Elton John

Elton John

Elton John (Reginald Kenneth Dwight) was born on March 25th, 1947 and is currently 79 years old. Elton John was born in Pinner, Middlesex, England. John attended the Royal Academy of Music.

Elton John is best known as a British pianist, composer, and singer. He made his name by fusing different strands of pop music and stylistic showmanship, in a career in which he sold hundreds of millions of records and became one of the most popular entertainers of the century.

As a child prodigy with the piano, Elton went to the Royal Academy of Music on a scholarship when he was eleven. After discovering R&B, he gravitated toward pop and became a member of Bluesology during the 1960s. It was while he was with the band that he met Bernie Taupin, his major partner in songwriting.

By 1968, Elton John had his first success as a recording artist with the 1968 released single Lady Samantha. Upon releasing his 1970 album, Elton John, he became an international music star.

For much of his career, he was known for his exceptional ability to blend and assimilate different rock and pop styles into streamlined and propulsive sounds. John would also gain notoriety for his musical abilities and flamboyant stage presence.

He also composed several musicals, including The Road to El Dorado and The Lion King in 1994. Candle in the Wind, which he rereleased in 1997, was the best-selling single of all time, as in just two months, it sold 37 million copies.

Besides his music, Elton John is actively involved in charities and has raised a lot of money through his Elton John AIDS Foundation for people living with AIDS and HIV.

In 2024, Elton John published Farewell Yellow Brick Road, a work in which he celebrates his globe-spanning career. He chronicles his many performances across the world, from the Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles to tours in San Francisco, Sydney, and Auckland. He reflects on the key moments and even reminisces about the beginnings of his career.

In 2019, Elton published his autobiography Me, in which he reveals the truth about his lifestyle and extraordinary times as a performer who became a living legend.

He chronicles his childhood in London, including the drama of rejection of his earlier works to becoming a chart-topping superstar. He writes of his friendships with George Michael to John Lennon, to dancing with Queen Elizabeth and Princess Diana, from writing The Lion King and founding his AIDS foundation, to changing his life and becoming a father.

Elton John: Awards & Accolades

Elton John books have been nominated for multiple awards, Me was nominated for the Audie Award, Best Autobiography or Memoir, in 2020 as well as the British Book Awards - Non-Fiction: Narrative Book of the Year in 2020.

Elton John: Lists & Other Mentions

• Me:
  1. New York Times: #1 Nonfiction Best Seller in 2019.
  2. Waterstones: The Books You've Always Meant to Read Selection in 2020.

Related Authors

Fans of Elton John also enjoy these authors:

1. Stephen King, author of The Dark Tower Series.
2. Karin Slaughter, author of the Will Trent Series.
3. Taylor Jenkins Reid, author of: The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo.
4. J.K. Rowling, author of the Harry Potter Series.
5. James Patterson, author of the Alex Cross Series.

Elton John: F.A.Q