, John publicly revealed the personal costs of his rock-star extravagance: his ongoing struggle with drug abuse, depression and bulimia. He continues to be a major public figure, and has been heavily involved in the fight against AIDS since the late 1980s. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1994 and was knighted in 1998, and has remained an enduringly successful artist.

        Elton John
                Early years (1947–1962)
                Early career (1962–1969)
                1970s
                1980s
                1990s
                2000s
            Personal life
                Sexual orientation and extended relationships
                Drugs, alcohol and health
                Spending
                Sports and other interests
                Charity
            Musical style and voice
            Awards
            Discography
            Band members
            See also
    NameElton John
    ImgEltonjohn.jpg
    Img CaptElton John performing, 2006
    Backgroundsolo_singer
    Born25 March 1947
    WealthRoughly $500 million
    OriginPinner, London, England
    GenreRock music
    OccupationSinger-songwriter, pianist, record producer
    Years Active1967—present
    LabelUni Records

    top

    Early years (1947–1962)
    Reginald Kenneth Dwight was born in Pinner, Middlesex, a London suburb. His father, Stanley Dwight, was an officer in the Royal Air Force and was frequently away. When the elder Dwight was home, he was demanding, disapproving, and difficult to please, exuding a frightening countenance. Reggie's mother, the former Sheila Harris, was strict, but in contrast to her husband was Elton's true mentor, confidant, and confidence booster. Years later, she said that her son grew up "a bundle of nerves." Reggie's childhood was marred by terrible arguments between his parents. But something happened in 1950 that would set his life on an immutable course: At age three, he started playing the piano by ear.

    The home's general tunefulness encouraged Reggie's entry into music. Standley Dwight had once played trumpet with and American-styled big band called Bob Miller and the Millermen. He and Sheila were avid record buyers, exposing Reggie to the music of pianists Winifred Atwell, Nat King Cole, and George Shearing, and to signers Rosemary Clooney, Frank Sinatra, Kay Starr, Johnny Ray, Guy Mitchell, Jo Stafford, and Frankie Laine. By the time he was four, his parents recognized Reggie's talent, and would often ask him to play at parties.

    In 1956, Reggie discovered Elvis Presley. Soon his mother was buying him records by rock 'n' roll acts like Presley and Bill Haley and the Comets. By the time he started attending the Royal Academy of Music on a scholarship at age 11, Reggie's musical mind was firmly wedded to rock'n'roll.

    Reggie preferred playing by ear. Subprofessor Helen Piena once said that upon the boy's entrance into the Academy, she'd played him a for-page piece by Handel, which he promptly played back for her like a "gramophone record." Reggie enjoyed playing Chopin and Bach and singing in the choir during his Saturday classes at the Academy, but was not otherwise a diligent classical student. As he remembered decades later, "I kind of resented going to the Academy. I was one of those children who could just about get away without practicing and still pass, scrape through the grades." Sometimes, he would play truant and ride around the tube. Yet Piena saw Reggie as a "model student."

    A student at the Academy for five years, Reggie rounded out the little free time he had with a newspaper route and a job at a wine shop on Saturday afternoons after class. At Pinner Country Grammar School, he was more advanced musically than his peers, and had an aptitude for songwriting, dashing off good melodies for his composition assignments.

    Reggie's record collection grew rapidly. He took sustenance in the early rock'n'roll piano pioneers, annoying his father, who wanted him to concentrate on the classics, and frightening his mother with a fascination for music of the sexual, androgynous Little Richard. Reggie gained some notoriety by playing like Jerry Lee Lewis at Pinner County Grammar School functions, and even sang.

    In 1962, Reggie's embattled parents finally divorced, in the wake of Sheila Dwight's friendship with a painter named Fred Farebrother. Later, Stanley married again and had four children.

    top

    Early career (1962–1969)
    At age fifteen, with the help of caring father figure Farebrother, Reginald Dwight became a weekend pianist at the nearby Northwood Hills pub, playing on Friday, Saturday and Sunday nights. The crowd was often rough – sometimes an unruly patron would dump a pint of beer into Reggie's piano – and the youngster had to work hard to please them. He played everything from Jim Reeves country songs ("He'll Have to Go") to Irish folk numbers ("When Irish Eyes Are Smiling"), decades-old ditties ("Beer Barrel Polka"), hits of the day ("King of the Road"), and songs that he had written himself. He received a modest, steady income and substantial tips. "During that whole period, I don't think I ever missed a gig," he said later. A stint with a short-lived group called the Corvettes rounded out his time.

    In 1964, Dwight and his friends formed a band called Bluesology. By day, he ran errands for a music publishing company; he divided his nights between solo gigs at a London hotel bar and working with Bluesology. By the mid-1960s, Bluesology was backing touring American soul and R&B musicians like The Isley Brothers, Major Lance, Doris Troy and Patti LaBelle and the Bluebelles. In 1966, the band became musician Long John Baldry's supporting band and began touring cabarets in England.

    After failing lead vocalist auditions for both King Crimson and Gentle Giant, Dwight answered an advertisement in the New Musical Express placed by Ray Williams, then the A&R manager for Liberty Records. At their first meeting, Williams gave Dwight a stack of lyrics written by Bernie Taupin, who had answered the same ad. Dwight wrote music for the lyrics, and then mailed it to Taupin, and thus began a partnership that continues to this day. In 1967, what would become the first Elton John/Bernie Taupin song, "Scarecrow", was recorded: when the two first met, six months later, Reginald Dwight had changed his name to Elton John, by deed poll, in homage to Bluesology saxophonist ''Elton'' Dean and Long John Baldry.


    The team of John and Taupin joined Dick James's DJM Records as staff songwriters in 1968, and over the next two years wrote material for various artists, like Roger Cook and Lulu. Taupin would write a batch of lyrics in under an hour and give it to John, who would write music for them in half an hour, disposing of the lyrics if he couldn't come up with anything quickly. For two years, they wrote easy-listening tunes for James to peddle to singers.

    Their early output included an entry for British song for the Eurovision Song Contest in 1969, called "Can't Go On (Living Without You)" It came sixth of six songs.

    On the advice of music publisher Steve Brown, John and Taupin started writing more complex songs for John to record for DJM. The first was the single "I've Been Loving You" (1968), produced by Caleb Quaye, former Bluesology guitarist. In 1969, with Quaye, drummer Roger Pope, and bassist Tony Murray, John recorded another single, "Lady Samantha," and an album, Empty Sky. Despite good reviews, none of the records sold well.

    top

    1970s

    John and Taupin now enlisted Gus Dudgeon to produce a follow-up with Paul Buckmaster as arranger.
    Elton John was released in the spring of 1970 on DJM Records/Pye Records in the UK and Uni Records in the USA, and established the formula for subsequent albums: gospel-chorded rockers and poignant ballads. After the first single "Your Song" made the U.S. Top Ten, the album followed suit. John's first American concert took place at The Troubadour in Los Angeles, in August, backed by ex-Spencer Davis Group drummer Nigel Olsson and bassist Dee Murray. Kicking over his piano bench Jerry Lee Lewis-style and performing handstands on the keyboards, John left the critics raving, and drew praise from fellow artists such as Quincy Jones and Bob Dylan.

    Elton John was followed quickly with the concept album Tumbleweed Connection in October 1970, which reached the Top Ten on the Billboard 200. A frenetic pace of releasing two albums a year was now established.

    The live album 11-17-70 (17-11-70 in the UK) showcased Elton's talent as a rock pianist and father of Piano rock. Taped at a live show aired from A&R Studios on WABC-FM in New York City, and introduced by disc jockey Dave Herman, it featured extended versions of John/Taupin's early compositions that illustrate the gospel and boogie-woogie influences on John's piano playing. It also featured much interaction between John, bassist Dee Murray, and drummer Nigel Olsson. During the magnum opus 18:20 version of "Burn Down the Mission", the band interpolates Arthur "Big Boy" Crudup's "My Baby Left Me" and a full rendition of The Beatles' "Get Back" before a rampaging conclusion.

    John and Taupin then wrote the soundtrack to the obscure film Friends and then the album Madman Across the Water, the latter reaching the Top Ten and producing the hit "Levon", while the soundtrack album produced the hit "Friends".

    In 1972, the final piece of what would become known as the Elton John Band fell into place, with the addition of Davey Johnstone (on guitar and backing vocals). Murray, Olsson, and Johnstone came together with John and Taupin's writing, John's flamboyant performance style, and producer Gus Dudgeon to create a hit-making chemistry for the next five Elton John albums. Known for their instrumental playing, the members of the band were also strong backing vocalists who worked out and recorded many of their vocal harmonies themselves, usually in Elton's absence.

    The band released Honky Chateau, which became Elton's first American
    The 1973 pop album Don't Shoot Me I'm Only the Piano Player came out at the start of 1973, and produced the hits "Crocodile Rock" and "Daniel"; the former became his first U.S. number one hit. (Ironically this, like his other famous 1970s solo hits, would be popular in his native land but never top the UK Singles Chart; this achievement would have to wait two decades.) Both the album and "Crocodile Rock" were the first album and single, respectively on the consolidated MCA Records label in the USA, replacing MCA's other labels including Uni.

    Goodbye Yellow Brick Road, a double album considered by many to be Elton John's best album, followed later in 1973. It gained instant critical acclaim and topped the chart on both sides of the Atlantic. It also temporarily established Elton John as a glam rock star. It contained the

    John then formed his own MCA-distributed label Rocket Records and signed acts to it — notably Neil Sedaka ("Bad Blood", on which he sang background vocals) and Kiki Dee — in which he took personal interest. Instead of releasing his own records on Rocket, he opted for $8 million offered by MCA. When the contract was signed in 1974, MCA reportedly took out a $25-million insurance policy on John's Life.

    In 1974 a collaboration with John Lennon took place, resulting in Elton John covering The Beatles's "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds" and Lennon's "One Day at a Time", and in return Elton John and band being featured on Lennon's "Whatever Gets You Thru the Night". In what would be Lennon's last live performance, the pair performed these two No. 1 hits along with the Beatles classic "I Saw Her Standing There" at Madison Square Garden. Lennon made the rare stage appearance to keep the promise he made that he would appear onstage with Elton if "Whatever Gets You Thru The Night" became a


    Caribou was released in 1974, and although it reached
    Pete Townshend of The Who asked John to play a character called the "Pinball Wizard" in the film of the rock opera Tommy, and to perform the song of the same name. Drawing on power chords, John's version was recorded and used for the movie release in 1975 and the single came out in 1976 (1975 in the U.S.). The song charted
    In the 1975 autobiographical album Captain Fantastic and the Brown Dirt Cowboy, Elton John revealed his previously ambiguous personality, with Taupin's lyrics describing their early days as struggling songwriters and musicians in London. The lyrics and accompanying photo booklet are infused with a specific sense of place and time that is otherwise rare in John's music. "Someone Saved My Life Tonight" was the hit single from this album and captured an early turning point in John's life.

    The album's release signaled the end of the Elton John Band, as an unhappy and overworked John dismissed Olsson and Murray, two people who had contributed much of the band's signature sound and who had helped build his live following since the beginning. Johnstone and Ray Cooper were retained, Quaye and Roger Pope returned, and the new bassist was Kenny Passarelli; this rhythm section provided a heavier-sounding backbeat. James Newton-Howard joined to arrange in the studio and to play keyboards. John introduced the lineup before a crowd of 75,000 in London's Wembley Stadium.

    Rock-oriented Rock of the Westies entered the U.S. albums chart at
    Commercially, Elton owed much of his success during the mid-1970s to his concert performances. He filled arenas and stadiums worldwide, and was arguably the hottest act in the rock world.
    John was an unlikely rock idol to begin with, as he was short of stature at 5'7" (1.70 m), chubby, and gradually losing his hair. But he made up for it with impassioned performances and over-the-top fashion sense. Also known for his glasses (he started wearing them as a youth to copy his idol Buddy Holly), his flamboyant stage wardrobe now included ostrich feathers, $5,000 spectacles that spelled his name in lights, and dressing up like the Statue of Liberty, Donald Duck, or Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart among others at his concerts made them a success and created interest for his music.

    To celebrate five years of unparalleled success since he first appeared at the venue, in 1975 John played a two-night, four-show stand at The Troubadour. With seating limited to under 500 per show, the chance to purchase tickets was determined by a postcard lottery, with each winner allowed two tickets. Everyone who attended the performances received a hardbound "yearbook" of the band's history.

    In 1976, Elton released the live album Here and There in May, then the downbeat Blue Moves in October, which contained the memorable but even gloomier hit "Sorry Seems to Be the Hardest Word". His biggest success in 1976 was the "Don't Go Breaking My Heart", a peppy duet with Kiki Dee that topped both the American and British charts. Finally, in an interview with Rolling Stone that year entitled "Elton's Frank Talk", a stressed John stated that he was bisexual.

    Besides being his most commercially successful period, 1970 - 1976 is also held in the most regard critically. Of the six Elton John albums to make Rolling Stones 2003 The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time list, all are from this period, with Goodbye Yellow Brick Road ranked highest at number 91; similarly, the three Elton John albums given five stars by All Music Guide are all from this period too (Tumbleweed Connection, Honky Château, and Captain Fantastic).

    Elton's career took a hit after 1976.
    In November 1977 John announced he was retiring from performing; Taupin began collaborating with others. John secluded himself in any of his three mansions, appearing publicly only to cheer the Watford Football Club, an English football team that he later bought. Some speculated that John's retreat from stardom was prompted by adverse reactions to the Rolling Stone article.

    Now only producing one album a year, 1978's A Single Man employed a new lyricist, Gary Osborne, but featured no Top 20 singles. In 1979, accompanied by Ray Cooper, John became the first Western pop star to tour the Soviet Union (as well as one of the first in Israel, then mounted a two-man comeback tour of the U.S. in small halls. John returned to the singles chart with "Mama Can't Buy You Love" (

    top

    1980s
    In 1979, John and Taupin reunited. 21 at 33, released the following year, was a significant career boost, aided by his biggest hit in four years, "Little Jeannie" (
    With original band members Johnstone, Murray and Olsson together again, Elton was able to return to the charts with the 1983 hit album Too Low For Zero, which included "I'm Still Standing" and "I Guess That's Why They Call It the Blues", the latter of which featured Stevie Wonder on harmonica and reached
    And the 1980s were years of personal upheaval for John. In 1984 he surprised many by marrying sound engineer Renate Blauel. While the marriage lasted four years, John later maintained that he had realised that he was gay before he married. In 1986 he lost his voice while touring Australia and shortly thereafter underwent throat surgery. John continued recording prolifically, but years of cocaine and alcohol abuse, initiated in earnest around the time of Rock of the Westies 1976 release, were beginning to take their toll. In 1987 he won a libel case against The Sun who had written about his allegedly having underaged sex; afterwards he said, "You can call me a fat, balding, talentless old queen who can't sing—but you can't tell lies about me."

    In 1988, he performed five sold-out shows at New York's Madison Square Garden, giving him 26 for his career, breaking the Grateful Dead's house record. But that year also marked the end of an era. Netting over $20 million, 2,000 items of John's memorabilia were auctioned off at Sotheby's in London, as John bade symbolic farewell to his excessive theatrical persona. (Among the items withheld from the auction were the tens of thousands of records John had been carefully collecting and cataloguing throughout his life.) In later interviews, he deemed 1989 the worst period of his life, comparing his mental and physical deterioration to Elvis Presley's last years.

    top

    1990s
    Elton John was deeply affected by the plight of Ryan White, an Indiana teenager with AIDS. Along with Michael Jackson, John befriended and supported the boy and his family until White's death in 1990. Himself a mess and confronted by his then-lover, John checked into a Chicago hospital in 1990 to combat his drug abuse, alcoholism, and bulimia. In recovery, he lost weight and underwent hair replacement, and subsequently took up residence in Atlanta, Georgia. Also in 1990, John would finally achieve his first UK number one hit on his own, with "Sacrifice" (backed with "Healing Hands") from the previous year's album Sleeping with the Past; it would stay at the top spot for six weeks.

    The 1991 film documentary Two Rooms described the unusual writing style that John and Bernie Taupin use, which involves Taupin writing the lyrics on his own, and John then putting them to music, with the two never in the same room during the process. That same year, the tribute album came out, featuring contribution from many top British and American rock and pop performers. Finally in 1991, John's "Basque" won the Grammy Award for Best Instrumental Composition, and his guest concert appearance on George Michael's reverent treatment of "Don't Let the Sun Go Down on Me" topped the singles charts in both the U.S. and UK.

    In 1992 he established the Elton John AIDS Foundation, intending to direct 90 percent of the funds it raised to direct care, 10 percent to AIDS prevention education. He also announced his intention to donate all future royalties from sales of his singles in the U.S. and UK to AIDS research. That year, he released the U.S. In September of the same year, he performed "November Rain" with Rose's band Guns N' Roses for the 1992 MTV Video Music Awards at the Pauley Pavilion in Los Angeles. The following year, he released Duets, a collaboration with 15 artists ranging from Tammy Wynette to RuPaul.

    In 1994, along with Tim Rice, he wrote the songs for the Disney animated film The Lion King. (Rice was reportedly stunned by the rapidity with which John was able to set his words to music.) The Lion King went on to become the best-grossing traditionally-animated feature of all time, with the songs playing a key part. Three of the five songs nominated for the Academy Award for Best Song that year were John and Rice songs from The Lion King, with "Can You Feel the Love Tonight" winning. (John acknowledged his domestic partner, Canadian filmmaker David Furnish, at the ceremonies.) In versions sung by John, both that and "Circle of Life" became big hits, while the other songs such as "Hakuna Matata" achieved popularity with all ages as well. "Can You Feel the Love Tonight" would also win John the Grammy Award for Best Male Pop Vocal Performance. After the release of the soundtrack, the album remained at the top of Billboard's charts for nine weeks. On November 10, 1999, the RIAA announced that the album The Lion King had sold 15 million copies and therefore was certified as Diamond® with room to spare.

    Elton John was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in his first year of eligibility in 1994. He and Bernie Taupin had previously been inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1992. Elton John was made a Commander of the Order of the British Empire in 1995.

    In 1995 John released Made in England (

    The year 1997 found extreme highs and lows for John. Early in the year, vestiges of the flamboyant Elton resurfaced as he threw a 50th birthday, costumed as Louis XIV, for 500 friends (the costume cost more than $80,000). But later that year he lost two close friends, designer Gianni Versace and Diana, Princess of Wales.
    In September, Taupin altered the lyrics of "Candle in the Wind" for a special version mourning the death of Diana, and John performed it at her funeral in Westminster Abbey. A recorded version, "Candle in the Wind 1997", then became the fastest selling single of all time, eventually going on to sell over 30 million copies worldwide, with the proceeds of approximately £55 million going to the Diana, Princess of Wales Memorial Fund. John would later win the Grammy Award for Best Male Pop Vocal Performance for the single.

    Elton John was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II on 24 February 1998, granting him the title of "Sir". The honour was officially for his charitable work.

    John closed out the decade by writing the score for The Muse in 1999. He also had a pacemaker installed to overcome a minor heart problem.

    John even featured in a few episodes of South Park and performed "Wake Up Wendy" for .

    top

    2000s
    In the 2000s, John began frequently collaborating with other artists. In 2000, John and Tim Rice teamed again to create songs for DreamWorks' animated film The Road To El Dorado. In the musical theatre world, addition to a 1998 adaptation of The Lion King for Broadway, John also composed music for a Disney production of Aida in 1999 with lyricist Tim Rice, for which they received the Tony Award for Best Original Score and the Grammy Award for Best Musical Show Album.

    In 2001, he duetted with Eminem on the rapper's "Stan" at the Grammy Awards. This went a long way towards absolving Eminem of charges of homophobia and thus paving the way for Eminem's greater mainstream acceptance.
    That same year, his 1970s track "Tiny Dancer" was prominently featured in the film Almost Famous, and then his "The Heart of Every Girl" was the end title song from 2003's Mona Lisa Smile.

    In 2001 he declared that Songs from the West Coast would be his final studio album, and that he would now concentrate on just live performances. In 2004, however, he released a new album, Peachtree Road which, despite some favourable reviews, was his least commercially successful album in every country it was released in.

    "Are You Ready For Love" was pretty much ignored when it was first recorded during the late 1970s Thom Bell sessions, but it became something of a Balearic fixture and eventually got a re-release on Southern Fried Records in 2004 and proceeded to go straight to
    Previously, in 2003, British boyband Blue had released a version of "Sorry Seems to be the Hardest Word", which included John. It went to no. 1 in the UK as well as many other European countries and he achieved yet another
    Elton's concert projects in the decade have included:

    On 2 July 2005, John performed at the Live 8 concert at Hyde Park in London. Here he sang "The Bitch is Back", "Saturday Night's Alright for Fighting" and lastly, T. Rex's "Children of the Revolution" with The Libertines and Babyshambles' frontman, Pete Doherty. Another measure of fame came that July when Madame Tussauds made a statue of Elton John to his measurements; it took more than 1,000 hours to complete.

    Returning again to musical theatre, John composed music for a West End production of Billy Elliot the Musical in 2005 with playwright Lee Hall. John's only theatrical project with Bernie Taupin so far is Lestat: The Musical, based on the Anne Rice vampire novels. However it was slammed by the critics and closed in May 2006 after 39 performances.

    In 2006, Elton co-wrote the single "I Don’t Feel Like Dancin" with the Scissor Sisters, featuring Elton on piano. Recorded in Las Vegas, it is taken from the Scissor Sisters album Ta-Dah.

    On September 19 2006, Elton and Bernie Taupin released a sequel to Captain Fantastic and the Brown Dirt Cowboy, reflecting again on the phenomenal success, the sadnesses, the creativity and the optimism within their 40 year songwriting partnership; The Captain & The Kid features ten new songs, including the first single "The Bridge", and for the first time ever, photographs of both Elton and Bernie Taupin are featured on the album front cover.

    On October 9, 2006, The Walt Disney Company named Elton a Disney Legend, the company's highest honor, for his numerous outstanding contributions to Disney's films and theatrical works .

    In interviews Elton has listed a number of other projects of his in various stages, including an adaptation of Romeo and Juliet. He also told Rolling Stone Magazine that he plans for his next record to be in the hip-hop genre. "I want to work with Pharrell {Williams}, Timbaland, Snoop {Dogg}, Kanye {West}, Eminem and just see what happens. It may be a disaster, it could be fantastic, but you don't know until you try."

    top

    Personal life





    John has had a complicated personal history in both his sexual orientation, as well as personal battles with drugs and spending.

    top

    Sexual orientation and extended relationships
    Elton John disclosed his bisexuality in 1976 in a Rolling Stone magazine interview. He married German recording engineer Renate Blauel on Valentine's Day, 1984, but they divorced four years later. John later renounced the bisexual claim and announced he was gay.

    He met his partner David Furnish, a former advertising executive and now film maker, in 1993. On 21 December 2005, they entered into a civil partnership. A low-key ceremony with only their parents in attendance was held at the Guildhall, Windsor, followed by a lavish party at their Berkshire mansion. The Sun newspaper marked the event with the headline "Elton Takes David Up the Aisle".

    John does not have any children, but does have ten godchildren as of March 2006. Besides the aforementioned Sean Ono Lennon, these include Elizabeth Hurley's son Damian Charles and David and Victoria Beckham's son Brooklyn.

    Within the music industry, Elton is sometimes known as "Sharon", a nickname originally given to him by good friend Rod Stewart. In return, Elton calls Rod "Phyllis".

    top

    Drugs, alcohol and health
    During his career, John has battled addictions to alcohol, cocaine and rumoured financial difficulties caused by his profligate spending. In the mid-late 1990s, John formed a friendship with colleague Michael Jackson. Because of the help John gave him during his addiction to painkillers, Jackson dedicated the 1997 album Blood on the Dance Floor to him. John remained silent during the Jackson trial in 2005.

    In 1987 he had an operation to remove polyps from his vocal cords. He has used marijuana extensively and this may have contributed to the polyp formation. . John has also gone public about his battle with the eating disorder bulimia.

    The death of teenager Ryan White, as a result of AIDS in 1990, confronted Elton with the immense importance of time and life, and motivated him to tackle his problems of alcohol and drug addiction. John checked himself into a rehabilitation clinic to finally overcome his demons.

    In July 1999, he was fitted with a pacemaker due to an irregular heart beat.

    top

    Spending
    Aside from his main home in Windsor, England, John splits his time in his various residences in Atlanta, Georgia; Nice; Holland Park in London; and Venice. Elton John is a noted art collector, and is believed to have one of the largest private photography collections in the world.

    During the 2000 court case, where John sued both his former manager John Reid, the CEO of Reid's company and accountants Price Waterhouse Coopers, he admitted spending £30 million in just under two years - an average of £1.5 million a month, the High Court in London heard. The singer's lavish lifestyle saw him spend more than £9.6m on property and £293,000 on flowers between January 1996 and September 1997. John accused the pair of being negligent, and PWC of failing in their duties. Mark Hapgood QC for defendants PWC suggested that John went "spending mad" following a £42m deal with recording company Polygram in February 1996. When quizzed by Mr Hapgood about the £293,000 spent on flowers, John said: Yes, I like flowers. John stated that the terms of the contract, whereby John paid Reid 20% of his gross earnings, were agreed in St Tropez in the summer of 1984 - but that he could not remember the exact occasion on which the deal was made. After losing the case, he faced an £8 million bill for legal fees.

    Elton John decided with his fleet manager John Newman to sell 20 of his collection of 28 cars at Christie's - including several Ferraris, Aston Martins, and six post-war Bentleys. His reason for selling them was stated as: I do not find enough time to drive them. The sale raised £2 million The cars sold included:

    In 2003, Elton John sold the contents of his Holland Park home in a bid to create more room for his collection of contemporary art. The auctioneer's Sotheby's catalogue had a list of more than 400 items, expected to fetch £800,000, including: Biedermeier furniture; early 16th and 17th century items including an Edward Bower estimated at £20,000-£30,000 and a portrait of Elizabeth Honeywood from the circle of William Larkin, which was estimated at £30,000-£40,000. John's bedroom featured a painting by 19th-century French artist Jacques-Noël-Marie Frémy, which was exhibited at the 1814 Paris Salon, and is estimated at £12,000-£18,000 .

    top

    Sports and other interests



    top

    Charity
    John has long been associated with AIDS charities after the deaths of his friends Ryan White and Freddie Mercury, raising large amounts of money and using his public profile to raise awareness of the disease. For example, in 1986 he joined with Dionne Warwick, Gladys Knight, and Stevie Wonder to record the single "That's What Friends Are For", with all profits being donated to the American Foundation for AIDS Research. The song won Elton and the others the Grammy Award for Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal (as well as Song of the Year for its writers, Burt Bacharach and Carole Bayer Sager). In April 1990, John performed "Skyline Pigeon" at the funeral of White, a teenage hemophiliac he had befriended.

    John founded the Elton John AIDS Foundation in 1992 as a charity to fund programmes for HIV/AIDS prevention, for the elimination of prejudice and discrimination against HIV/AIDS-affected individuals, and for providing services to people living with or at risk of contracting HIV/AIDS. This cause continues to be one of his personal passions. In early 2006, Elton donated the smaller of two bright-red Yamaha pianos from his Las Vegas show to auction on eBay to raise public awareness and funds for the foundation

    Every year since 2004, he has opened a shop (this year in Manhattan, before in London and Atlanta), selling his second hand clothes. Called "Elton's Closet" the sale this year of 10,000 items was expected to raise $400,000

    top

    Musical style and voice
    In the 1970s, Elton John's sound immediately set him apart from most others by being piano-based in a rock 'n' roll world dominated by guitars. Another early characteristic was a set of dynamic string arrangements by Paul Buckmaster. Coupled with Taupin's often opaque but emotionally resonant lyrics, the results were unique in the history of music. Songs in this style included "Sixty Years On", "Burn Down the Mission", "Take Me to the Pilot", "Levon", "Madman Across the Water", and the best-known of these, "Tiny Dancer".

    "Your Song", one of his earliest popular hits, incorporates some other features found in many of his songs:

    John also has a distinctive vocal style. In particular, his phrasing is often a bit metronomic and sometimes has a curiously off-kilter, "rushed" quality especially at the end of lines (example: the phrase "like a puppy child" in the song "Amoreena"). He also, at least in his classic period in the 1970s, would sometimes sweep up from his normal tenor into a Four Seasons-like falsetto.

    Elton John underwent throat surgery to remove potentially cancerous nodules from his vocal cords in January 1987 while on tour, a necessity he originally said was due to an infection, but later said was the result of excessive drug abuse The problems with his voice can clearly be heard in his raspy singing on the Live In Australia album (released 1987). He made a full recovery from the surgery, but he continued to indulge in illegal drugs until 1990. The surgery in 1987 also had an after-effect on John's voice, and he found that he could no longer sing in falsetto as well as he previously could, and that he now sang in a lower range. During an interview with James Lipton, John had claimed to embrace this new tone, feeling it gave a more "masculine" quality that contrasted with his earlier work.

    The change in Elton John's voice has been largely played down, though Elton, commenting fifteen years after the surgery, stated that he was "singing better than ever." Studio effects were evidently added to his voice on his first UK
    Elton John continues to inspire musicians today, particularly the Scissor Sisters, Ben Folds, Adrian Evans, and Ryan Adams, however, more unlikely artists like Thom Yorke (Radiohead) and Billie-Joe Armstrong (Green Day) are said to be fans. Final Fantasy music composer Nobuo Uematsu was also greatly influenced by him throughout his life, claiming "no one writes a melody like him."

    top

    Awards

    top

    Discography
    For a complete album discography, see Elton John discography.

    For a complete singles discography, see Elton John singles discography.

    top

    Band members
    Current members


    Previous band members

    top

    See also
     
    Search more:
     

       
    Source Privacy License Download Contact Us Atlas
    Scientus.org Dictionary (Yet Another Wiki) RC : 1.39
    This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License [copyleft]. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Elton John". link