A woman who looked to be in her late 60s twisted and bobbed, waving her hands in the air every time Elton John blasted out the refrain of βIβm Still Standing.β
A few rows ahead of her, within spitting distance of the Brit-pop legend on the Tucson Arena stage Tuesday night, a guy who looked to be on the north side of his 30s was working his own little twist and jump move. At one point he became so animated he nearly slammed into the guy next to him as he zigged and the other man zagged.
Throughout the sold-out arena, fans in their 30s to 70s were singing and dancing along to some of Johnβs iconic hits, from the opening piano extravaganza of βFuneral for a Friend/Love Lies Bleedingβ to the rocking encore βCrocodile Rock.β
Johnβs βWonderful Crazy Night Tourβ turned out to be just that: A wonderful crazy night that made it impossible to sit down for anything remotely close to a long stretch.
All 9,700 seats were sold, but hardly any had butts in them for the majority of the 2Β½-hour concert. Even when John slowed down for ballads including βDaniel,β βRocket Man,β βTiny Dancerβ and βLevon,β many people still stood. If you sat down you risked missing something, like the moving tribute during βDonβt Let the Sun Go Down on Meβ for the late Brit pop star George Michael.
If you were sitting, you missed the woman waving the handmade sign that said βHappy 70 β Youβre never too old.β John told the audience he couldnβt believe he was days away from becoming a septuagenarian.
β2017 is a very special year for me. Itβs the 40th anniversary of the Elton John AIDS Foundation,β he said. βItβs also on Saturday my 70th birthday, which seems ridiculous to me.β
John, dressed in a sparkling blue leisure suit with βFantasticβ spelled out in red bedazzled letters on the backside, didnβt look 70. He moved a bit slower than we remember from his last show here in 2010 and spent most of the night at the bench of his baby grand piano. And although he didnβt even attempt those delicious tenor notes that punctuate many of his songs including βBenny and the Jets,β βSomeone Saved My Life Tonightβ and βTiny Dancer,β he sang wonderfully in the lower register and those songs sounded just slightly different, but different enough to make them fresh and alive.
This year, Tucson is one of 11 American cities on Johnβs βWonderful Crazy Night Tour,β which hit dozens of U.S. cities in 2016.
βItβs been an absolute, amazing privilege to play for you tonight,β John said before performing as his encore his ode to the late Princess Diana. βYou are unbelievable.β