David Friend, The Canadian Press Posted on Thursday, September 8, 2022 at 10:24 pm EDT
TORONTO – Elton John paid tribute to the late Queen at his final show in Toronto on Thursday, calling her an “inspirational” presence in his life.
“She led the country through some of our greatest and darkest moments with grace, decency and genuine warmth,” John said.
“I’m glad he’s at peace and I’m glad he’s at rest. He served and worked hard.”
Earlier in the day, Buckingham Palace announced that Queen Elizabeth II had died at the age of 96. She was the longest-serving British monarch and Canadian head of state.
“Let’s celebrate his life tonight with music,” John said. He then performed his 1974 hit “Don’t Let the Sun Go Down on Me.”
The 75-year-old British singer has many ties to the royal family.
In 1988, he was knighted by the Queen for his contributions to music and charities.
He has also performed at numerous events for the royal family, including the funeral of Diana, Princess of Wales in 1997, where he sang a reworked version of his 1973 song “Candle in the Wind”.
John’s concert was the second of two nights at the Rogers Center in Toronto and part of his Farewell Yellow Brick Road tour, which was billed as his final tour.
She appeared on stage in a sparkly black dress and pink bejeweled glasses. Wasting little time, he slipped behind his grand piano to begin.
“This is my last concert in Toronto, so I have to make it special,” he said at the start of the show. “We’re going to have a blast.”
He performed a number of his classics, including “Tiny Dancer”, “Rocket Man” and “Levon”. After each one, he rose from his bench to the applause of the crowd with open arms and a toothy grin.
He’ll play two more Canadian dates on October 21 and 22 in Vancouver before heading to Europe for shows in mid-2023.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published on September 8, 2022.