much missed

Elton John honors late friend George Michael on his 60th birthday with a very special performance

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Elton John and George Michael
Elton John and George Michael (Photos: Shutterstock)

Elton John wowed the massive Glastonbury Festival in England yesterday with a Sunday night headline performance. The slot is traditionally reserved for “legend” performers.

Glastonbury had a whopping 200,000 attendees and the majority of them turned up at the Pyramid Stage to catch Elton’s hit-packed show. It featured several special guests. However, for many, the most emotional moment came when Elton paid tribute to the late George Michael.

Unbeknown to many, his appearance at the festival coincided with what would have been Michael’s 60th birthday. The late Wham! singer died on Christmas Day 2016 at age 53.

“It’s a very, very special day today and I wonder how I’m going to approach it,” Elton told the crowd.

He continued: “One of Britain’s most fantastic singers and songwriters was George Michael. He was my friend, he was an inspiration, and today would have been his 60th birthday, so I want to dedicate this song to his memory. All the music he left us with is so gorgeous. This is for you George.”

Behind him, a screen showed a large projection of the late singer.

Elton then performed his 1974 hit, “Don’t Let The Sun Go Down On Me”. The song went to the top of the charts when it was re-released as a duet, by Elton and George Michael, in 1991.

Farewell performance

It was a touching moment in an emotional show. As Elton has now performed his last Farewell Yellow Brick Road concerts in his home country, yesterday’s Glastonbury headline slot could well be his last ever UK show: a fact he acknowledged during his performance. The clip below gives an idea of the size of the crowd.

Guest-wise, Elton was joined on stage by Brandon Flowers of the Killers for a rendition of “Tiny Dancer”. Also joining him at various points were Jacob Lusk of Gabriels, Rina Sawayama, and Steven Sanchez. Rumored or hoped-for appearances from Britney Spears and Dua Lipa never materialized. However, nobody was left disappointed by Elton’s two-hour swansong set.

Elton today posted on Instagram, “Thank you, Glastonbury! 🙏❤️ The energy last night was like nothing else, and I couldn’t be more grateful to the crowd and the people watching at home for all your love and support. You will be in my heart and soul forever. UK, what a farewell. I love you.”

Lil Nas X and Lana Del Rey

This year’s Glastonbury Festival basked in sweltering sunshine across the entire weekend. Its other headliners were Guns N’ Roses and The Arctic Monkeys.

Before Elton’s slot, Lil Nas X wowed the crowd with an energetic set that included all his best-known songs and a surprise appearance from Jack Harlow for “Industry Baby”.

One of the weekend’s other much-talked-about appearances came from Lana Del Rey, who headlined the smaller ‘The Other Stage’ on Friday night.

Del Rey hit the stage 30 minutes late, quipping with the audience that her hair had taken ages to get right. She might get away with that at one of her own gigs, but Glastonbury has a strict midnight curfew. Del Rey tried to make up time, but as the curfew hit, she was told she had to end the set, despite having half a dozen songs left to perform, including some of her biggest hits.

A frustrated Del Rey then led the audience in an acapella version of “Video Games”. She then went down to meet with the front row and sing a bit of “Summertime Sadness”.

Related:

Sir Elton John raves over “seismic” talent of Lil Nas X

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