7. Candle In The Wind (Elton John - Live In Tempe: 8/17/1984)

After a brief hiatus in order to get things to optimal levels, it is time to resume the concert uploads and move to another tour leg! Due to requests, I have decided to stick to the 1984 uploads and move to the North American leg of the tour (called the “Breaking Hearts Tour”). Over the past weeks, my collection of recordings from this specific tour leg was updated and cleaned up - with a huge thanks to the “EltonStuff” channel. Whenever his copies of shows from this tour leg are used for my uploads, he’s going to be getting shout-outs in my description! Without his hard work, dedication, and generosity, the tour leg would be left with holes and inferior-sounding copies of shows. Be sure to thank him if you get a chance! Since this upgrade to Tempe is an “EltonStuff” copy, the recording is finally in reasonably good quality without the cuts and noise that plagued older copies. While “Goodbye Yellow Brick Road” and “Crocodile Rock” are possibly missing from this recording, there is a chance that Elton may have ended the show after “Saturday Night’s Alright For Fighting” since the crowd starts booing soon after the song ends (the house lights may have come on - signaling the end of the concert). While the band are very solid overall on the opening night of the tour, and have some shining moments, the performances are slightly lackadaisical overall compared with the brilliant European performances from earlier in the year. As the tour leg progresses, the band start to shine more (on gigs where the substances don’t hamper performances) and some excellent band prowess really becomes evident. As for Elton, his voice is in great form overall, but similar to his bandmates - he doesn’t sound like he’s at his full potential and some of his vocal deliveries aren’t as spirited as they were earlier in the year. Regardless, this show still shouldn’t be skipped! Now, let’s get into the performances! “Tiny Dancer” is a very good version as Elton doesn’t sound too rough for the opening number. “Levon” is an excellent version as Elton’s vocal delivery sounds great and he is pretty gutsy in spots with his phrasing and note choices. “Li’l ‘Frigerator” has Elton flubbing the lyrics, but he delivers a great vocal on the Breaking Hearts rocker and Davey’s solo sounds excellent. “Rocket Man” has great vocals, but lacks an improvisational section and the performance sounds half-hearted in spots. “Daniel” sounds good in general with Elton having a slightly more laid-back take on the vocals compared with the European versions. “Restless” has Elton announcing before the song that it’s the last tour in the country and the performance is interesting to say the least. Elton accidentally sings the parts of the studio version’s third verse (which wasn’t sung live on stage) in place of the second verse’s lyrics. The band sound nice on the performance, but nearly train-wreck it towards the end as Nigel wants to end the song early. “Candle In The Wind” isn’t quite as strong as the European versions as Elton mumbles lyrics in the second verse and doesn’t sing the song as powerfully as other versions from the era. “The Bitch Is Back” is a good version, but not up to the standard of the European versions (and some of the later 1984 versions). “Don’t Let The Sun Go Down On Me” sounds really nice with Elton delivering the Caribou classic with mostly clean vocals. “Sad Songs (Say So Much)” is a great all-around performance with Elton sounding nice. “Bennie And The Jets” is a more straight-forward performance compared to many versions from this era as Elton doesn’t do anything too outrageous (although that will change as the tour progresses). “Sorry Seems To Be The Hardest Word” isn’t the strongest version as Elton sounds slightly rough in spots and “Philadelphia Freedom” is a good performance overall with Elton showing off his rougher voice! “Blue Eyes” is the typical solid rendition with Elton’s low range sounding strong. “I Guess That’s Why They Call It The Blues” has Elton flubbing the words, overdriving his voice in spots, and sounding a bit rough at the end of the song. “Kiss The Bride” isn’t the strongest version vocally, but the energy level is great and the band sound great on this version. “One More Arrow” is a mixed bag as some parts sound fantastic with Elton’s soft tone being a highlight, but other parts sound a bit gruff and some of the phrasing is rushed. “Too Low For Zero” sounds excellent at this gig with Elton delivering the song with some great phrasing choices and the piano solo sounds nice. “I’m Still Standing” is slightly inconsistent as Elton’s vocals are rough in spots and some of the backing vocals sound off. “Your Song” has Elton rushing phrases in spots and singing a few bum notes. Lastly, “Saturday Night’s Alright For Fighting” has Elton and the band getting slightly out of sync at the start of the first verse, but things quickly get back on track and the overall performance is strong! ENJOY!!!