After playing 234 shows on his gruelling farewell world tour, 75-year-old Elton John could be forgiven for going through the motions. But despite there still being 99 dates left, the fourth best-selling artist of all time certainly wasn’t showing any signs of flagging at his second Ashton Gate stadium gig in a week.
This was Elton’s final ever Bristol show - he told the 20,000 fans it was his 12th in the city since his debut hit 52 years ago - but he performed with as much passion and gusto as if it were his first. He walked on stage with his six-piece band at 7pm precisely and played a career-spanning set for more than two and a half hours, only stopping for a quick costume change.
The moment Elton struck the first familiar notes of opener Bennie and The Jets, the sun finally appeared and engulfed the stadium. Fans, some dressed in 70s outfits and many sporting flashing Elton-style glasses and face glitter, leapt from their seats and didn’t stop dancing and singing along until it finished.
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After a painful hip injury, Elton is clearly finding it harder to walk and he spent much of the show seated at his black grand piano, which impressively moved around the stage during the evening. After 52 years, there’s no shortage of material and the classics came thick and fast, starting with I Guess That’s Why They Call it The Blues, Tiny Dancer and Rocket Man (I Think It’s Going to Be A Long, Long Time).
For this final tour, the singer has even got his old band together again. This includes fellow septuagenarians Nigel Olsson on drums, percussionist Ray Cooper and guitarist Davey Johnstone.
Before Border Song, which he dedicated to Aretha Franklin, Elton regaled the audience with stories of his time spent with the soul legend. He joked that Franklin recorded his song and had done a much better job.
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Candle In The Wind saw the band leave the stage to allow Elton to perform solo and then slip away briefly for a quick costume change. The energy levels were still high, too, and his vigorous piano playing on Burn Down The Mission (his hands shown in close-up on huge screens either side of the stage) made Jerry Lee Lewis look like a child doing their first Grade I piano lesson.
At the 90-minute mark, the tempo raised further as Elton and the band launched into more classics. Sad Songs (Say So Much) was followed by Sorry Seems to be The Hardest Word and then Don’t Let The Sun Go Down on Me made way for a full throttle version of The Bitch Is Back.
But the biggest cheers of the night were for the final three songs - I’m Still Standing, Crocodile Rock and Saturday Night’s Alright For Fighting - before Elton and the band left the stage.
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Returning in a glittery pink dressing gown and pink heart-shaped glasses, a solo Elton started the encore with an upbeat disco version of Cold Heart that was closer to the Dua Lipa duet than the original. The band then rejoined him for Your Song, which saw most fans putting their phone torches on so different parts of the stadium were transformed into twinkling constellations.
After a heartfelt thank you to the Bristol audience for being so loyal over the years, the band threw everything they had into a powerful Goodbye Yellow Brick Road. As it finished, a waving Elton, now in a dark green velvet tracksuit, was elevated upwards and backwards through black curtains at the back of the stage, much to the surprise and amazement of the fans.
Elton had left the stadium at his final Bristol show but that wasn’t quite the end. A few lucky fans leaving via the Ashton Road exit minutes later spotted a private helicopter taking off from Greville Smyth Park opposite and could glimpse Elton waving as he made his way home in time for the News at Ten, another job done.
It seemed a fitting finale to see the original Rocket Man take to the skies of Bristol for the last time. Cheers, Elton, it was a blast.
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