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Sir Elton John celebrates an important milestone

Elton John
Tucson Arena
Tucson, AZ
March 21, 2017
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Review and photos by Frances Sealy

2017 is a very special year for Sir Elton John. He was proud to say to Tucson fans that this tour celebrates the 50th anniversary of his partnership with Bernie Taupin. They have been writing song standards since the beginning of his career. He acknowledged that he would not be here if it wasn't for Bernie. "Saturday will be my 70th birthday." Also, this year marks the 20th year his AIDS Foundation has been in existence and they have risen slightly under a half a billion dollars for AIDS research.

Few words were spoken during the two and a half hour show and the master showman let his large canon of hits do the talkin'. Elton and his band gave Tucsonans everything that they expected to see and hear. That was full versions of the songs the fans have grown up listening in the of their lives. There were no medleys. There were songs from the beginning of his career like "Your Song" through his latest album release, Wonderful, Crazy Night.

His five-piece band included longtime members Nigel Olsson on drums and Davey Johnstone on guitar joined Sir Elton onstage. The video shown during "Rocket Man" seemed to be the most impressive with space in motion. However, the massive chandelier was also a fun background. Homage was paid to George Michael during "Don't Let the Sun Go Down on Me" as George's image was shown in the background video. He played a snippet of Chuck Berry's "Memphis, Tennessee" to honor Chuck Berry.

The multigenerational, wild crowd stood throughout the entire show, dancing and singing the words to every hit. Sir Elton said it best, "It's been an amazing journey that I never thought would have happened. You've bought the records, the cassettes, the CDs, the merchandise, the DVDs but most importantly you've bought a ticket to see this show. As much as I love to make records I prefer to playing to you guys any day of the week."
Set List:
1. Funeral for a Friend/Love Lies Bleeding
2. Bennie and the Jets
3. I Guess That's Why They Call It the Blues
4. Daniel
5. Someone Saved My Life Tonight
6. Looking Up
7. A Good Heart
8. Philadelphia Freedom (Elton John Band song)
9. Piano Solo
10. Rocket Man (I Think It's Going to Be a Long, Long Time)
11. Tiny Dancer
12. Levon
13. Goodbye Yellow Brick Road
14. Have Mercy on the Criminal
15. Your Song
16. Burn Down the Mission
17. Sad Songs (Say So Much)
18. Don't Let the Sun Go Down on Me
19. The Bitch Is Back
20. I'm Still Standing
21. Your Sister Can't Twist (But She Can Rock 'n Roll)
22. Saturday Night's Alright for Fighting

Related articles:

Elton John - Concert review - Nashville, TN - April 2013
Elton John & Billy Joel - Concert review - Chicago, IL - July 2009
Elton John & Billy Joel - Concert review - Rosemont, IL - May 2001
Elton John - Concert review - Madison, WI Sept. 1998

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