Elton John’s Life in 20 Songs

In celebration of Elton John's current Top Five album, The Diving Board, the "Rocket Man" listed his "Life In 20 Songs" for Rolling Stone. Among the various classics and obscure album tracks on the list is Elton and lyricist Bernie Taupin's breakthrough hit, and first Top 10 hit, "Your Song." Elton said, "What can I say, it's a perfect song. It gets better every time I sing it. I remember writing it at my parents' apartment in North London, and Bernie giving me the lyrics, sitting down at the piano and looking at it and going, 'Oh, my God, this is such a great lyric, I can't f*** this one up.' It came out in about 20 minutes, and when I was done, I called him in and we both knew. I was 22, and he was 19, and it gave us so much confidence. . . musically, this was a big step forward. And the older I get, the more I sing these lyrics, and the more they resonate with me."

Another song that made the list was 1983's "I Guess That's Why They Call It The Blues," which went on to mark his full-time reunion with Bernie Taupin and his first Top 10 hit in nearly four years: "Bernie was back on Too Low For Zero -- we wrote everything on the album. Also, it was the first time I met (my wife) Renate (Blauel) because she was an engineer on that record. It really was a return to form. Even though 'I'm Still Standing' was kind of an anthem, '. . . Blues' is the one for me because it's just a great song to sing. It's timeless."

Elton John North American tour dates (subject to change):
October 17 - Austin, TX - Austin City Limits Live at The Moody Theater
November 8 - Bridgeport, CT - Webster Bank Arena
November 9 - Providence, RI - Dunkin' Donuts Center
November 12 - Boston, MA - TD Garden
November 14 - Washington, DC - Verizon Center
November 16 - Atlanta, GA - Philips Arena
November 22 - Saint Paul, MN - Xcel Energy Center
November 23 - Lincoln, NE - Pinnacle Bank Arena
November 24 - St. Louis, MO - Chaifetz Arena
November 27 - Philadelphia, PA - Wells Fargo Center
November 30 - Rosemont, IL - Allstate Arena
December 3, 4 - New York, NY - Madison Square Garden Arena