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Tuesday, May 29, 2018

A Rock n’ Roll Archaeological Dig, as Early Elton Brings to the Stage the Soul and Spirit of Elton John’s Stripped-Down Trio Tours of 1970 to 1972

WHEN: June 8, 7:30 PM; doors open 7 PM    
WHERE
: House of Independents, 572 Cookman Ave, Asbury Park       
TICKETS: $30
BUY TICKETS

A Rock n’ Roll archaeological dig is underway, as Early Elton pays tribute to the Elton John, Dee Murray and Nigel Olsson trio tours of 1970 to 1972. 

Early Elton features Jeff Kazee of Southside Johnny and The Asbury Jukes (piano, vocals), Rich Pagano of The Fab Faux (drums and vocals) and John Conte of Southside Johnny and The Asbury Jukes (bass and vocals). The trio of respected artists deliver a historic recreation and interpretation of Elton John’s music, based specifically on the superstar’s live trio tour arrangements from the early seventies. No wigs, no costumes – just three great musicians performing the early music of a seminal artist. 

As the story goes, Elton's label didn't have the funds to send him out to tour the U.S. with a full band — yet Elton needed to properly promote his imminent releases. Having decided on bassist Dee Murray and Nigel Olson on drums, Elton rearranged the songs and vocals to fit within the limitations of his new lineup. Suddenly, a new sound emerged that was both raw and poignant.

Jeff, John and Rich have painstakingly sourced video, bootleg recordings and even Elton's own home demos in shaping their collective vision of Elton's Trio Period—blurring the line between replication and innovation—while still capturing and utilizing the spirit, mood and Rock & Roll energy from those early tours.

The Gospel/Funk of "Take Me To The Pilot", the soulful storytelling of "Levon" and "Amoreena", the epic-sounding "Burn Down The Mission", the countrified "Country Comfort" and the grand scale of "Madman Across The Water" are just a few of the fantastic chapters that make up the Early Elton songbook. The band has also been known to perform Tumbleweed Connection, Madman Across The Water and the live concert, 11-17-70 in their entireties.

Early Elton is dedicated to continuing the spirit of this period—arguably, his finest in terms of material, production and performance.