I intend to fill in a few gaps in the reporting provided thus far on the 11/5 Amherst show.
1. Someone indicated that Elton was just "going through the motions." From my vantage point which, to my good fortune, was about two feet from EJ, I must insist this was not the case. I have seen him 19 times (including five times on the stellar Made in England tour) and came away with the distinct feeling that the Amherst show was one of his best shows ever (with the band), if not his best. Yes, I, too, was disappointed that he dropped We All Fall/Curtains. One of the reasons that I decided to go to the Amherst show was that I heard EJ and the band do these songs in Virginia Beach on 10/11, and wanted to hear them again. Living in New Jersey, it isn't so easy to get around to all these exotic locations...
In any case, despite the absence of these songs, and of I'm Still Standing, which he had dropped since Va. Beach, Elton still did not disappoint. He was incredibly energetic-- even more so than at MSG in 1995 -- full of smiles, highly spirited and brimming with frighteningly excellent piano solos. As some have already mentioned, he was amazing on Pilot, I Don't Wanna and Bennie And the Jets. All were so intense as to make one (like myself) go positively insane. And he didn't just play -- every chord he hit, every embellishment he made to these and other songs, was decorated with the most entertaining body movements, grimaces and comic turns. What I haven't heard anyone say -- or maybe, what I've heard few people say -- is how he has changed around the piano on several songs on which he does not usually solo. Off the top of my head, these songs include I Guess That's Why, Saturday Night and The Bitch Is Back (which also included a funny instrumental call and response between Elton and the band).
2. The reason I was so lucky to be about 2 feet from Elton is related to what someone reported that Elton said early in the show. I had tickets for the 16th row on the left, but was sorely disappointed to learn that, once the show started and everyone on the floor stood, I couldn't see! One reason is that the stage was fairly low. The other is that I'm not tall. Anyway, I saw some people trotting down to the front. I followed. I was there, right in front of EJ, with a perfect view of his piano-playing profile (when I say perfect, I mean I could see his hands going up and down the 88s and even his feet on the pedals). But then security started getting ornery, asking fans for their tickets and ordering them back to their seats. This was horrifying. I tried to hide, but it was no use. They found me. I wandered around in the aisle, not being able to find the friend I came with or my seat. This was during Goodbye Yellow Brick Road. I could see Elton looking around, wondering where all his adoring fans had gone. A song before, we were all smiling in his face and waving at him. He was already giving out autographs and taking gifts. Now, he didn't have anybody to bond with. Once GBYR ended, he said something like, "I don't know what the guys in the red shirts are doing, but it's pissing me off!" All I heard was "pissing me off!" A friend later filled in the rest of the words for me.
But as soon as I heard "pissing me off!" I knew he was referring to security. The guards disappeared, and I ran back down to the front, re-taking my previous spot, where I remained the rest of the night. This wouldn't have been possible without Elton's intervention!
Thanks, Elton!
--Liz Rosenthal
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