21. I'm Still Standing (Elton John - Live In Sheffield: 11/26/1985)

All right folks - enough screwing around on my end! I’ve done some “quick uploads,” a couple topic videos, and did polls about concerts. I can’t stall anymore - I have to go back to uploading Elton John concerts for everybody to listen to! After speaking with some people, I will restart the concert uploads with shows from Elton’s 1985-1986 UK Tour. This tour leg is a personal favorite of mine due to the excellence of the new band, a good set-list, and Elton’s fantastic vocal performances throughout the tour leg. I’d like to dedicate this upload to “ncf1” since he’s been getting into shows from this era. This recording has some quality instability from time to time, but it’s generally a decent listen and it is musically complete. Despite the less-then-stellar quality, the show boasts some of Elton’s best performances from the era and it is worth a listen for that alone. The band sound great at this show with David Paton and Charlie Morgan especially shining at their respective roles. Elton is in superb vocal form with many of his vocal performances ranking among the best for the era. His vocal approach is different on this show when compared to most of the other later UK shows as he tends to sing the songs in a similar style to the 1984 tour and he sings with great dynamics on select songs (parts of “Someone Saved My Life Tonight and “Shoot Down The Moon,” being examples). The result is splendid with Elton really shining as a live vocalist on this recording. Now, time to go through these performances… “Tonight” is the second best version (behind 12/11/1985 - London) from the whole tour as Elton successfully nails the demanding falsetto line on “but you want to carry grudges” and goes for some higher phrasing on “I’d like to find a compromise” (unlike most versions from the tour). On this tour, Elton would opt for a more conservative approach to the vocal delivery (likely because it’s at the start of the show and his voice isn’t warmed up fully), but he would still sing the main falsetto notes in the chorus sections and the ending section on the tour (until his voice got beat to shreds). “One Horse Town” is a unique version for the tour leg as Elton sings the song closer to the record version (compared to other versions from the leg where he changes his overall delivery) and his falsetto is on full display throughout. “Better Off Dead” has a great vocal delivery and fantastic drum work by Charlie. “Rocket Man” features great bluesy and soulful vocal phrasing during the improv section and Elton’s vocal delivery during the meat of the song is similar to his 1984 versions. “Honky Cat” is the best version from the tour leg as Elton goes for most of the falsetto notes (unlike later performances of the song from the tour) but curiously avoids the “bottle of wine” falsetto. “Burn Down The Mission” features Elton’s powerful belts, clean high notes, and Charlie’s excellent drumming. “Someone Saved My Life Tonight” has one of Elton’s best live performances ever as he delivers the demanding song with ease and he sounds very smooth throughout the performance. “The Bitch Is Back” has strong singing by Elton and the backing horns sound very energetic throughout the performance. “Song For You” has Elton delivering the song with soul, power, and passion. “Blue Eyes” showcases Elton’s resonant lower register, and “I Guess That’s Why They Call It The Blues” is a fantastic medley version with Elton sounding very strong! “Restless” sounds like an 1984 version with Elton showing off his mid-range power and David’s bass playing sounds splendid despite the rough quality recording. “Passengers” has Elton flubbing the lyrics (“wheels upon the train”) but delivers an energetic version of the Breaking Hearts hit single. “Bennie And The Jets” is a fun version with Elton doing silly phrasing throughout. “Sad Songs (Say So Much)” has Elton overdriving his voice on the song and the band really sound nice on the performance. “Shoot Down The Moon” slays the album version as Elton’s vocal performance and his piano playing far exceed the version on Ice On Fire. “This Town” sounds amazing on this gig as the overall energy levels are through the roof. “Nikita” sounds excellent overall as Elton sings the song smoothly. “Wrap Her Up” is one of the best versions from the tour as Elton delivers the song with a ton of energy and sings most of the original melodies. “I’m Still Standing” features Elton embellishing and oversinging the song throughout (which is a staple on this tour). “Your Song” is a duet version for this tour leg (not my favorite style to be honest), but Elton sounds great in general. “Candle In The Wind” features Elton’s clean tone and he sounds like 1984 in spots with his phrasing. “Kiss The Bride” is an extremely spirited version with everybody putting in an amazing performance. Lastly, “Can I Get A Witness” concludes this amazing show by having great energy and Elton sounds superb overall! ENJOY!!!