On Saturday night (March 25th), Elton John celebrated his 70th birthday, with a gala fundraising event hosted by Rob Lowe celebrating the milestone birthday, and his 50-year writing partnership with Bernie Taupin. The party benefited the Elton John AIDS Foundation (EJAF) and the Hammer Museum at UCLA. People.com reported such high profile guest in attendance were Stevie Wonder, Joni Mitchell, Lady Gaga, Katy Perry, Sharon and Kelly Osbourne, Neil Patrick Harris, James Corden, Roseanne Cash, Ryan Phillippe, Jon Hamm, Jack McBrayer, and Gordon Ramsay, among others. Highlights included a mini set by Elton, Gaga performing "Born This Way,"and she and Stevie Wonder duetting on "Happy Birthday."
On reaching his 70th year, Elton said in a prepared statement: "I'm interested in moving forward all the time, with what I create, my collaborations, and also with discovering the work of other people. I think age is immaterial, provided we keep our minds alive by being open to new things. I can be as excited by a new artist who plays me their demo as I am by a new record of one of my musical heroes. I can be excited by playing a new city I've never played before, or revisiting somewhere I know well and seeing how it's changed. Life is a constant state of flux for us all, and I like to embrace that. I also feel very happy to use my position to bring attention to injustice in the world, and to try to help where I can. At this time in my life I'm the happiest I have ever been."
- Bernie Taupin said of Elton: "It's been an unconventional partnership and while we pretty much patented the two-rooms technique I'd venture to say you'd be hard pressed to find a couple of songwriters more in sync with each other and their craft."
- Elton John admitted that his over the top persona -- both on and off the stage -- during the 1970's and '80s was often a mask for his admitted low self esteem: ["When I was drinking and doing drugs, you become completely ridiculous. I mean, you become self-obsessed, your values go completely out the window. Y'know, you don't like the color of the wallpaper on the plane, or the way it's done, you don't like the color of the furniture in the hotel room -- it's all that absolute nonsense. Like all entertainers, they're very comfortable on the stage, off the stage, I didn't really. . . I was still the young boy from Pinner, who was just kinda insecure, a little overweight, and, y'know, had an inferiority complex. I just showed off on stage. All entertainers want to do is show off."]
- Elton admitted to us that the past 25 years, in which he married longtime partner David Furnish and had two children with him, have marked the happiest and most centered his life has ever been: [“Life since 1990 has been all about trying to grow up, trying to see things from a different perspective -- listening. And I was lucky to find my partner and that's been the saving grace of my life, as well."]
- Elton John and James Taylor kick off a six-date South American run on March 31st in Curitiba, Brazil.
- Elton John North American tour dates (subject to change):April 22 - Bakersfield, CA - Rabobank Arena
- April 25, 26, 28, 29 - Las Vegas, NV - The Colosseum At Caesars Palace
- May 1, 3, 4, 5 - Las Vegas, NV - The Colosseum At Caesars Palace
SOURCE: Press release
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CHECK IT OUT: Guests entering Elton's 70th birthday bash: