Elton John has been a force of nature in the musical industry since the ’70s. The “Benny and the Jets” singer recently joined the EGOT (Emmy, GRAMMY, Oscar, Tony) Club with his Jan. 15 Emmy win. (He won in the Outstanding Variety Special (Live) category for his Disney+ concert special Elton John Live: Farewell from Dodger Stadium.) One might think the music industry had run out of ways to honor John. After all, he’s already been knighted. But recently, artists from several genres came together to honor the British legend’s latest accomplishment.
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Joni Mitchell, Metallica And More Honor Elton John
John and his longtime songwriting partner, Bernie Taupin, recently received the Library of Congress Gershwin Prize for Popular Song. A multitude of artists, spanning various genres, performed some of John’s biggest hits during an all-star tribute concert. Although Elton John & Bernie Taupin: The Library of Congress Gershwin Prize for Popular Song was recorded March 20, the concert aired on PBS Monday (April 8.)
A trio of female powerhouses — Joni Mitchell, Annie Lennox and Brandi Carlile — performed John’s 1983 synth-pop hit “I’m Still Standing.” Mitchell got the all-clear from John to put her own stamp on the lyrics. The “Both Sides Now” singer crooned, My heart’s not broken and my path is clear / You were just a little bumpy detour, dear. As she cheekily delivered the updated lyrics, the camera panned to John grinning in the audience.
“Great to see Joni standing at the centre of the stage delivering Bernie’s words back to him,” one user wrote on X/Twitter. “My eyes are not dry!”
In the most surprising tribute of the night, heavy metal legends Metallica covered, “Funeral For A Friend/Love Lies Bleeding.”
“A tribute to Elton John and his famous song writer Bernie Taupin being held at the Library of Congress is a milestone not many stars accomplish and having Metallica play for these 2 giants is a testament to their greatness,” one user wrote on X/Twitter.
Another user added, “I love PBS. Where else can you watch Metallica doing Elton John.”
