Allegations and Accolades.
Elton and David Furnish are among several public figures who have decided to sue the publisher of the Daily Mail.
They are claiming ”gross breaches of privacy.”
Prince Harry, Baroness Doreen Lawrence, Sadie Frost, and Elizabeth Hurley have also filed cases against Associated Newspapers.
The company’s alleged activity includes having listening devices placed inside homes and cars and impersonating staff at hospitals and clinics in order to obtain information. Associated Newspapers has vowed to fight ”the appalling and groundless claims” with vigour.
In more pleasant developments, there’s now a Hold Me Closer remix from DJ and producer Joel Corry. Corry wrote on Instagram that is was ”unreal” to get a phone call from Elton. He appreciated the ”kind words” about his new version of Elton and Britney Spears‘ hit song.
BMI Million-Air Awards are distributed to recognise songs which have reached at least one million broadcast performances by UK and European songwriters and publishers. Last year, Bennie and the Jets and Don’t Go Breaking My Heart each reached 7 million performances, while I Guess That’s Why They Call It The Blues reached 6 million performances.
This year, on the third of October, the BMI (Broadcast Music, Inc.) London Awards were held and Elton got a couple of more such accolades. These were for 7 million performances of Rocket Man and 6 million performances of Tiny Dancer. What’s more, Cold Heart (Pnau Remix), co-written with Andrew Meechan and Dean Meredith, was recognised in the Pop Songs category.
Besides Elton, who do you consider to be the greatest artist(s) of all time?
Billboard has come up with a list, and has bestowed the top ranking to the Beatles. Elton is a couple of slots below.
As you’re likely aware, the 2023 portion of the Farewell Yellow Brick Road tour includes a couple of dates at Mt Smart Stadium in Auckland, New Zealand. New tickets for these concerts, on the 27th and 28th of January, have been released.
Back in the States, two rock veterans played the JMA Wireless Dome in Syracuse, New York, within three months of each other. Paul McCartney was there in June, and had ten tractor-trailers with him. Elton arrived in September, with quite a few more: 22! He had a lot more video equipment than the former Beatle, too. Crews rigged up speakers from the ceiling and stage . . . all calibrated so that attendees in back got the same sound as those up front.
Do you think Bernie Taupin deserves a Nobel Prize in literature? Bob Dylan received one in 2016 for ”creating new poetic expressions within the great American song tradition.” He was the first–but likely not the last–songwriter to receive this accolade.
With that in mind, the team at uDiscovermusic drew up a list of contenders, with Bernie making the grade for his ”keen eye and charming wit.”
From ‘BT’ (Bernie Taupin) it’s on to MT. . . . A previous edition reported that the Fraenkel Gallery in San Francisco, California, is showing Peter Hujar Curated by Elton John through the 22nd of October. A portion of the proceeds benefit the singer’s AIDS foundation.
A book based on the exhibition can be pre-ordered at the gallery’s shop: the release date is the 15th of October. Included are nudes, landscapes, performers, and even an image of the photographer with his mother. There’s also commentary from Sir Elton, who writes: ”Hujar’s humanity isn’t for everyone, and doesn’t need to be, but once his pictures get into your bloodstream, they are impossible to shake.”
Now here’s news about a couple of ”kings.” . . .
• Elton and Tim Rice’s musical, The Lion King, is approaching its 25th anniversary on New York’s Broadway. That will happen on the 13th of November, with more details TBA.
Meanwhile, the Mideast debut of The-Lion-King is set for Abu Dhabi. It runs from November 16 until December 10, and is being called the fastest selling musical in Abu Dhabi’s history. Thousands of tickets were sold for the Etihad Arena engagement within days of going on sale.
The international tour kicked off in 2018, and likewise set records. In Korea, for instance, the show made history when it played to the country’s largest crowd for a single production.
• And you may be familiar with Tony King. His autobiography, The Tastemaker: My Life With the Legends and Geniuses of Rock Music, will be out next year. The author has been a gofer, publicist and A&R man.
The publisher told this website: ”Elton didn’t contribute to the book, but it will absolutely feature sections about the years of work and friendship between Elton and Tony.”
Tony also writes about John Lennon, who would have turned 82 on Sunday.
Meal Ticket is published Mondays and Thursdays. Be sure to subscribe to the EJW newsletter so you don’t miss them! It’s free to sign up!
