ELTON JOHN

A former student of the Royal Academy of Music in London, England, the man born Reginald Kenneth Dwight in 1947 left school and immediately began his path in the music industry. His first band, Bluesology, was formed in 1961. He would later take his stage name from the Bluesology saxophonist Elton Dean and their charismatic frontman, Long John Baldry. Elton John was introduced to Bernie Taupin in 1967 by Ray Williams at Liberty Records. Amazingly, their first compositions were conducted by mail. In 1968 they became staff songwriters for Dick James' DJM label, farming out music to budding pop stars.

Elton and Bernie's prolific nature was established early in his career. By the time Elton's self-titled breakthrough album and evergreen hit Your Song had introduced him to an international stage in 1970, they had honed their skill to such a degree that Bernie could turn out a lyric in half an hour and Elton could compose to it within the hour. In the period between 1970-76, with producer Gus Dudgeon at the helm, they made an astonishing fourteen albums including Elton John, Tumbleweed Connection, Madman Across The Water, Honky Chateau, Don't Shoot Me, I'm Only The Piano Player, Goodbye Yellow Brick Road, Caribou and Captain Fantastic And The Brown Dirt Cowboy. Amongst these, Captain Fantastic and the Brown Dirt Cowboy was the first album ever to enter the Billboard Chart at Number One. Goodbye Yellow Brick Road, with its string of American Number One hit singles and unbroken two month run at the top of the Billboard Top 100, became an all- time classic.

In 1974 Elton performed on John Lennon's comeback single Whatever Gets You Through The Night, and later that year was joined by Lennon onstage at New York's Madison Square Garden. This performance, always cited by Elton as one of the most memorable of his entire career, was to be John Lennon's final concert.

In the late 1970s Elton's partnership with Bernie Taupin came to a temporary standstill, and he worked with other lyricists. A Single Man provided a fortuitous musical hook-up with Gary Osborne, and his 1977 sessions with Philly Soul producer Thom Bell gave him with a Number One UK hit in 2003 with Are You Ready For Love, when it was re-released due to demand from influential British DJs. This is an ongoing pattern. Elton has always been given credit from unlikely quarters. The filmmaker Cameron Crowe immortalised Tiny Dancer in Almost Famous, and then featured My Father's Gun (from the 1970 album Tumbleweed Connection) in the movie Elizabethtown. Producer Eminem sampled Elton and Bernie's 1970 composition, Indian Sunset on Tupac's single, Ghetto Gospel, and who would forget Ewan McGregor and Nicole Kidman's duet of Your Song in Baz Lehrman's Moulin Rouge.

In 1980 Elton and Bernie were reunited for the album 21 At 33. The album swiftly reacquainted Elton with the Top Ten and was followed by Jump Up! with the smash single Blue Eyes and Lennon tribute Empty Garden (Hey Hey Johnny), This return to peak form continued with Too Low For Zero, the home of two of Elton's live favourites to this day, I Guess That's Why They Call It The Blues and I'm Still Standing, his valedictory song to the troubles he had gone through.

In 1992 in the USA, and in 1993 in the UK, Elton established the Elton John AIDS Foundation; his pioneering charity dedicated to breakthrough work on behalf of those around the world suffering from HIV and related illnesses. The next year he released the double platinum album The One.

The 90s saw him rise to new heights. His collaboration with Tim Rice on music for Disney's The Lion King garnered not only a Best male pop Grammy but his first Academy Award. Elton has since collaborated with Tim Rice again on the Broadway smash Aida. Billy Elliot The Musical, with music by Elton John and lyrics by Lee Hall, was launched on the London stage in 2005. It is staggeringly successful, not only with the audiences, but also with the most hard-bitten theatre critics on both side of the Atlantic.

The late 1990s were a time of personal tragedy for Elton, with the loss of his good friends, fashion designer Gianni Versace, and Diana, Princess of Wales. Only one artist can have the biggest selling single of all time, and since 1997 Elton has held that record. It occurred because of a tragic death that echoed around the world, and the millions who saw Elton's only performance of the song were touched by his struggle for composure on this saddest of occasions. Candle in the Wind 1997, Elton and Bernie's heartbreaking tribute to the late Diana, Princess of Wales, has sold well over 33,000,000 copies.

In 1998 Elton received a knighthood from HM Queen Elizabeth II for "services to music and charitable services."

The new millennium has seen Elton at the top of his game, continuing to play frequent, sell-out concerts all over the world along with his band: Guy Babylon (keyboards), Bob Birch (bass), Davey Johnstone (guitars), John Mahon (percussion) and Nigel Olsson (drums). Since 2004 Elton and the band have also undertaken a residency with The Red Piano show at the Caesars Palace Colosseum in Las Vegas, art-directed by the brilliant conceptualist, David LaChapelle.

Three decades since the 1969 release of his first album, Empty Sky, Elton John is still turning out some of the finest music of his career. The 2001 album Songs From The West Coast gave another smash hit single with I Want Love, and then in 2005 the release of the deluxe edition of Peachtree Road, including three new songs from Billy Elliot The Musical gave Elton another hit single with the Billy Elliot song Electricity. In 2002 he was awarded an honorary doctorate from the Royal Academy of Music.

In September 2005 Elton marked the 30th anniversary of the release of one of his best-loved albums, Captain Fantastic and the Brown Dirt Cowboy, with a new deluxe CD version of the album, and a series of special concerts in America where he performed most of the Captain Fantastic songs in concerts that lasted for well over three hours. In the same year Elton and Bernie Taupin collaborated on the music for Lestat, based on Anne Rice's Vampire Lestat novels. This musical opened on New York's Broadway in April 2006.

In 2006 he released the autobiographical album The Captain & The Kid, the sequel to Captain Fantastic and the Brown Dirt Cowboy. 2007 saw the release of Rocket Man -The Definitive Hits, a single CD album or deluxe DVD which features eighteen classic hit songs. Also in 2007, for the first time ever, Elton's entire back catalogue of nearly 500 tracks (90 singles and 32 albums) became available to download legally.

The release of Rocket Man marked a huge anniversary for Elton - on March 25th, 2007, he celebrated his 60th birthday while breaking his own record with an unmatched 60th concert at the legendary Madison Square Garden in New York. No other entertainer has come close to matching this record.

Married Renate Blauel, Feb 14, 1984 (Dissolved Nov. 18, 1988), Civil Partnership with David Furnish, December 21, 2005. Student, Royal Academy of Music, London, 1959-64.

Singer, songwriter, musician, began playing piano 1951, joined group Bluesology, 1965-67. Since 1969 has toured across the world consistently as a solo performer and with the Elton John band.

Film (appearance): Tommy, 1975.

Films (voice): The Lion King, 1994, The Road to El Dorado, 2000.

Appearances: Live Aid, 1985, Freddie Mercury Tribute concert, 1992, Live 8, 2005.

Composer: (Broadway musical) The Lion King, 1998 (6 Tony Awards); Aida, 2000 (Tony Award for Best Original Score); Lestat, 2006. (West End Musical) Billy Elliot the Musical, 2005 (Olivier Award for Best Musical).

Composer: (albums) Empty Sky, 1969; Elton John, Tumbleweed Connection, 1970; 11.17.70, Friends, Madman Across The Water, 1971; Honky Chateau, 1972; Don't Shoot Me I'm Only the Piano Player, Goodbye Yellow Brick Road, 1973; Caribou, Greatest Hits, 1974; Captain Fantastic and the Brown Dirt Cowboy, Rock of the Westies, 1975; Here and There, Blue Moves, 1976; Greatest Hits Volume II, 1977; A Single Man, 1978; Victim of Love, 1979; 21 at 33, 1980; The Fox, 1981; Jump Up, 1982; Too Low for Zero, 1983; Breaking Hearts, 1984; Ice on Fire, 1985; Leather Jackets, 1986; Live in Australia, 1987; Reg Strikes Back, 1988; Sleeping With the Past, 1989; To Be Continued, 1990; The One, 1992; Duets, 1993; Made in England, 1995; Love Songs, 1996; The Big Picture, 1997; Elton John and Tim Rice's Aida, The Muse, 1999; One Night Only, 2000; Songs From the West Coast, 2001; Greatest Hits 1970 - 2002, 2002; Peachtree Road, 2004; The Captain & The Kid, 2006; Rocket Man- Number Ones, 2007.

Composer music (film): The Lion King 1994 (Best Original Song Acad. Award for Can You Feel the Love Tonight?) The Road to El Dorado, 2000.

Chairman of Watford Football Club, 1976-90, president, 1990-.

Established Elton John AIDS Foundation in 1992.

Patron - IAVI (International AIDS Vaccine Initiative), Patron - Terrence Higgins Trust, Patron - The Globe Theatre, Patron - Amnesty International, Scholarship Fund - Royal Academy of Music, Chairman - Old Vic Trust.

Awards include Best British Male Artist Brit Award 1991, inducted into Rock 'n Roll Hall of Fame, 1994, 5 Grammy Award 1986-2000, Grammy Legend Award, 2001, Kennedy Center Honor, 2004, 11 Ivor Novello Awards, 1973 - 2000.

Achievements include: first popular Western singer to perform in USSR, 1979; playing to over 2 million people across 4 continents, 1984-86. Made Commander of the Order of the British Empire, 1996; received knighthood from Queen Elizabeth II, February 24, 1998. Released biggest selling single of all time, Candle In The Wind 1997 (over 33,000,000 copies sold), 1997. Received Honorary Doctorate, Royal Academy of Music, 2002, became Fellow of the British Academy of Songwriters and Composers, 2004.

Co-written many international hit songs with Bernie Taupin (and others) including Your Song, Rocket Man, Crocodile Rock, Daniel, Goodbye Yellow Brick Road, Candle In The Wind, Don't Let the Sun Go Down On Me, Philadelphia Freedom, Don't Go Breaking My Heart (duet with Kiki Dee), Sorry Seems to be the Hardest Word, The Bitch IS Back, Song For Guy, I Guess That's Why The Call the Blues, I'm Still Standing, Nikita, Blue Eyes, Sacrifice, Circle of Life, Are You Ready For Love, I Want Love, Electricity.

HITS

Your Song                           1970                   #8

Friends                                1971                  #34

Levon                                  1972                  #24

Rocket Man                         1972                  #6

Honky Cat                           1972                  #8

Crocodile Rock                    1972                 #1(3)

Daniel                                  1973                #2(1)

Saturday Nights all right.    1973                #12

Goodbye Yellow Brick Road 1973               #2(3)

Bennie and the Jets             1974              #1(1)

Dont let the sun go down    1974              #2(2)

The Bitch is Back                  1974              #4

Lucy in the Sky                    1974              #1(2)

Philadelphia Freedom          1975              #1(2)

Someone saved my life 2nite  1975          #4

Island Girl                            1975              #1(3)

Grow Some Funk Of Ur Own 1976           #14

I feel like a Bullet                  1976              --

Dont Go Breaking My Heart  1976            #1(4)

Sorry Seems 2b the hardest word   1976   #6

Bite Your Lip                          1977            #28

Ego                                        1978            #34

Part-time Love                       1978           #22

Mama Cant Buy You Love      1979          #9

Victim of Love                         1979           #31

Little Jeanie                            1980           #3

Dont ya wanna play this game   1980      #39

Nobody Wins                           1981         #21

Chloe                                       1981         #34

Empty Garden                         1982         #13

Blue Eyes                                1982         #12

Im Still Standing                      1983         #12

Kiss the Bride                          1983         #25

Guess thats why they call it    1983         #4

Sad Songs                               1984         #5

Who Wears These Shoes?      1984         #16

In Neon                                   1985         #38

Wrap her Up                           1985         #20

Thats What Friends are For   1985         #1(4)

Nikita                                      1986         #7

Flames of Paradise                 1987         #36

Candle in the Wind                 1987        #6

I dont wanna go on with u     1988       #2(1)

A Word in Spanish                  1988       #19

Through the Storm                 1989       #16

Healing Hands                        1989       #13

Sacrifice                                 1990       #18

Club at the end of the Street 1990      #28

Dont let the sun go down      1991      #1(1)

The One                                 1992      #9

The Last Song                        1992      #23

Simple Life                              1993      #30

Can You Feel the love 2nite   1994      #4

Circle of Life                           1994      #18

Believe                                    1995      # 13

Blessed                                   1995      #34

Candle in the Wind                 1997     #1(14)

SOmething about the way u   1998     #1(2)

Written in the Stars                1999     #29

Paula Abdul grew up in the San Fernando Valley, California. She began taking dance lessons when she was eight. She attended Van Nuys High School, where she was senior class president and head cheerleader. After graduating in 1980, she started college at Cal State-Northridge, majoring in TV and radio. After joining the L.A. Lakers cheerleaders, she became head cheerleader/choreographer after only a few months, eventually dropping out of college to dance and choreograph full-time. She was recruited by The Jacksons to choreograph their 1984 "Torture" video, the first in a long list of videos and movies she would choreograph. She branched out into singing with her first CD, "Forever Your Girl", which had lackluster sales until the single "Straight Up" exploded onto the charts in December 1988 and she has been a popular singer/dancer ever since, enhanced by her stint as a judge on the hit series "American Idol: The Search for a Superstar" (2002).

Her father (Harry Abdul) is of Sephardic Jewish background from Syria. Her mother is also Jewish and was born in Canada. Her parents have lived in Syria, Brazil, and Canada - and this varied background has contributed to incredibly different stories in the press about her nationality and/or religion. Daughter of Harry Abdul (once a livestock trader in Brazil) and Lorainne Abdul (former assistant to film director Billy Wilder, grew up in Hollywood, California. Since the age of seven, she sung and danced in community musical theatre groups while traveling around America. She took tap dance lessons as well, in which she was awarded a scholarship to tap dancing school. Later on in life, she attended Cal State-Northridge College in which she majored in Broadcast radio. During that time, she auditioned for the Los Angeles Lakers NBA Cheerleading team, and that led her to a spot as a cheerleader on the squad earning some $50 a game during her freshman year.

Later on she decided to take up choreography, working with artists such as the Jacksons and the Rolling Stones. Nowadays, she organises dance camps for young children to come to and have fun during the summer. Paula has won many musical awards, such as a Grammy, 7 MTV video awards, 2 Emmy awards, and 2 People's Choice Awards. On top of all that she's had two #1 hit albums and seven #1 hit singles. To add to that she has a star on the Hollywood walk of fame. She has done well for herself, and plans to write/sing/choreograph for as long as she can.

HITS

Straight Up                            1988                 #1(3)

Forever Your Girl                   1989                #1(2)

Cold Hearted                         1989                #1(1)

The Way that  u love Me       1989               #3

Opposites Attract                  1990               #1(3)

Rush, Rush                            1991               #1(5)

Promise of a New Day            1991             #1(1)

Blowing Kisses in the Wind     1991             #6

Vibeology                                1992             #16

Will You Marry Me?                 1992             #19

My Love is for Real                 1995            #28

Dance like theres no Tomorrow  2008        #40