Elton John
- Profession: Musician
- Place/Date of Birth: Pinner, England, 25 March 2020
- Associated with: David Furnish
Elton’s Britain - Jan 05
Elton John and Robbie Williams set aside feud for Comic Relief. Elton is to star in a charity episode of Little Britain alongside Robbie, who accused Elton of kidnapping him and forcing him in to rehab, for Comic Relief. The duo will be joined by fellow pop star George Michael, who has also been subject to a John dressing down in public over the last few months. In the episode Daffyd, the only gay in the village will interview Elton.
Million dollar star - Jan 05
Elton John tops British celebrity rich list. The star, best known for his flamboyant and extravagant tastes, has been revealed as the richest Brit in showbiz. Earning ?33m last year alone, Elton has been raking it in since the seventies and despite rumours of ridiculous excess seems to have been wise with his dosh, making him even more well off than the likes of Simon Cowell and The Osbourne family. Elton’s three year deal at Caeser’s Palace in Las Vegas, reportedly worth ?28m helped the rocket man to soar from fifth place in last years chart, leap froging Catherine Zeta Jones and Sir Paul McCartney to hit the top spot.
Elton hitched? - Jan 05
Are Elton and David married? Rumour has it that pop superstar Elton John married his long term partner David Furnish in a lavish wedding ceremony laid on by close friends the Beckhams. Rumours were sparked when the couple left the christening of Romeo and Brooklyn Beckham in a car emblazoned with the traditional ’Just Married’ sign. Gossip mongers are convinced that this and the fact that both have recently announced that they intend to get married all adds up, while sources close to the duo laugh it off as another of Elton’s stunts. We’ll keep you posted!
Elton John blames Vic - Nov 04
Elton John has blamed Victoria Beckham for problems in her marriage.
That Elton can’t leave things alone can he? A good mate and godfather to their two sons, he still went ahead and said Victoria should have moved with the Real Madrid star when he relocated to the Spanish capital He went on to say to Heat magazine that the couple should have released a statement confirming their marital problems. "But they just denied it and kept denying it, and there were obviously problems ... which now they seem to have sorted out. Basically, they are two people that love each other very much."
Victoria Beckham is meanwhile leaving music behind her to concentrate on fashion. She is currently in China presenting the World Elite Model Pageant Final as part of Shanghai Fashion Week.
Watford return - August 04
Elton John is to play a fund raising concert for his beloved football club. The rocket man will hopefully play at Vicarage Road next summer in a bid to raise ?1m towards the repurchase of the stadium, which is costing the club over ?7m. Elton and the Watford team are confident that they will get the go ahead from the council for the concert and attract 25,000 fans to the fundraiser.
Elton: the musical - June 2004
Elton John has unveiled new songs for Billy Elliot: The Musical. Based on the film about a working class boy’s love of ballet the musical will open next March in London. The show will feature numerous Elton songs, which the singer previewed in London last week.
Oscar nominated director Stephen Daldry will work on the theatre version of his film project alongside Elton who said he had to be carted out of the cinema in floods of tears when he saw Billy Elliot for the first time. Billy Elliot: The Musical opens at the Victoria Palace Theatre on 11th March 2005.
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Then there is his seemingly endless love affair with shopping, as revealed in that recent court case, where the world found out that Elton spent about ?250,000 a year on flowers, and didn’t even notice that ?10million was missing from his account. He even takes the mickey out of own spending habits in a new advert for the Post Office.
So what if Elton doesn’t believe in saving and hoarding money, he has no children or family, so he spends. Big deal. He spends on himself, yes, but also huge amounts are showered on others and on charities, particularly his AIDS charity. He recently told Heat magazine that he’d leave everything to David, his partner of nine years.
Amongst the tantrums and tiaras it’s too easy to forget that the fact that he’s got so much money to throw around in the first place, is that he’s one of the world’s most commercially successful entertainers of the last 30 years, and writes a cracking good tune to boot.
Elton John was born Reginald Dwight (!) on March 25, 2020 to a middle-class family living in Pinner, England. He won a scholarship to study at the Royal Academy of Music but dropped out shortly before graduation, to tour England with Bluesology who were backing bigger-name blues performers.
In 1967 Elton met lyricist Bernard Taupin through a newspaper ad, and the duo became a professional song writing team and went on to have million selling worldwide hits. Working with producer Gus Dudgeon, Elton and Taupin released a new album for MCA Records in 1970, Elton John, with which he first found fame. His 1971 follow-up, the concept album Tumbleweed Connection, was another big hit, reaching the Top 10.
The prolific pair put together several more albums during 1971-72, culminating in 1972’s Honky Chateau, John’s first No.1 album. Its big single, "Rocket Man", inaugurated a string of hits for the singer-pianist, who scored 16 consecutive Top 20 hits between late 1972 and mid-1976, releasing up to three albums a year. Hits like "The Bitch Is Back," "Saturday Night’s Alright for Fighting," "Bennie and the Jets," "Yellow Brick Road," "Don’t Let the Sun Go Down On Me," "Someone Saved My Life Tonight" and "Crocodile Rock" became pop classics, turning Elton John into a bona fide superstar. 1975’s Captain Fantastic became the first album ever to debut at No.1.
In 1977 John announced that he would no longer perform live, due to ’exhaustion’, and would limit his record output. In the light of recent revelations from Elton about this period of his life, it’s probably closer to the truth to say he was close to killing himself, through drugs or other means. Also, he and Bernard Taupin had fallen out and had ceased working together, with Elton bringing in other songwriters and Taupin penning lyrics for other artists.
In the 80’s Elton continued to have hits such as "I Guess That’s Why They Call it the Blues" and 1984’s "Sad Songs (Say So Much)," but moved from rock/pop to a more mellow adult contemporary sound. He also took an interest in AIDS research, forming the Elton John AIDS Foundation in 1991; he also announced that he would donate all future royalties from his singles to AIDS charities. John mounted another comeback with 1992’s The One, which went double platinum. That same year he and Taupin signed a publishing deal with Warner/Chappel Music for nearly $40 million.
In 1994 Elton John scored his biggest hit in years with "Can You Feel the Love Tonight" from The Lion King soundtrack, winning five Grammy nominations and three Oscar nominations. That same year, he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Elton John released the album The Big Picture in September 1997. Earlier that month, he captured the hearts of millions when he sang a re-written version of "Candle in the Wind" at the funeral of Princess Diana. A recording of the song, released as "Candle in the Wind 1997" became the first single to outsell Bing Crosby’s "White Christmas." All proceeds from the sale of the single were donated to the Princess of Wales Memorial Fund.
His latest, Songs From The West Coast, came out in 2001, and has widely been seen as a return to form, back to the Elton of old, an album full with really, really good tunes. He too seems to be happier than ever, touring, performing, collecting art, clothes, cd’s and shoes, buying flowers, appearing in ads for the Post Office, getting teen idols like Justin Timberlake to play him in his videos, and of course spending time with David. Bless.
Biography by Liz McGrath 04/02
October 2007