Elton John

Elton John began his professional music career as a teenager performing as a pianist at the Northwood Hills Hotel. In 1962 he formed the band Bluesology, which by the mid-1960s backed touring American artists including the Isley Brothers, Major Lance and Patti LaBelle and the Bluebelles. In 1967 he answered an advertisement in New Musical Express, leading to his songwriting partnership with Bernie Taupin. The pair joined DJM Records as staff songwriters in 1968. John released his debut album, Empty Sky, in 1969. His self-titled album Elton John (1970) included the hit single “Your Song.” He followed with Tumbleweed Connection (1970), the live album 17-11-70 (1971), the soundtrack to Friends (1971), and Madman Across the Water (1971).

In 1972 John released Honky Château, his first US number-one album, followed by Don’t Shoot Me I’m Only the Piano Player (1973) and the double album Goodbye Yellow Brick Road (1973), which included the US number-one single “Bennie and the Jets.” During this period he achieved seven consecutive US number-one albums. In 1974 he founded The Rocket Record Company and released Caribou (1974). He collaborated with John Lennon in 1974 and appeared on Lennon’s album Walls and Bridges. Subsequent albums included Captain Fantastic and the Brown Dirt Cowboy (1975), which debuted at number one in the US, Rock of the Westies (1975), Blue Moves (1976), and A Single Man (1978). In 1979 he toured the Soviet Union and released 21 at 33 (1980).

Throughout the 1980s John released albums including The Fox (1981), Jump Up! (1982), Too Low for Zero (1983), Breaking Hearts (1984), Ice on Fire (1985), Reg Strikes Back (1988), and Sleeping with the Past (1989). His 1985 collaboration “That’s What Friends Are For” reached number one in the US. In 1990 he achieved his first solo UK number-one single with “Sacrifice.” He released The One (1992) and Duets (1993). In 1994 he composed songs for Disney’s The Lion King, winning the Academy Award for Best Original Song for “Can You Feel the Love Tonight.” He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1994. He released Made in England (1995) and performed “Candle in the Wind 1997” at the funeral of Diana, Princess of Wales; the single became the best-selling single of all time. In 1997 The Lion King musical debuted on Broadway, followed by Aida in 1999, for which he won the Tony Award for Best Original Score. He also released Elton John One Night Only – The Greatest Hits (2000).

In the 2000s John composed Billy Elliot the Musical (2005), which won four Laurence Olivier Awards and later the Tony Award for Best Musical on Broadway. He held a Las Vegas residency, The Red Piano, from 2004 to 2009. Albums during this period included The Captain & the Kid (2006). In 2010 he released The Union, a collaboration with Leon Russell, and began a second Las Vegas residency, The Million Dollar Piano (2011–2018). He released The Diving Board (2013) and Wonderful Crazy Night (2016). In 2017 he appeared in the film Kingsman: The Golden Circle and composed music for the Broadway adaptation of The Devil Wears Prada (announced 2017).

In 2018 John began the Farewell Yellow Brick Road tour, concluding in 2023 as one of the highest-grossing tours of all time. The biographical film Rocketman was released in 2019, featuring the original song “(I’m Gonna) Love Me Again,” which won the Academy Award for Best Original Song. He released The Lockdown Sessions (2021), which included the UK number-one single “Cold Heart (Pnau remix)” with Dua Lipa and the 2021 UK number-one charity single “Merry Christmas” with Ed Sheeran. In 2022 he collaborated with Britney Spears on “Hold Me Closer” and composed the musical Tammy Faye, which opened in London that year. He headlined the Glastonbury Festival in 2023 and has continued to perform select concerts following the conclusion of his farewell tour.