Fan report by Si Owens.

Elton John took his latest tour to Home Park, home of Plymouth Argyle FC, on May 26, 2007 with a fast-paced set. The current set list is more familiar to casual fans than that which graced American stages earlier this year on the back of "Sixty Years On" in New York, but it was a set still filled with treats, especially early on in the evening.

Opening with "Funeral For a Friend/Love Lies Bleeding", and continuing through with "The Bitch Is Back", "Hercules", "Madman Across The Water" and "Tiny Dancer", gave a tally of only one UK hit single in the first five songs. Both keen and casual fans alike, however, were enthralled by the energy and excitement of the performance to such an extent that the presence of hits was not missed.

Elton has long been known to be a fan of rock bands that chug rather than chase, and the current selection of songs makes for a pacey set that never runs away with itself.
Elton himself was in fine voice, and in a small stadium with unique acoustics, the strength of his singing came across best in solo spots and sections where the instrumentation dropped to its skeleton. The piano first began to stand out in "Daniel", where Elton utilised the attack of the electric piano sounds to great effect, and the overall sound was generally impressive throughout.

From "Daniel" on, the set was largely the greatest hits selection fans have come to know, or as Elton refers to it, “The Jukebox”. All the songs were well received, with the Home Park faithful lapping up those extended versions of "Rocket Man" and "Bennie And The Jets". The latter featured a new spot not heard on previous tours, whereby the bass of Bob Birch mimics a groove kicked out by Elton on the piano. This whole section sounded fantastic, and Birch continues to excel in this band for musicality and overall contribution to the set.

The highlights of the evening were ‘almost-solo’ renditions of "The Bridge" and "Sorry Seems To Be The Hardest Word". Elton was singing these tracks better than ever, and when performed live "The Bridge" comes across as the truly great song that it is.

The final hour kicked into gear with a trail of rock and roll numbers, slowing momentarily with "Something About The Way You Look" tonight, and picking up again with a storming "Sad Songs (Say So Much)", which now features a mesmerising piano interlude before a final chorous.

"Something About You Look Tonight" proved to be one of the most popular numbers with the audience, along with "The Bridge" and a roof-raising rendition of "I Guess That’s Why They Call It The Blues".

As a long-time attendee of Elton John concerts, tonight’s show matched some of the finest. There could really be no criticisms of this show. The set is good, the voice is flawless and this is possibly Elton’s finest ever touring band.

For some general notes, Elton was wearing a jacket that featured an elaborate depiction of a 70s Elton in a crocodile’s mouth, and Nigel Olsson continues to enjoy the drum-side camera; becoming more and more the favourite uncle that can make the kids laugh with his array of funny faces and japery.

As we were leaving the stadium, all of the comments that could be heard related to a wonderful performance, great value for money and a thoroughly enjoyable event. So thanks and congrats to Elton on what was, once again, a job very well done.

Following is the complete setlist of the Plymouth show on May 26, 2007:

• Funeral For A Friend
  
• Love Lies Bleeding
  
• The Bitch Is Back
  
• Hercules
  
• Madman Across The Water
  
• Tiny Dancer
  
• Daniel
  
• Rocket Man
  
• Honkey Cat
  
• Sacrifice
  
• I Guess That's Why They Call It The Blues
  
• Burn Down The Mission
  
• The Bridge
  
• Sorry Seems To Be The Hardest Word
  
• Bennie And The Jets
  
• All The Young Girls Love Alice
  
• Philadelphia Freedom
  
• Are You Ready For Love
  
• Something About The Way You Look Tonight
  
• Sad Songs (Say So Much)
  
• I'm Still Standing
  
• Crocodile Rock
  
• Saturday Night's Alright (For Fighting)
  
  
• Don't Let The Sun Go Down On Me
  
• Your Song

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