Concert Report: Elton John (Amway Center)

Consisting of 300 performances spread across 3 years, the "Farewell Yellow Brick Road" concert finally took place last night in Orlando following its last second cancellation in November.

Arrived early to get to our seats up in the nosebleed section of Amway Center! Some people literally carried oxygen tanks up here due to the thin air!

And then exactly at 8PM, there he was!  Singer, songwriter, composer and pianist, Elton John (GB).

Opening with "Tiny Dancer" followed by a song I didn't know, I thought the beginning was rather lackluster. But he would make up for it later!

His famous Elton John Band was a fixture within the background screen as Elton sang "Bennie and the Jets".

The show was completely sold out and even nosebleed seats were going for $200+.

My entourage included Art, Sue, Lexi & Kristy.

But suddenly a magic text arrived and I had been upgraded to Floor seats!

"Someone Saved My Life Tonight" & "Philadelphia Freedom".

These seats were MUCH better!

The soon to turn age 72 Elton John sat at his piano most of the night but occasionally stood.

I thought the crowd overall was rather subdued, cheering of course but not showing a lot of enthusiasm.

Elton has gotten rather porky, his hair is long-gone and he can't move around like he used to.

But I thought his voice was great and his hands flowed across the piano keys like they always have!

Singing about Marilyn Monroe for "Candle In The Wind".

"Sad Songs (Say So Much).

And then another upgrade: this time to the stage itself!!

I was so close I could have played the piano with him!

And then the concert got really good with one hit after another! "Daniel" and one of my favorites, "Don't Let The Sun Go Down On Me".

"The Bitch Is Back" and "I'm Still Standing"!

"Crocodile Rock"

$1,000 seats. So many old people up front, I felt a little out-of-place!

 "Your Song"

He wasn't bashful about asking for applause.

Earlier in the evening he had thanked everyone for their understanding regarding the cancelled concert in November. Here he was talking about his AIDS charity.

Spotted in VIP: My "Mans Week" friend Art.

"Saturday Night's Alright For Fighting"

As the 3-hour mark approached, a confetti explosion!

Band introduction. Some of his members have played with him for years if not decades and included Nigel Olsson, Davey Johnstone and Ray Cooper.

Elton back out for two encore songs; "My Song" and of course the song for which his final tour is named, "Goodbye Yellow Brick Road".

And with that he stepped on a lift that took him up to his secret exit as he waved to everyone.

First time I ever got to see Elton John perform live. He is truly a legend!

And after the door closed, a filmed version of Elton appeared from the corner of the screen as he stepped onto the Yellow Brick Road.

And off he went into the sunset. Big thanks to the Amway staff for the hookups. A good time was had by all.