"This may be my last show ever in England and Great Britain, so I better play well and I better entertain you," a visibly moved Elton John remarks as he looks out over what may well be the biggest crowd ever amassed in front of Glastonbury's iconic Pyramid Stage. You don't often see the man looking overawed, but this really does feel special: a generational songwriter, ostensibly playing his last ever show on home soil, and doing so by closing out the UK's most famous music festival.
If entertaining us was today's mission, John is passing with flying, glittery colours: kicking off with a first play of his cover of The Who's Pinball Wizard in almost 15 years, bursts of fireworks lighting up the sky, the 76 year old then proceeds to dish out two hours of world class anthems that come rolling at a rate that feels practically indecent. The Bitch Is Back, Bennie And The Jets, Daniel, Goodbye Yellow Brick Road, I Guess That's Why They Call It The Blues and Philadelphia Freedom drop one after the other, drawing full-hearted singalongs right from the front row to the very back of the field. From the obscene amount of flags shooting up across the crowd to the endless parade of EJ-homaging fancy dressers, the atmosphere is electric and emotional, and only builds as the set goes on.
