Towards the end of his concert at Hyde Park, Elton John pointed 65,000 pairs of eyes to a small tower in the middle of the crowd. His husband, David Furnish, and two children waved enthusiastically back. Now 75 years old, the Rocket Man has firmly redirected his sights to become the family man, saying adieu to 50 years of touring with his Farewell Yellow Brick Road tour. It was one of many moments of bittersweet joy in an evening with one of the most prolific hit-makers of our time.
The set list contained no curveballs. There were no B-sides or undiscovered gems. We were serenaded with wall-to-wall hits. Such is the way Elton John’s career has played out, almost all of them were from his Seventies days, with one of the few exceptions being the thumping dance number Cold Heart, which he released with Dua Lipa last year.
So the audience chorused back as he began the set with Bennie and the Jets, punching the opening chords into the piano but nailing every note. Border Song, from his breakout 1970 album Elton John, and the soaring ballad Tiny Dancer followed soon after. You could hear the sedimented layers of rock history in Elton John’s voice, which was rich and in tune. While the songs largely stayed true to their recorded sound, a set of congas played enthusiastically by a white-gloved Nigel Olsson gave tracks like Levon a surprising, shuffling beat.
It is a rare kind of showman that manages to transfix a 65,000-strong crowd while staying firmly seated on his piano stool. Often through the slower numbers, his six-piece band would retire into the shadows to leave John arpeggiating and riffing, pointing to the crowd while still playing one-handed. The piano was actually motored to the other side of the stage during Candle In the Wind, his tribute to Marilyn Monroe. Often, he was roaring with laughter.
He left his rowdiest rock numbers for the end of the night. The twisting hip-swinger Crocodile Rock was swiftly followed by Saturday Night’s Alright (For Fighting). The stage was turned into a Vegas club, complete with swirling uplighters and strips of red neon lights. Here, guitarist Davey Johnstone gave a shredding solo. He, Olsson, and Ray Cooper on percussion have been playing with Elton John since the Seventies.
The evening closed with Goodbye Yellow Brick Road, the lyrics of which took on a fresh poignancy as the piano man bid his farewell. “I’m going back to my plough”, he sang. The lyric was somewhat hard to believe as he shook off a baronial dressing gown – the third outfit of the night – to reveal a tracksuit emblazoned with a diamante “Elton John” on the back.
