Elton John hails fans at emotional final farewell show

STOCKHOLM - Surrounded by emotional fans from around the globe, Elton John hailed them as his "lifeblood" as he gave his final farewell concert in Stockholm after more than 50 years of live performances.

"You know how much I like to play live. It's been my lifeblood to play for you guys, and you've been absolutely magnificent," he told the delighted audience at the arena in the Swedish capital.

Wearing a tailcoat accented with rhinestones and a red pair of his trademark large glasses, the 76-year-old pop superstar sat down at the piano shortly after 8:00 pm to cheers to open his farewell show with one of his most popular songs, "Bennie and the Jets."

He then continued with "Philadelphia Freedom" and "I Guess That's Why They Call It the Blues" to a rapt audience, many of whom were wearing sparkling blue or red glasses.

Playing for more than two hours, John interspersed the songs with moments when he would get up and leave the piano to thank not only his fans but also his band and his crew, some of whom have been with him for more than 40 years.

"I want to pay tribute to these musicians... They're really incredible, they've been with me so long, some of them. And they are the best, I tell you, the best," he said.

Shortly after a rendition of "Border Song" which he dedicated to Aretha Franklin, John's "I'm Still Standing" brought the 30,000 fans at the Tele2 Arena to their feet.

Before he took his encore, John screened a message from Coldplay, who were playing in the western Swedish city of Gothenburg, in which singer Chris Martin thanked him for his career and commitment.

'Amazing show'

"It was amazing. I have no words right now because I haven't processed all the show, but it was amazing," said Anton Pohjonen, a 25-year-old bank worker from Finland.

"You almost start tearing up on his account. But then it feels great to be here," added Swedish teacher Conny Johansson, who bought tickets for the show four years ago.

Excited fans were looking forward to an emotional end to the superstar's glittering live career even before the curtain went up.

"It's going to be very emotional tonight," said Kate Bugaj, 25, a Polish student who admitted she had delayed her Master's exams to follow her musical hero's tour.

Describing herself as a "huge fan", she said it all began the first time she watched "The Lion King", the 1994 Walt Disney film which gave John one of his two Oscar music wins.

Fifty-year-old Jeanie Kincer travelled from Kentucky in the United States for the show.

"I wanted to be here for the end because I was too young to be here in the beginning," she said.

To mark the occasion, she was dressed in red shorts with braces and a red, yellow and brown T-shirt -- almost the exact same outfit John wore for his first concert in Stockholm in 1971.

Sweden's daily Expressen called the final show "an important chapter in the history of rock 'n' roll which is about to end".

The star has been winding down his decades-long live career with a global farewell tour.

He played his last concerts in the United States in May and brought the curtain down on Britain's annual Glastonbury Festival last month.

Saturday's farewell concert was the second consecutive evening the Stockholm stadium hosted the legendary British singer-songwriter for the last leg of his final tour, which began five years ago and was disrupted by the Covid-19 pandemic and a hip operation in 2021.

On his "Farewell Yellow Brick Road" tour, John will have given 330 concerts, crisscrossing Europe, Australia, New Zealand, the United States, Canada and Britain, before closing in Stockholm.

Overall, the tour has seen him perform in front of 6.25 million fans.

Agence France-Presse

Movie review: Elton John's music shines, drives story in 'Rocketman'

MANILA -- Fresh at the heels of "Bohemian Rhapsody" last year which recounted for us the life of Queen frontman Freddy Mercury, here comes another film that traces the life and career of another legendary name in pop music -- Elton John. 

The director of "Rocketman," Dexter Fletcher, directed "Bohemian Rhapsody" for its final two weeks of shooting, when original director Brian Singer dropped out of the project. 

I only learned about Elton John in the 1980s when he was part of the quarter Dionne and Friends singing "That's What Friends are For." From then, I went back and checked out his hit songs from the 1970s and had been a big fan of his work ever since. In my opinion, John had written and sung some of the best pop songs ever recorded. 

I had seen him in concert once in the 2000s, and even then, he was still quite an entertainer live. By that time, John's performance style had already toned down several notches than how he was performing in the 1970s with those crazy colorful costumes, as I had seen in photographs and videos. I can imagine John's career may actually parallel Mercury's because of their individual flamboyant personas.

The film began with John, dressed in a wild all-red devil costume, with huge feathered wings, high-raised collar and curved horns, attending a group therapy session, admitting his addictions to alcohol, drugs, sex and shopping. From there, there were flashbacks to show his family life as a child Reginald Dwight with frosty, insensitive, uncaring parents. He was a piano prodigy who can play any complex tune back even after listening to the music only once. When he hit his stride creating hit pop songs, then his phenomenal career and hedonistic lifestyle as Elton John took off. 

It was interesting that John's songs were fully integrated into the script, with characters actually breaking into song at certain points in flights of fantasy. Fans familiar with John's discography will immediately notice that the songs were not presented in precise order when they were released, so this was not a cut-and-dried biopic where factual accuracy was foremost. Here the songs were used as the scene required them for a more emotionally driven storytelling. 

The upbeat first song "The Bitch Is Back" (1974) was sung in a flashback as a young boy Reginald Dwight (Matthew Illeslie) was gleefully prancing and dancing around their neighborhood. "I Want Love" (2001, with a memorable single-take music video with Robert Downey, Jr.) was sung by teenage Reginald (Kit Connor), along with his cold father Stanley (Steven Mackintosh), acerbic mother Sheila (Bryce Dallas Howard) and supportive granny Ivy (Gemma Jones). 

In "Saturday Night's Alright for Fighting" (1973), John transitions from teen to young adult, played by Taron Egerton. By then, he would already call himself Elton John, derived from his Bluesology bandmate saxophone player Elton Dean, and supposedly John Lennon, whose photograph Elton just saw on the wall when he was asked for his surname. When he met Bernie Taupin (Jamie Bell), "Your Song" (1970) and a fruitful songwriting partnership was born. "Crocodile Rock" (1972) was sung at the Troubadour Club in Elton John's American debut tour.

"Honky Cat" (1972) was sung as a duet between Elton and his manager/lover John Reid (Richard Madden). Their love scene together is said to be a first for any major Hollywood production. Reid was portrayed to be the film's antagonist with the selfish abusive way he treated John. (It is interesting to note that Reid would also become Queen's manager in the late 1970s. He was played in "Bohemian Rhapsody" by Aidan Gillen.) 

"Rocket Man" (1972) would accompany John's shocking suicide attempt scene, which would dramatically transition into his memorable concert performance at the Dodgers Stadium.

More of Elton John's hits would be sung as the movie went along "Tiny Dancer" (1972) "Bennie and the Jets" (1974) "Don't Let the Sun Go Down on Me" (1974) (as a duet with his wife Renate Blauel, played by Celine Schoenmaker), "Sorry Seems to Be the Hardest Word" (1976), "Goodbye Yellow Brick Road" (1973), and of course, "I'm Still Standing" (1983) as the final anthem of strength and survival. 

Taron Egerton does one better than Rami Malek (Oscar Best Actor winner last year for playing Mercury in "Bohemian Rhapsody) because Egerton actually does all of his singing as John by himself. From the animated film "Sing" (2016), we already heard Egerton, at that time only known for playing Eggsy in "Kingsman Secret Service" (2014), sing his heart out as the voice of gorilla Johnny, singing "I'm Still Standing." 

Egerton was singing and acting immersively at the same time, and this was even more remarkable during the darker episodes of John's life. Egerton's makeup as John was eerily accurate, down to that little gap in his front teeth, with the glasses and costumes to complete the picture. 

This was not an ordinary or conventional biopic. While the factual events were there, psychedelic fantasy was also incorporated into the storytelling. At the Troubadour concert, there was a scene showing John and his audience floating in midair with the music. At the suicide scene, Elton was shown sinking down into the swimming pool where he saw his younger self sitting at the pool floor. 

This was an abashedly florid gay parts of the movie which may not sit well with some more conservative members of the viewing public (even if they were not explicit). Anyhow, true fans will love how the film captured John's unique sense of showbiz swank and sophistication which made him an unlikely pop superstar. 

This review was originally published in the author's blog, "Fred Said."

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Elton John slams Russian cuts to 'Rocketman' gay scenes

LOS ANGELES - Elton John on Friday criticized Russia's reported censorship of gay sex scenes in the new movie musical based on his life, "Rocketman," calling the decision "cruelly unaccepting of the love between 2 people."

John and the makers of "Rocketman," which depicts the warts-and-all rise to fame of the gay British musician, issued a statement after Russian media reported that scenes involving gay sex and drug-taking had been cut from a screening in Russia.

"We reject in the strongest possible terms the decision to pander to local laws and censor 'Rocketman' for the Russian market," John and the filmmakers said.

"That the local distributor has edited out certain scenes, denying the audience the opportunity to see the film as it was intended, is a sad reflection of the divided world we still live in and how it can still be so cruelly unaccepting of the love between 2 people," their statement added.

The English-language Moscow Times on Friday quoted a Russian film critic who had seen the film at its May 16 world premiere in Cannes as saying that several scenes, totaling about 5 minutes, had disappeared from the Russian version.

They include a male sex scene featuring actor Taron Egerton, who plays John, and a photograph during the closing credits in which the "Goodbye Yellow Brick Road" singer is pictured with his real-life husband David Furnish, who was a producer on the film, film critic Yegor Moskvitin was quoted as saying.

The movie, which has won warm reviews, began its worldwide rollout earlier this week.

John, 72, a prominent gay rights campaigner, has previously spoken out against a 2013 law banning the dissemination of "gay propaganda" among young Russians.

In 2015, Russian President Vladimir Putin said he would be willing to meet with John. Although the singer played a concert in Moscow in May 2016, no meeting with Putin took place.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Elton John joins call for boycott of Brunei-owned hotels

LONDON--British pop legend Elton John has joined actor George Clooney in calling for a boycott of nine Brunei-owned hotels over the sultanate's new death-penalty laws for gay sex and adultery.

The call came as a growing list of politicians and celebrities added their names to those condemning the new laws and supporting a boycott.

"I commend my friend, #GeorgeClooney, for taking a stand against the anti-gay discrimination and bigotry taking place in the nation of #Brunei - a place where gay people are brutalized, or worse - by boycotting the Sultan's hotels," the singer wrote on his Twitter page late Saturday.

The 72-year-old, a veteran gay rights campaigner, said his "heart went out" to staff at the hotels, but that "we must send a message, however we can, that such treatment is unacceptable".

The nine hotels mentioned by Clooney are located in Britain, France, Italy and the United States. They include London's exclusive Dorchester and the Beverly Hills Hotel in Los Angeles. 

The Dorchester Collection luxury chain issued a statement saying that its code emphasizes "equality, respect and integrity in all areas" and that "we do not tolerate any form of discrimination", CNN reported.

Clooney called for the boycott earlier this week, saying "every single time we stay at or take meetings at or dine at any of these nine hotels, we are putting money directly into the pockets of men who choose to stone and whip to death their own citizens for being gay or accused of adultery".

'BARBARIC' DECISION 

"No one should face the death penalty because of who they love. Brunei's decision is barbaric," Britain's international development minister Penny Mordaunt wrote on Twitter.

Former New Zealand prime minister Helen Clark called the new penal code "shocking" and "barbaric".

Amnesty International called on Brunei to "immediately halt its plans to implement these vicious punishments".

In the US, Clooney's call drew supportive declarations from lawmakers on both sides of the political aisle and a strong statement from the Trump administration.

"We strongly oppose human rights violations and abuses against LGBTI persons, including violence," the State Department said in a statement.

LGBTI stands for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Intersex. Intersex people are people born with physical features that are neither wholly male nor female.

US CONDEMNATION 

Former US vice president Joe Biden, who is expected to seek the Democratic Party's 2020 presidential nomination, tweeted on Friday: "Stoning people to death for homosexuality or adultery is appalling and immoral...

"There is no excuse -- not culture, not tradition -- for this kind of hate and inhumanity."

Another Democrat seeking the party's nomination, Senator Kamala Harris of California, joined the chorus. "These human rights abuses cannot be tolerated," she said.

And Senator Ted Cruz, a Republican from Texas, said on Twitter: "This is wrong. It is barbaric. America should condemn this immoral and inhumane law, and everyone should be united against it."

Actress Jamie Lee Curtis also tweeted in support of her fellow actor's stand. "I stand with George Clooney, a good man doing the right thing, fighting an unjust and barbaric law."

Clooney and his wife, human-rights lawyer Amal Clooney, have been active in humanitarian causes. 

Brunei, an absolute monarchy ruled for 51 years by Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah, is to implement the new penal code starting Wednesday.

Homosexuality is already illegal in the sultanate, but it will now become a capital offence. The law applies only to Muslims.

Brunei first announced the measures in 2013, but implementation has been delayed, in the face of opposition by rights groups, and as officials worked out the practical details.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

IN PHOTOS: From Elton John to Manilow, musicians who have come out as gay

It's always a big deal whenever a celebrity comes out as gay because, with their stature, they can have a significant impact on the fight for LGBT rights.

Take for example Barry Manilow, who grabbed headlines Wednesday when he revealed his sexuality.

With that in mind, here's a look at other singers have come out as gay.

Barry Manilow, grabbed headlines Wednesday when he revealed his sexuality.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Elton John to pen personal story about AIDS

LONDON — Elton John will write a personal account of his life during the AIDS epidemic, including his friendship with Queen frontman Freddie Mercury who died of an AIDS-related illness in 1991 aged 45.

The "Rocket Man" musician founded the Elton John AIDS Foundation around 20 years ago to raise funds to help fight the disease, and proceeds from "LOVE IS THE CURE: Ending the Global AIDS Epidemic" will go to the charity.

In a statement released on Monday, publishers Hodder & Stoughton promised a "very personal story of... Elton's life during the AIDS epidemic, including his agony at seeing friend after friend perish needlessly."

Among the individuals it describes are Mercury and Ryan White, an American boy who became a "poster child" for HIV/AIDS after he was banned by a school because of his condition.

According to reports at the time, John was with White when he died in a US hospital in 1990 aged 18.

"This is a disease that must be cured not by a miraculous vaccine, but by changing hearts and minds, and through a collective effort to break down social barriers and to build bridges of compassion," John said.

"Why are we not doing more? This is a question I have thought deeply about, and wish to answer — and to help change — by writing this book."

An estimated 34 million people worldwide had the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) that causes AIDS in 2010, up 17 percent from 2001 when 28.6 million were living with HIV.

According to the Hodder statement, HIV/AIDS has claimed 60 million lives.

Hodder & Stoughton acquired LOVE IS THE CURE with US sister company Little, Brown and Company.

It is due to be published in July 2012 to coincide with the 2012 XIX International AIDS Conference to be held in Washington DC. — Reuters

source:gmanetwork.com