Elton John | Biography, Songs, & Facts | Britannica

Home » When Did Elton John Die » Elton John | Biography, Songs, & Facts | Britannica

Maybe your like

Superstardom and showmanship

By 1973 John was one of the world’s best-selling pop performers. His typical compositions, written with Taupin, were affectionate parodies and pastiches of everything from the Rolling Stones (“The Bitch Is Back” [1974]) to Frank Sinatra ballads (“Blue Eyes” [1982]) to 1950s rock and roll (“Crocodile Rock” [1972]) to Philadelphia soul (“Philadelphia Freedom” [1975]). He also demonstrated deeper musical ambitions in longer works such as “Burn Down the Mission” on Tumbleweed Connection (1971) and “Funeral for a Friend/Love Lies Bleeding” on Goodbye Yellow Brick Road (1973). Other notable songs from this period include “Rocket Man” on Honky Château (1972) and “Don’t Let the Sun Go Down on Me” on Caribou (1974).

One of pop music's great entertainers
One of pop music's great entertainersIn the 1970s Elton John brought into the pop arena an old-fashioned gaudily costumed flamboyance reminiscent of Las Vegas entertainers. His flair for showmanship made him a great concert draw.(more)

Beginning in 1976 with the album Blue Moves, his rock influences became less pronounced, and a more churchlike English pop style emerged in ballads such as “Sorry Seems to Be the Hardest Word” (1976), which typifies the staid declamatory aura of his mature ballads. In the late 1970s and ’80s, as he experimented with other collaborators, his music lost some of its freshness and his popularity dipped a bit, but he remained an extremely popular mainstream entertainer who brought into the pop arena an old-fashioned gaudily costumed flamboyance reminiscent of the Las Vegas piano legend Liberace. At the same time, John was recognized as a natural showman in his own right, frequently appearing onstage in elaborate wigs and rhinestone-encrusted sunglasses. His flair for the outlandish made him a great concert draw.

Access for the whole family! Bundle Britannica Premium and Kids for the ultimate resource destination. Subscribe

Tag » When Did Elton John Die