Fan review by Gilbert Guindon.

Elton wrapped up his Canadian tour at the Bell Center in Montreal on November 11, 2006 in front of 19,691 faithful fans. It was his first presence in solo since The Big Picture Tour in 1997 and his last show in Montreal was with Billy Joel in May 2001. His last solo presence in Quebec was in October 2001 at the Quebec City colisee for the Songs of the West coast Tour when he played 29 songs.

And Elton's show is now a mix of wonder and disappointment. Last Saturday he performed 24 songs. With the exception of "I Guess That's Why they Call it the Blues" (1983), "Believe" (1995) and "I Want Love" (2001) the rest of the songs were from the 70-76 golden era. From "Bennie and the Jets", a reporter wrote in the Montreal Gazette the next day, «the tunes that fuelled AM radio for generation were as reassuringly familiar as the faces of old friends».

Indeed, for the occasional fan, it was the return of Captain Fantastic. For the "diehard" fan, it's no surprise and no classic tracks. Of course, his virtuosity is intact, his new intro for "Take Me to the Pilot" is brilliant, but for the rest he played on automatic pilot in a very professional way. Why not have a back to back version of "Captain Fantastic" and "Captain and the Kid", or play "The Bridge" with "Your song". Why is he not more playful with the crowd that he got in the palm of his hand since the beginning of the evening?

Unfortunately, he removed the beautiful "Blues Never Fade Away" from the set list and he replaced it with "Daniel". And what about "Noah's Ark" or "And The House Fell Down" tailored for a live version? Nothing. Elton has decided to bring an extended set list of his Red Piano show all over the world!

Other than that, Elton was in a good mood, but didn't talk much between songs. He spoke French, but not as much as usual. His voice was very good but he had some difficulties with "The Bridge" (like on the album). He signed autographs before the encore. The band sounded excellent as always. Bob and Davey seemed glued around their microphone a space they rarely left to join Elton.

The colourful giant screen behind the stage was useless with some very basic images. It added nothing to the show except on very rare occasions. Elton would need some advices and a boost from the Cirque du Soleil?

He still delivers a very good show. He deprives himself of revisiting his own catalog. With some artistic intention behind it and a better setting in scene, it could be a great show, not just a recital of hits.

Following is the complete set list of the Montreal show on November 11, 2006:

• Funeral for a Friend
  
• Love Lies Bleeding
  
• Bennie and the Jets
  
• Philadelphia Freedom
  
• Believe
  
• Goodbye Yellow Brick Road
  
• Sorry Seems To Be The Hardest Word
  
• I Guess That's Why They Call It The Blues
  
• Take Me To The Pilot
  
• I Want Love
  
• Postcards From Richard Nixon
  
• Tinderbox
  
• The Bridge
  
• The Captain and the Kid
  
• Mona Lisas and Mad Hatters
  
• Sorry Seems To Be the Hardest Word
  
• Rocket Man
  
• Daniel
  
• Levon
  
• Crocodile Rock
  
• The Bitch is Back
  
• Saturday Night's All Right (For Fighting)
  
  
• Candle in the Wind
  
• Your Song

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