Elton to record with Glee star Morrison

Elton to record with Glee star Morrison Sunday, October 10, 2010 » 12:33pm

Elton John has revealed he will be recording a duet with Glee star Matthew Morrison.

http://bigpondnews.com/articles/Entertainment/2010/10/10/Elton_to_record_with_Glee_star_Morrison_524070.html

Elton John has revealed he will be recording a duet with Glee star Matthew Morrison.
The British entertainer is a huge fan of the hit TV show and has revealed he will be joining Morrison, who plays singing-and-dancing teacher Will Schuester, in the studio when he records his debut solo album.
'I am supposed to be doing something with Matthew Morrison for his album. We had a little meeting together, so hopefully that's going to happen when I get to LA,' John told Entertainment Weekly.
But the Rocket Man doesn't think that will lead to a full Elton John Glee tribute, like the ones dedicated to Britney Spears, Lagy Gaga and Madonna.
However he wouldn't object to the idea.
'I love Glee, but no, no. Of course I'd be into that. It's always great when someone covers your songs no matter how good or bad the version is.'

LOG

London Last Night: Elton John’s Party For Alexander Lebedev
06. October 2010

http://www.zoegriffin.co.uk/2010/10/06/london-last-night-elton-johns-party-for-alexander-lebedev/

The Event: Elton John organised a party in honor of publisher of the Evening Standard, Alexander Lebedev
The Venue: Royal Courts of Justice, London
The VIP’s: A mega A’list line up of all Elton’s besties: Elizabeth Hurley, Patrick Cox, Sophie Dahl, Sam Taylor-Wood, Rosamund Pike, Mayor Boris Johnson, Sir Ian McKellen, Ruby Wax, Lara Stone, David Walliams, JK Rowling and the organiser Sir Elton John with Alexander Lebedev.
The Gossip: 1) Elizabeth Hurley wore a cream silk dress which, shall we say, accentuated her plunging cleavage. Will she ever put them away??
2) While David Furnish wore a traditional black tuexedo, Elton played the diva with one in royal blue. We can tell who wears the trousers in that relationship!
3) Boris Johnson sure made an entrance by cycling to the event! I’m not sure if the sweaty wet look is what he was going for but that’s what happened. WEIRD!
4) Sir Ian McKellen had a kiss planted on him by Ms Ruby Wax as he arrived…and it made him look really scared.

Elton John to play museum benefit http://www.themoneytimes.com/20101006/elton-john-play-museum-benefit-id-10130884.html October 7, 2010 - 0 comments            New York -- British pop star Elton John has been booked to perform at the American Museum of Natural History's 2010 Museum Gala in New York, organizers said. The event is to take place Nov. 18. "A much-anticipated highlight of the fall season, the Museum Gala is the American Museum of Natural History's largest annual benefit," the museum said in a news release Wednesday. "More than 500 guests are expected to attend this year's dazzling ball. Following cocktails in the Roosevelt Rotunda, guests will enjoy a gourmet dinner and a performance by Sir Elton John in the Milstein Hall of Ocean Life. The event features host Tom Brokaw and an auction of extraordinary prizes, overseen by auctioneer Jamie Niven of Sotheby's." Proceeds are intended to help support the museum's educational and scientific programming. Copyright 2010 United Press International, Inc. (UPI).

Elton 60: Live at Madison Square Garden Blu-ray Review

http://www.tweaktown.com/reviews/3574/elton_60_live_at_madison_square_garden_blu_ray_review/

Author: Ben Gourlay

Reginald Kenneth Dwight, commonly referred to as Elton John (now Sir), is one of the finest recording artists and song writers alive today – and watching Elton 60: Live at Madison Square Garden it’s not hard to see why. Classic after classic is belted out, accompanied by concurrent piano playing, ranging from fan favourites such as ‘Tiny Dancer’, ‘Rocket Man’ and ‘I’m Still Standing’, to lesser known titles such as ‘The Bridge’ and an additional 29 songs. With only short breaks between sets, it’s a miracle that John continues with such poise and grace, with only very minor strain evident in his voice.
To mark the man’s 60th birthday, he provided his own entertainment, performing to a packed out crowd in New York’s Madison Square Garden. Thankfully, there were multiple high definition cameras set up to capture the event, along with enough recording equipment to render a truly wonderful audio experience. Simply put, Elton 60 is the finest live recording I’ve yet seen committed to disc, with truly superlative audio and visual quality. How good? Read on.

Video
Elton 60 is presented in a widescreen aspect ratio of 1.78:1, its original aspect ratio, encoded with the AVC MPEG-4 codec.
I’m not sure what make of cameras were used to record the event, but they’ve done a wonderful job. Of note is the event seems to be purposefully lit and setup so as to look good on video, as opposed to other concert videos where it’s clear that little thought has gone into how it will look. The image is very sharp and detailed; so much so that you can see the beads of sweat on his brow. The colour balance is very good, and definitely helped by the fantastic lighting. I saw little evidence of macroblocking, only evident on some of the flowing streamers and confetti released at the conclusion.
Overall, a very pleasing video transfer from a live event.

Audio
The main audio track is encoded in uncompressed PCM 5.1, at 24 bits.
I’ve had the opportunity to catch a few live performances on Blu-ray and generally I’ve been happy with the quality on offer (except for Pink’s funhouse concert. I dislike her intensely), but all of these are blown out of the water by the quality on offer here.
This is an extremely aggressive mix, with tight control of the audio parameters. The vocals in particular come across in the mix very well, always cutting above the rest of the mix even in loud sequences. The tonal quality of the vocals is truly spectacular and I dare say better than what the actual audience heard.
The surrounds are always active creating an extremely impressive, enveloping sound. They close in on the viewer in a way that only the best surround mixing can provide. Additionally, if your amplifier is 7.1 enhanced, the mix becomes even more involved.
Bass usage is quite high, but not overly so as to drown out the rest of the mix.
Overall, it’s a very pleasing effort. Elton John fans will be extremely pleased with the results and if you are lucky enough to be able to take advantage of lossless audio, then you are in for an amazing experience.

Extras
There are no extra features. Unfortunately, the previously released DVD did have a few which are not carried over.

Overall

Elton John Brings Leon Russell Back to Center Stage

http://www.theboot.com/2010/10/05/elton-john-leon-russell-the-union-album/
It was only a few short months ago that Elton John announced plans to do a collaborative album with the man he refers to as his musical idol, Leon Russell. The 14-song CD, 'The Union,' which was produced by T-Bone Burnett, will hit shelves next week. And as Elton admits, the entire project was solely to pay homage to his hero.

"I want to make sure he has a great career ahead of him," Elton tells Billboard magazine of the country legend. "I don't want him driving around the country doing five shows a week in his bus any more. I just want him to be comfortable, have a new publishing deal, get him back into public consciousness and keep him there."

Leon, who started his climb to fame the same time as Elton more than 50 years ago, is seemingly unaffected by Elton's worldwide star power, and is just grateful to make a living doing what he loves. "I'm happy to have a job," Leon says. "Between he and his manager, Johnny Barbis, they treat me like a king."

The legendary musician, who has played with everyone from Frank Sinatra to The Rolling Stones, adds that he has spent most of his life on the road, but says his current tour with Elton is a definite upgrade from his own bus. "I'm always home," he adds. "It's just that every day when I wake up I'm in a different location. I appreciate Elton trying to raise my [travel] class, though."

Elton, who decided to do the duets project as a way to bring Leon back to the limelight, says using T-Bone to produce the project was a natural choice. "It's hard to do a duets record that doesn't sound forced," John says. "I wanted it to be like Robert Plant and Alison Krauss' 'Raising Sand,'" which was also produced by T-Bone.

Thankfully, T-Bone, who won an Academy Award for his musical contributions to the Oscar-winning film, 'Crazy Heart' is a fan of both Leon and Elton, and was happy to jump on board. "Leon's career in recent years has been like 'Crazy Heart' without the drugs and booze," Elton recognizes. "Not bitter, not the slightest bit bitter, but maybe he lost his confidence."

Elton and Leon will kick off their tour October 19, the same day as 'The Union' hits shelves, performing in both the U.S. and London, as well as making plans to tour together in 2011. But if Elton has his way, this is just the beginning of their professional relationship. "I want to make a record of 1950s songs, recording live with an orchestra, having Leon play piano and me just sing," Elton reveals. "I should have gotten in touch with him, maybe years before, but I'm a great believer that everything happens at the time it's supposed to. This is just such a joyous thing. I want to see his smile when he sees his name on the charts again."