Elton John Concerts

Elton John (born as Reginald Kenneth Dwight) is a British singer and songwriter. He was born on March 25, 1947 in Pinner, Greater London, England. John didn’t grow up in a wealthy family. He was raised in a public housing project mostly by his maternal grandparents. His parents were avid hobby musicians, so the young Reginald too found an affection for music. Despite his father’s misgivings, he decided to pursue a career as a musician. 

His first paid gig was as a regular pianist in a local pub at just age 15. Despite having good eyesight, he started wearing his signature horn-rimmed glasses to imitate American rock and roll star Buddy Holly. Those glasses have remained a staple of an Elton John concert for decades.

In 1962, he and his friends formed the group "Bluesology". They found quite a bit of success, even going on tour in the US, opening for major bands. In 1967, John answered a newspaper ad placed by record producer Ray Williams. John got the job as a songwriter for the label Liberty Records, and the two, along with lyricist Bernie Taupin, have been collaborating ever since. It was around this time that the British music legend took on the name “Elton John”, to pay homage to two of his former bandmates at  Bluesology. He legally changed his name to Elton Hercules John in 1972.

John’s first single came out in 1968, with the title “I’ve Been Loving You”. His debut studio album came out in June 1969, entitled “Empty Sky”. However, his first massive hit was his self-titled second album from April 1970. “Elton John” peaked at the #4 spot on the famous US Billboard 100 charts in the US, and on the #5 spot on the album charts in his home country of UK. 

Since then, he has released 29 additional records, thus he has 31 in total. The latest new Elton John album came out in October 2021, a topical piece about the Coronavirus pandemic titled "Lockdown Sessions". He has sold an accumulative 300 million copies of his albums so far, which makes him the 4th best selling artist of all time. His biggest hits to date are "Tiny Dancer" (1971), "Rocket Man" (1972), and "Sacrifice" (1989); as well as "Cold Heart" (2020), featuring Dua Lipa. John also wrote the soundtrack for the classic Disney animated movie "Lion King" (1994).

Elton John has been open about his homosexuality since a 1976 interview with Rolling Stone Magazine. He is also an avid advocate for AIDS research, having founded the Elton John AIDS Foundation in 1992. In 1998, he was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II for his contributions to music and charity. Check where the nearest Elton John concert is playing on the page above.