Sir Elton John at PNC Park

It has occurred to me that I need to do a "catch-up" blog post, as there is much about which to talk.  However, one of those topics concerns the concert last Friday night's concert at PNC Park given by Sir Elton John, and that topic deserves its own separate post.  (Don't worry, the Catch-up post will follow in, I hope, the next 24 hours or so.)

The announcement of the Elton John concert was made in June 2021.  It would be Sir Elton's final appearance in Pittsburgh as a part of his "Farewell Yellow Brick Road" retirement tour.  (Never mind that he made a similar "final appearance" in The Burgh in 2019.)  I remember telling Marilyn at the time that the concert would be on her 70th birthday, September 16, 2022.  "Get tickets" was her enthusiastic response.  What a great way to celebrate such a milestone birthday, was her feeling.  Again, we all know that that was not to be, but I am now certain that her enthusiasm at the time was for me to be there to enjoy the show and dedicate it to her memory, which is exactly what we did.

As it happens, I was the Elton John virgin among our group.  Dan and Susan had seen him in Las Vegas.  Linda had seen him three times, the first time at the Civic Arena when she was only 15 years old.  I had never seen him, and I was looking forward to it, and I was not let down.  Linda warned me that at 75, Elton can't sing like he used to, but he still sounded plenty good to me, from the opening piano chords of "Bennie and the Jets" in a darkened ball park to the encore performances of "Your Song" to his wonderful and heartfelt parting words to his Pittsburgh audience to "Farewell Yellow Brick Road".  And the 20+ songs in between and the three costume changes.  He was a consummate performer, and his show last week immediately rises to the Top Five of live concerts that I have seen in my life.

And it served, too, as a wonderful way to remember Marilyn on her birthday.

Sir Elton John earns the full Four Star accolade from The Grandstander.

A few other photos from the night.....

 

"Rocketman"

For the first time in well over a month, we took ourselves out to the movie theater today and took in "Rocketman", the biopic about Elton John starring Taron Edgerton as Elton John and directed by Dexter Fletcher.

All about the upbringing of young piano prodigy Reginald Dwight at the hands of two cold and unfeeling parents.  How he managed to cross paths with lyricist Bernie Taupin (Jamie Bell), come to terms with his sexuality, and deal with the wretched excesses, i.e., drugs and alcohol, of his chosen profession, while fashioning a career as one of the major and most important rock and roll talents of the last fifty years.

The way that the songs of Elton John are presented and woven into the story makes this more of a "musical movie" than a mere filming of "Elton John's Greatest Hits."  Very well done and presented.  Great performance by Edgerton, who does his own singing in the movie, and costuming, as you might expect in a movie about Elton John, that is unbelievable.  The budget for eyeglasses frames alone could probably put a kid through college.

Other items if interest:  John's mother is played by Bryce Dallas Howard, the daughter of director Ron Howard.  The "Music Producer" of this movie is Giles Martin, the son of the legendary George Martin, and Elton John himself is listed as Executive Producer on the film.

Oh, and be sure and stay to see the photos that are shown over the closing credits.

I enjoyed it a lot, and Mrs. Grandstander "loved it" (a direct quote).

A solid Three Stars from The Grandstander.