Found what he was good at...
Elton john was born in Middlesex in
the house of his grandparents. He
started playing piano at the age of 3,
and at 4 his mother was astonished
to hear him playing tunes by ear. He
showed great musical aptitude at
school and gained some notoriety by
playing like Jerry Lee Lewis at school
functions.
Exposed to all different genres
His parents were avid record buyers,
exposing the boy to all the popular
singers and musicians of the day. He
remembers being immediately hooked
on rock and roll when his mother
brought home records by Elvis Presley
and Bill Haley and the Comets.
Trained Classically
At the age of 11, he won a
scholarship to the Royal Academy of
Music. One of his instructors
reported that when he entered the
academy she played a piece by
Handel, which he promptly played
back like a “gramophone record.”
While he continued to learn his
craft, he felt somewhat restricted
at the academy and was not a
diligent classical music student.
Rejected conventional career
His father traveled extensively and
he was raised primarily by his mother
and grandmother. He wanted to
pursue a career in music but his
father tried to steer him toward a
more conventional career such as
banking. When his father was home,
there were terrible arguments which
distressed him. He was 15 when his
parents divorced.
Persistence pays off
After failing several musical
auditions, lightning struck when he
answered an ad for Liberty Records.
At the first meeting, they gave him a
stack of lyrics written by an unknown
Bernie Taupin, who had answered
the same ad. He wrote music for
the lyrics, then mailed them to
Taupin, and thus began a prolific
songwriting partnership that
continues to this day.
It takes a team of individuals
The team met 6 months later and
joined DJM records as staff
songwriters, writing for various
artists. Taupin would write a batch
of lyrics in an hour and give them to
John, who would write the music in
half an hour.
Discovered
They eventually got a chance to
perform on their own at the
Troubadour in LA. They left the
critics raving and drew praise from
other artists in attendance such as
Quincy Jones and Bob Dylan.
Struggles with addictions
The pressures of stardom took a
serious toll. Throughout his career,
he battled addictions to alcohol and
cocaine. After many years of
struggling with addictions, he finally
checked himself into a rehabilitation
clinic to combat his drug abuse,
alcoholism, and bulimia.
Giving Back
He recovered and established the
Elton John AIDS Foundation. John
has always embraced new music and
he has continued to support and
influence generations of artists.
Elton john was born in Middlesex in
the house of his grandparents. He
started playing piano at the age of 3,
and at 4 his mother was astonished
to hear him playing tunes by ear. He
showed great musical aptitude at
school and gained some notoriety by
playing like Jerry Lee Lewis at school
functions.
Exposed to all different genres
His parents were avid record buyers,
exposing the boy to all the popular
singers and musicians of the day. He
remembers being immediately hooked
on rock and roll when his mother
brought home records by Elvis Presley
and Bill Haley and the Comets.
Trained Classically
At the age of 11, he won a
scholarship to the Royal Academy of
Music. One of his instructors
reported that when he entered the
academy she played a piece by
Handel, which he promptly played
back like a “gramophone record.”
While he continued to learn his
craft, he felt somewhat restricted
at the academy and was not a
diligent classical music student.
Rejected conventional career
His father traveled extensively and
he was raised primarily by his mother
and grandmother. He wanted to
pursue a career in music but his
father tried to steer him toward a
more conventional career such as
banking. When his father was home,
there were terrible arguments which
distressed him. He was 15 when his
parents divorced.
Persistence pays off
After failing several musical
auditions, lightning struck when he
answered an ad for Liberty Records.
At the first meeting, they gave him a
stack of lyrics written by an unknown
Bernie Taupin, who had answered
the same ad. He wrote music for
the lyrics, then mailed them to
Taupin, and thus began a prolific
songwriting partnership that
continues to this day.
It takes a team of individuals
The team met 6 months later and
joined DJM records as staff
songwriters, writing for various
artists. Taupin would write a batch
of lyrics in an hour and give them to
John, who would write the music in
half an hour.
Discovered
They eventually got a chance to
perform on their own at the
Troubadour in LA. They left the
critics raving and drew praise from
other artists in attendance such as
Quincy Jones and Bob Dylan.
Struggles with addictions
The pressures of stardom took a
serious toll. Throughout his career,
he battled addictions to alcohol and
cocaine. After many years of
struggling with addictions, he finally
checked himself into a rehabilitation
clinic to combat his drug abuse,
alcoholism, and bulimia.
Giving Back
He recovered and established the
Elton John AIDS Foundation. John
has always embraced new music and
he has continued to support and
influence generations of artists.
 | |  | |  | |  | |  | |  |
