26. Pinball Wizard (Elton John - Live In Green Bay: 5/30/2003)

As requested by a number of people, Elton John’s concert from Green Bay 2003 is now available on this channel! The recording is listenable, but is sadly compressed, has occasional skips and noise reduction was used. A big shoutout goes out to “EltonStuff” for sending me this show! Despite the issues with the sound, this show is definitely worth your time as there are many outstanding performances featured.
This Green Bay show comes from a small run of shows that Elton did between the Face To Face 2003 Tour and the Summer 2003 solo tour in Europe. While the Face To Face leg was fraught with vocal strain at times, Elton’s voice recovered afterwards and is in excellent shape at this show. His approach to the material has slightly shifted compared to earlier in the year as vocal embellishments and flourishes are more prominent with a slightly “older” baritonal tone taking hold. This trend would continue as the year progresses and further changes would develop to Elton’s live voice and phrasing approaches. The rest of the band are in excellent form as well which helps to compliment Elton’s prowess. Now… time to go through this show…
“Love Lies Bleeding” is a strong opening performance with Elton sounding confident and ready to do battle. “Bennie And The Jets” has a large amount of aggressive singing and overdrive being utilized with some of Elton’s vocal phrasing foreshadowing more modern eras. “Daniel” contains an assertive vocal delivery with Elton really pushing the overdrive and throws in a few flourishes on top of things. “Someone Saved My Life Tonight” is a really nice version with Elton delivering the classic hit single with gusto. “Ballad Of The Boy In The Red Shoes” highlights the emotional aspect of Elton’s live performances as he digs deep to give an excellent rendition. “Philadelphia Freedom” contains botched lyrics in the second verse, but is otherwise a good version that highlights Elton’s shift in the vocal delivery. “The Wasteland” features some fiery and spicy piano playing along with a gritty vocal delivery which helps to elevate the performance. “Rocket Man” has some really bluesy and soulful sections in the improvisational section that highlights the chemistry between Elton and the band. The piano work during the section is also brilliant which gives additional layers of musical prowess. “I Guess That’s Why They Call It The Blues” is a remarkable performance with a ton of spirited embellishments being sung with some nice dynamic control throughout. “I Want Love” showcases some powerful mid-range singing with the slightly “older” timbre (compared to earlier in the year) which gives the song somewhat of a different feel. “This Train Don’t Stop There Anymore” has some great vocal power in the choruses along with Elton lightening up his tone in places during the verses. “Take Me To The Pilot” features enthusiastic singing from Elton with the band chemistry really helping to sell the performance. “Sorry Seems To Be The Hardest Word” contains some nice soulful phrasing with a rock-solid tone. Concluding this section, “Candle In The Wind” is sung smoothly with Elton’s robust baritone providing a strong foundation.
“Dixie Lily” has fantastic musicianship and Elton’s voice sounds fantastic on this version. “Harmony” is one of the many highlights at this show with Elton nailing the vocals and the band harmonies sounding great. “All The Girls Love Alice” features attempting all of the falsetto notes in the choruses and while the quality of the notes vary, the fact that Elton goes for all of them is remarkable. “The Bitch Is Back” has a very lively nature to it with Elton’s edgy delivery suiting the performance extremely well. “Tiny Dancer” contains some hefty belting from Elton along with some really melodic vocal phrasing which sounds nice. “Holiday Inn” showcases Elton’s aged baritone nicely as he really lets loose with the belts. “Levon” has some fantastic bass work from Bob Birch and Elton really gives a strong effort with the vocals and supplements things with his piano prowess. “Have Mercy On The Criminal” ranks among the greatest live renditions out there as Elton gives his absolute all on the vocals with Davey Johnstone’s guitar work being incredible. “Saturday Night’s Alright For Fighting” contains very effective vocal phrasing that suits Elton’s voice well and the added audience atmosphere is the cherry on top. “Crocodile Rock” is full of energy and the electric crowd really adds to the performance. “Pinball Wizard” has great vocal flourishes, gutsy phrasing, and good control over the overdriven sections. “Don’t Let The Sun Go Down On Me” features a passionate vocal performance along with tastefully implemented embellishments. Lastly, “Your Song” is among the greatest live versions caught on tape. The performance has a ton of amazing phrasing choices, embellishments, and even blends in elements that wouldn’t sound out of place during the prime live era. What a performance!
ENJOY!!!

[@Bruh1986.]

Fantastic energy in here , I love it