The Music of ELTON JOHN

Sir Elton Hercules John (born Reginald Kenneth Dwight on 25 March 1947) is a five-time Grammy and one-time Academy Award-winning English pop/rock singer, composer and pianist. In his four-decade career, John has been one of the dominant forces in rock and popular music, especially during the 1970s. Elton has sold more than 250 million albums plus over one hundred million singles, making him one of the most successful artists of all time. He has more than 50 Top 40 hits including seven consecutive #1 U.S. albums, 59 Top 40 singles, 16 Top 10, 4 #2 hits, and nine #1 hits. His success has had a profound impact on popular music and has contributed to the continued popularity of the piano in rock and roll. In 2004, Rolling Stone Magazine ranked Elton John #49 on their list of The Immortals: 100 Greatest Artists of All Time.

Some of the characteristics of Elton John's music are his ability to quickly craft unique melodies for the lyrics of songwriting partner Bernie Taupin, his rich tenor voice, his classical and gospel-influenced piano, the aggressive orchestral arrangements of Paul Buckmaster among others and the flamboyant fashions and on-stage showmanship, especially evident during the 1970s.

Elton John was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1994. He has been heavily involved in the fight against AIDS since the late 1980s and was knighted in 1998. He entered into a civil partnership with David Furnish on 21 December 2005 and continues to be a champion for the LGBT social movements.

Biography Elton John was born in Pinner, Middlesex in a council house of his maternal grandparents, with whom his newlywed parents, Stanley and Sheila Dwight, were living. He then moved to a nearby semi-detached house. He was educated at Pinner County Grammar School until the age of 15 before pursuing a career in the music industry.

When Elton began to seriously consider a career in music, his father tried to steer him toward a more conventional career such as banking. Elton has stated that his wild stage costumes and performances were his way of letting go after such a restrictive childhood. Both of Elton’s parents were musically inclined, his father having been a trumpet player with a semi-professional big band that played military dances. The Dwights were avid record buyers, exposing the boy to all the popular singers and musicians of the day. Elton remembers being immediately hooked on rock and roll when his mother brought home records by Elvis Presley and Bill Haley and the Comets in 1956.

Listen to his songs.