Review: Elton in Delaware

Good review except for this statement: "The vast majority of his set came from the '70s, his most prolific decade, and he thankfully bypassed much of his more modern work."

Well...what do you expect.

Elton John delivers to sold-out crowd

By RYAN CORMIER, The News Journal
Posted Tuesday, March 11, 2008

NEWARK -- When it was first announced, Elton John's concert in Newark seemed like a take-the-money-and-run gig for the legendary pop star.

Tickets for Monday night's show at the Bob Carpenter Center, a cavernous basketball arena, cost up to $125 to see John without a backing band.

Throw in the fact that he's never performed in Delaware before and it was easy to imagine John breezing through a quick 90-minute set, jumping on his bus and leaving us in the dust.

But wait. There was John on CNN's "Larry King Live" two weeks ago, talking about his love for performing for his fans and declaring, "I never play for less than two hours and 30 minutes, anywhere."

For the hungry Delaware audience, which was filled with fans who were old enough to know firsthand that he has never performed here before, John kept his word Monday with a two hour, 30-minute concert, packed with a seemingly endless string of hits, along with a few deep cuts from his 29 studio albums.

It didn't take long for John to apologize from behind his red-tinted glasses for taking so long to get to Delaware.

"I suddenly realized I hadn't played in Delaware and that made me sad," John said. "I'm sorry it's taken so long, but I'm glad I'm here."

Dressed in a sequined black tuxedo and a purple shirt with a full-length jacket with "Music Magic" written on the back in yellow, John, 60, walked on stage promptly at 8 p.m., diving straight into "Your Song," followed by four more songs from his self-titled 1970 album.

With a large diamond-encrusted cross hanging from his neck, John pored through his songbook, giving his fans a guided tour through his career. John played his black piano throughout the night, augmented with a pre-taped electronic orchestration for some songs, including a somber "Rocket Man" and "Tiny Dancer," which sparked an "Almost Famous"-inspired sing-along in the audience.

However, there was a glitch with the system during "Sacrifice," when an ear-piercing screech sounded during the song. John played on and somehow rescued the song.

The vast majority of his set came from the '70s, his most prolific decade, and he thankfully bypassed much of his more modern work.

"Ballad of the Boy in the Red Shoes," from 2001's "Songs From the West Coast," was the only song released in the past 18 years that made it onto the set list. John was decidedly political as he introduced the song, which is about a man suffering from AIDS, saying, "Ronald Reagan did nothing for people with AIDS and that's a disgrace."

John mainly leaned on his earlier work with lyricist Bernie Taupin, bouncing from his super hits like "Bennie and the Jets" and "Daniel" to more obscure songs like 1985's "Nikita" and 1974's "Ticking."

Last month, the concert's 4,500 tickets sold out almost immediately. Delaware was one of only three states that had not yet hosted a concert. He is scheduled to perform in Vermont and Alaska later this year.

For Delaware, his 27-song set was worth the wait. Sure, John's voice isn't what it once was, but his elegant piano playing has never wavered.

He clearly has a deep connection with his fans through song, as seen during "Candle in the Wind," which had fans holding their lighters and cell phones in the air, or "Crocodile Rock," which had those same fans rushing up to the stage to dance.

John said his long-awaited visit to Delaware had been refreshing: "I love what I do and it's great coming to places like this."
Contact Ryan Cormier at 324-2863 or rcormier@delawareonline.com.