Elton John, the Emotional Experience

Elton John’s image rebirth was in its embryonic stage, sparked by his connection to a young boy, Ryan White, who had been a loyal fan, and the friendship he formed with Ryan’s mother after the boy’s tragic AIDS related death. The emotional experience he went through over the child’s death gave him new perspectives and led to a lasting bond between John and AIDS activism. The experience forced him to take a long look at his life. By the age of 43, he’d become a white haired, overweight addict hiding behind a Steinway. “I looked like a 70 year old man playing the piano.” The time had come to save himself from bulimia, alcohol, and drugs.

He spent most of 1991 out of the public eye, then reemerged sober, fit, and filled with a new lust for life, on George Michael’s remake of “Don’t Let the Sun Go Down on Me.” Taupin summed it up best in a VH1 Behind the Music interview: “He made mistakes, he got into a rut, he got himself out, case closed.” The 1990s brought another string of hits, among them “The One,” which became his first number one hit in 16 years. It struck an emotional chord with old fans from the 1970s and 1980s and new ones from the 1990s. Perhaps the greatest impact on what the Elton John brand stands for today began with an announcement he made during a press conference in 1992. John told the media, “Every single I release in America from this point…all my proceeds will go to AIDS research and AIDS charities.” To date, John has raised well over $20 million for the cause, making him a hero in the eyes of fans and critics alike and giving fans another reason to remain devoted to him.