Me summary

Elton’s childhood was full of sadness, but it was filled with music, too. In fact, Elton’s family remembers that he could pick out a song’s melody, just by hearing it, and then play it on the piano. You might not think that’s too remarkable. Lots of people can play the piano by ear, right? Well, maybe. But Elton could do it when he was three years old.

The key message here is: Young Elton had a talent and a passion for music.

Can you pinpoint a week when your life changed? Elton John can. The year was 1970. The Elton John album had just been released, and it was getting rave reviews. Elton arrived at Los Angeles airport and found a red London bus waiting outside. On the side it said, “Elton John has arrived!”

A few days later, Elton played the famous Troubadour nightclub. Rock and Roll legends that Elton had dreamed of meeting, like The Beach Boys and Neil Diamond, came to watch him play. The next day, the LA Times newspaper declared that rock music had a new star.

It might be a cliché to say that every cloud has a silver lining, but Elton John knows it’s true. In 1967, Elton had his first solo audition for a music label. And he failed, miserably. Now, 50 years later, Elton knows that if he’d passed that audition, he never would have met Bernie Taupin.

The key message here is: Elton met his lyricist completely by chance, and it changed his career forever.

Imagine Bob Dylan coming to your house party. Now imagine being so high on cocaine that you don’t recognize him. Instead, you mistake Bob for one of your gardeners – a gardener who is trying to gatecrash your party! Now picture yourself shouting, in front of all your guests, that this gardener should leave immediately!

Unfortunately, this situation isn’t imaginary; it really happened to Elton John. 

Once his career took off, Elton John enjoyed success, fame, and fortune. From the outside, his life looked perfect. But inside, he was battling some powerful demons.

The key message here is: Elton was addicted to alcohol, drugs, and food.

In October 1976, Elton John looked out at a crowd of 55,000 screaming fans. He was playing Dodger stadium in Los Angeles. The weather was perfect. Elton knew his performance had been perfect too. In fact, the whole trip was going pretty well. The city of Los Angeles had declared that week “Elton John Week.” Two days earlier, he’d unveiled his new star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

During that perfect show, Elton had a realization: this was the peak of his career.