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| Elton John performed in Sundsvall on June 28, 2003 Monday, June 30 2003 |
Fan Reports by Ulf Olby and Tanja.
Fan Report by Ulf Olby
On June 28, 2003 I attended Elton's solo concert in Sundsvall, Sweden. It was an outdoor sell-out concert in the new Park Arena in Sundsvall and we were approx. 15.000 in the audience. My guess is that there were an additional 1.000 persons sitting on the mountain situated close to the Arena. The weather was OK - a little sunshine and no rain.
I probably have to admit that I've become a diehard Reg-head, since I travelled to this concert in my own by car, 370 km to Sundsvall and 370 km back home again the same day (night). First time since I met my wife that I went alone - she didn't think it was worth the car ride, can you imagine?
Was it worth the trip then? Of course it was. Even if Elton was suffering from a bad cold, he really gave us everything he could - as the true professional he is. He could barely talk between songs, but somehow his singing was much better. From time to time his voice was broken in the lower register and he kept coughing and spitting and drinking inbetween songs. He even had to cough during his singing.
Compared to the recent solo shows he left some of the song out from the songlist, probably because of his heavy cold. No "Original Sin" (too bad) and no "The One" or "Blue Eyes". Another change was that he did "Sacrifice" instead of "Nikita" (a good choice if you ask me, I never have liked the live rendition of "Nikita").
One thing that struck me is how Elton in the middle of his set put in real classics like "Candle in the Wind" or "Sorry Seems to be the Hardest Word" - where any other artist should go for fillers...
Highlights for me was: "Sacrifice", perfect vocal delivery in a true Elton classic; "This Train Don't Stop There Anymore", a terrific song in a terrific performance; "Take Me to the Pilot", we have heard his different intros to this song before, but I promise you have never heard it like in Sundsvall yesterday. Elton had the whole audience standing up and dancing to his gospel/boogie/rock-pianoplaying before the real song had even started.
Goosebumps is just the first name... - "Circle of Life". So much better solo than with the band, you get the chance to hear the beautiful melody without any heavy accompaniment.
Elton kept appologising for his bad throat during the evening and before this final encore he thanked us and said that the warm reception from the audience tonight made it all worthwile.
Fan Report by Tanja
On June 30, 2003 my husband Ronnie and I, and our friend Carola, came back to Stockholm from Sundsvall, where we saw Elton John on Saturday, June 28. What an amazing show it was! We had been looking forward to this show with so much excitement. We made signs, dressed appropriately in Elton T-shirts and caps and went 300 km up north to Sundsvall. We had never been there before, and probably would never go there in all our lives if not for Elton. But what a lovely city it is, situated in a valley surrounded by mountains.
The stadium Park Arena, where we saw Elton, is right at the foot of the North Mountain. About a thousand people gathered on the mountain and enjoyed the view and Elton’s music for free. The weather was just right. It was not precisely hot at 8:00 PM, but it was not raining and one could enjoy an outdoor concert in a shirt.
We all sat in the 4th row next to each other. Ronnie and I got flowers for Elton at a grocery store, as we could not find them anywhere else. We had also brought a viking hat with horns, which we had decorated with gold sequin letters "EJ" to give to Elton. At the arena we bought new T-shirts and sat down all nervous and shaky…
Suddenly we could hear the "Aida" music and from then on we went absolutely crazy. Elton came on stage wearing a black suit and red-shaded glasses. I held my sign with the "I’m Still Standing" lyrics and stood on my chair, waving at Elton, who actually pointed at me then and later throughout the concert. What can I say? The show was amazing!
Poor Elton was very sick. After "Your Song" he said "Good evening! Thank you very much, it’s a real pleasure to be here! I have a really bad cold, but I’m gonna fight my way through this, ‘cause I really wanna play…"
Throughout the concert his voice cracked every now and then, he blew his nose and had to clear his throat a lot. Of course, all this resulted in Elton skipping such songs as "Nikita", "Original Sin", "The One" and "Blue Eyes". He also performed a very interesting version of "Carla", when after hitting several wrong notes, Elton improvised an alternate transition into Etude.
"Sacrifice", however, found its way back into Elton’s set list and was met with huge applause. Certainly, Elton was not feeling well and he apologized for that time after time. But he was amazingly good. Elton performed so wonderfully, that he touched us again with his music and love.
Being crazy fans, we ran to the stage nearly after every song. But unfortunately, we did not have an opportunity of giving Elton our gifts and flowers, because security guards pushed us back. The Sundsvall audience was very calm and relaxed, however, and so we did not have any competition in giving Elton flowers, which we succeeded in doing after "Honky Cat". It was a wonderful moment and Elton even shook my hand!
The highlights of the evening were "I’m Still Standing" and "Moon River". It’s always great when Elton adds an unknown or new song in his set list. It becomes very special. So was the case with "Moon River", a sad-sounding song, which I liked very much.
For a long time we were trying to get to the stage, but security were very hard on us and pushed us back, every time we tried to sneak in front of them. Finally, during "Bennie and the Jets" we were allowed to take our places at the stage. And wow, what nice spots we occupied! Elton was so close, just a couple of meters from us, sick, tired, but so wonderful.
He never complained, but apologized all the time. And he even found strength and desire to sign a few autographs, which we all got (being the huge fans we are). Elton shook our hands, too. It’s like being in paradise. The happiness I felt at that concert is indescribable!
Elton really rocked as much as he possibly could in his condition. He performed marvelously! But then, after thanking us for being a very amazing and loyal audience, and singing "Circle of Life" – he left. It’s so sad… every time he leaves…
The concert is over. Many people came up to us and thanked us for being such enthusiastic fans, who made this concert even more special with our signs and screaming. We also talked a bit with one of the security, who gave us the original set list of the concert. That’s how we knew that Elton had intended to perform all the songs he did not perform.
It remains a mystery, why Elton substituted "Nikita" with "Sacrifice". Was that substitution deliberate or not?
When we got out of the arena, we saw concert posters hanging inside a building, where a VIP party seemed to go on. Ronnie was brave enough to sneak in and obtain one of those which made that evening even more special and exciting. We also were interviewed and photographed for the Sundsvall paper. Everything that happened that day was very special.
We still have a concert on July 3, 2003 in Christinehof. Hopefully, Elton’s going to feel better and not cancel the show. But even now it feels so sad. Every time I go and see Elton, I get used to him so much, that I feel a little empty the next few days (or weeks). It’s always so easy to get used to something good, and so hard to get back to work or studying – something that you would rather not do…
Elton John is amazing! He heals and changes people. But what is most important is that he is not just a huge well-known superstar. He is actually a great individual person, who touches us all with his music and personality. Being one of his biggest fans, I know and feel that Elton John performs for us – his fans, who will always love him. And this time in Sundsvall, although he was sick, he was looking like a true survivor. He was still standing! Thank you Elton!
Following is the complete setlist of the Sundsvall show on June 28, 2003:
- Your Song
- Border Song
- The Greatest Discovery
- Someone Saved My Life Tonight
- Ballad Of The Boy In The Red Shoes
- Daniel
- Mona Lisas And Mad Hatters
- Honky Cat
- Rocket Man
- I'm Still Standing
- Ticking
- Tiny Dancer
- Sacrifice
- I Want Love
- Philadelphia Freedom
- Candle In The Wind
- Sorry Seems To Be The Hardest Word
- Moon River
- I Guess That's Why They Call It The Blues
- This Train Don't Stop There Anymore
- Carla/Etude
- Tonight
- Take Me To The Pilot
- Bennie And The Jets
- Crocodile Rock
- Don't Let The Sun Go Down On Me
- Circle Of Life
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