Today marks the 50th anniversary of the singer’s historic U.S. debut at the Los Angeles club
It was 50 years ago today that Elton John played the first American concert of his career at the Troubadour in Los Angeles. He was largely unknown in the States at that point even though he’d already released two records, but his self-titled LP was generating a lot of industry buzz and everyone from Leon Russell and Neil Diamond to Quincy Jones, David Crosby, and Graham Nash came to the Troubadour across six nights to check him out.
They land in L.A., and the record label had gotten him an open-top bus, a British double-decker bus. On the side, it said, ELTON JOHN HAS ARRIVED. People thought “Elton John” was a new kind of toilet.
John: Everything in L.A. looked and sounded different. It was the first time I heard proper FM stereo radio. Everything looked and sounded amazing.
Elton was pissed off at not being invited to Palm Springs, and perhaps he had nerves — this was prior to opening night.
Williams: Elton said, “I’m not doing this gig. I’m going home.” That’s when we got into a big two and eight — [Cockney] slang for a debate. I said, “You can’t do that. You’ll ruin your career.”
Neil Diamond: Elton was very polite and very quiet. But when he went onstage, he became a different person. He knocked the piano bench down and did Jerry Lee Lewis-type antics. He went from a non-performer to an over-the-top performer.
Linda Ronstadt: It was like a ball of fire hit the Troubadour. When he got to “Take Me to the Pilot,” the place levitated. They were a trio, but they sounded so tight, like a garage band. It was like seeing a Little Richard show. Elton was playing fast and really hard. He was wild. The music was ecstatic. People were knocked out. The sound of the audience was the sound of a star being born.
