Saturday afternoon’s alright for a free pop-up Elton John show on the Sunset Strip.
Fans from all over Los Angeles gathered for John’s performance outside of the old Tower Records building on Saturday, Feb. 27, which was also live streamed exclusively on AOL.com. John performed an hour-long set of old and new hits alike under the blazing Los Angeles sun to thank the city of West Hollywood for its support of his AIDS Foundation and its Academy Awards Viewing Party.
Elton John Accuses Janet Jackson of Lip-Syncing: ‘That’s Not a Show!’
“The City of West Hollywood has welcomed the Elton John AIDS Foundation and our annual Academy Awards Viewing Party with open arms for many years, providing us with the perfect environment to host a really fun and special evening,” Elton John said in a statement. “We are profoundly grateful for their generous support, so I wanted to do something special just for them by giving our West Hollywood fans and supporters a surprise concert. Thank you, West Hollywood!”
In an interview with Sharon Osbourne for AOL, the English legend said that the idea for a pop-up show was entirely his husband David Furnish’s.
Free show today in West Hollywood – come on down to Tower Records at 12pm! #EJAFOscars #WeHo #ThisIsAOL #LiveBright pic.twitter.com/XHHhbrnlUt
— Elton John (@eltonofficial) February 27, 2016
“[David] thought it would be great the day before the Oscar party to do something to thank the city of West Hollywood, who have been so amazing to us over the years,” John said.
To help him properly thank the city, the godmother of John’s children, Lady Gaga, also made her way to the Sunset Strip for the free concert. Gaga came out at the end of the concert to help John perform his 1974 hit “Don’t Let the Sun Go Down on Me.”
John’s Sunset Strip was full of thankfulness — not just for the city of West Hollywood, but also for his agent, who he dedicated his performance of “Your Song” to, one of the songs John first sang when he started out in Los Angeles.
“I first came to Los Angeles in 1970 and I played on Santa Monica Blvd. at the Troubadour, which I’m very glad to say is still there,” John said. “And my agent when I came over was a man called Howard Rose, and here we are 46 years later and he’s still my agent, so I’d like to thank him and dedicate this next song to him.”
John’s pop-up concert comes just one day before his annual Academy Awards Viewing Party, which will take place this year at West Hollywood Park.
Set List:
“The Bitch Is Back”
“Bennie and the Jets”
“Looking Up”
“Blue Wonderful”
“?Levon”
“Rocket Man”
“Your Song”
“Tiny Dancer”
“A Good Heart”
“Wonderful Crazy Night”
“Don’t Let the Sun Go Down on Me” (with Lady Gaga)
“Saturday Night’s Alright for Fighting”