Time for Elton John to call it quits

[22Tink]

Well I just sold a kidney to see him this September in Vancouver soooo... fingers crossed. Honestly he could sound like a Hobbit and I will adore every moment. Have loved him since Goodbye Yellow Brick Road.

I saw him in Vancouver back in 2014 and it was a fantastic show. You’re in for a treat!

 

[jdb in AZ]

I guess elderly singers keep performing so they can afford assisted living. The guys look and sound like has-beens, and their hair is as gray as the groupies in the audience. So much white hair it looks like a blizzard.

 

[Wakey]

I feel the same about Madonna.

Madonna did the Eurovision Song Contest the other week- car crash, voice had totally gone.

 

[Disney Doll]

I kinda felt the same way when I saw him 20 yrs ago.

Me too. Although for me it was probably 30 years ago. Short concert. Sang all his hits with little emotion. Voice not so hot.

Kind of thought he was resting on his laurels of being “Elton John”.

 

[soccerdad72]

I've seen him 3 or 4 times in concert - a couple of those were the tours with Billy Joel. One of those concerts, my wife and I really felt like he "mailed in in". No energy, no real desire to be there it appeared. Just went through the motions and did his hits and got out of there. Granted, his performance was contrasted by Billy Joel running all over the stage, but a previous combined concert, Elton was just as energetic as Billy. I have to imagine it's hard to be on your game for every single concert when you do so many.

 

[cluvsdisney]

I saw him about 5 years ago in concert. I was underwhelmed. There was no energy in his voice or performing. Paul McCartney, a year earlier, on the other hand, was fantastic.

This is exactly how I feel about both performers. We saw Elton John this past November and it was eh. Easily close to the bottom of the list of shows I've seen. We saw Paul McCartney 2 or 3 years ago and he was amazing!! It was so ironic because I've enjoy Elton's music so much more than Paul McCartney's over the years but it was the complete opposite live.

 

[tex1989]

In this day and age of I-tunes and very little royalties coming in from "record" sales these guys have to tour and sell tickets for $200 a pop to continue to make money. (Those lifestyles don't come cheap). That said I saw Elton John on September 26, 1974 on my 15th birthday. He was touring with KiKi Dee (Don't Go Breaking My Heart) and sometimes wonder how he is still doing it 45 years later. There has to be some quality lose there.

 

[DisMike]

In this day and age of I-tunes and very little royalties coming in from "record" sales these guys have to tour and sell tickets for $200 a pop to continue to make money. (Those lifestyles don't come cheap). That said I saw Elton John on September 26, 1974 on my 15th birthday. He was touring with KiKi Dee (Don't Go Breaking My Heart) and sometimes wonder how he is still doing it 45 years later. There has to be some quality lose there.

Don't kid yourself. A lot of these guys (especially someone like Elton) continue to get bank from royalties from people playing their music or from continued record sales. How much you think Elton got paid for all the stuff they used in "Rocketman" (the movie)? <facetiousness>Don't know for sure but I'm guessing it was more than the GNP of several small countries. </facetiousness>

 

[FlightlessDuck]

Yes, this is his farewell tour. He announced that before it started.

 

[FoundMyPrince]

I saw him about 5 years ago in concert. I was underwhelmed. There was no energy in his voice or performing. Paul McCartney, a year earlier, on the other hand, was fantastic.

I saw Paul last week in Green Bay...just an awesome experience. Hard to believe he’s in his late 70s.

 

[madscrapper]

I saw him last year and absolutely loved the concert! Sure, he isn't climbing on the piano, but his voice sounded like him and the energy was wonderful.

 

[Pea-n-Me]

Me too. Although for me it was probably 30 years ago. Short concert. Sang all his hits with little emotion. Voice not so hot.

Kind of thought he was resting on his laurels of being “Elton John”.

It might very well have been thirty years ago because now that you mention it, my friend was pregnant with her son at the time. So yeah, agree!

 

[Cannot_Wait_4Disney]

Time for Elton John to call it quits? I already thought he was.

Madonna did the Eurovision Song Contest the other week- car crash, voice had totally gone.

Was her voice ever truly there? Is it live or is it Autotune?

 

[CarolAnn856]

I saw him last fall and he was amazing. Of course his voice has changed over the years. Do people really think that your voice never changes as you age? But although it was different, it was still strong, and his piano playing and energy were through the roof.

A cell phone, which is likely what OP's nephew recorded on, has a laughably poor ability to record a concert, so trying to judge a singer based on that is just silly.

 

[Sweetpancake]

Sorry I have to respectfully disagree. I saw him in concert just a few years ago and his voice sounded amazing. He puts on such a wonderful show. Both times I've seen him in concert, he has played for over 3 hours! So heck, if he's showing some video clips (as ALL performers do) I can totally handle that. I've honestly never seen a better performer than him and I've been to so many concerts.

 

[Sweetpancake]

Isn’t Cher on her third or fourth farewell tour? She was supposed to play here a few weeks ago but had to cancel because she fell ill. The show was rescheduled to May 2021 but just today it was was cancelled outright.

I saw her about 15 years ago and at that time it was supposed to be her last tour EVER,lol

 

[SueInBoston]

I saw Elton last October and he was fantastic. I will only spend my concert money on old timers, they maybe "old" but they have talent. Unlike many of the modern"pop stars" that have no voice when you take them out of the recording studio.