Elton John delivers sumptuous greatest hits feast at the United Center

Elton John performs at the United Center, Oct. 26, 2018. | Ashlee Rezin/Sun-Times

It was that instantly familiar piano chord, that marvelous pounding of keys at the top of “Bennie and the Jets” that beckoned one and all to the church of Elton John Friday night at the United Center, where the rock legend arrived for the first of two nights on his Farewell Yellow Brick Road tour.

Over the course of the next two-and-one-half hours, fans of the music icon were witness to a greatest hits religious experience, indeed. A mere 24 songs would eventually comprise the evening’s survey of John’s career, from rocker/showman to middle-of-the-road pop god. And what a remarkable journey it has been.

The stage, set against a massive, gilded-frame video screen provided a parade of stunning, provocative and at times schmaltzy visuals to set the tone for John’s trip down memory lane. The music man, decked out in a glamorous tuxedo-tailed waistcoat, navigated a host of American-made genres — from blues, gospel and R&B to soul and boogie woogie, sharing the stage with heady British rock, too, as he dug deep with “All the Girls Love Alice,” “Philadelphia Freedom,” “The Bitch is Back” and “Crocodile Rock.” The songs were big and boisterous, John’s fingers hammering the keys, his endearing smile proving he was having as much fun as the audience.

Elton John performs at the United Center. | Ashlee Rezin/Sun-Times

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Elton John performing at the United Center last year.

Elton John performs at the United Center. | Ashlee Rezin/Sun-Times | Ashlee Rezin Garcia / Sun-Times

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Elton John performs at the United Center. | Ashlee Rezin/Sun-Times

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Elton John performs at the United Center. | Ashlee Rezin/Sun-Times

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Elton John performs at the United Center. | Ashlee Rezin/Sun-Times

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Elton John performs at the United Center. | Ashlee Rezin/Sun-Times

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Elton John performs at the United Center. | Ashlee Rezin/Sun-Times

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Elton John performs at the United Center. | Ashlee Rezin/Sun-Times

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Backed by his longtime pals and incomparable guitarist Davey Johnstone, Nigel Olsson on drums and Ray Cooper on percussion, the band also boasted the impeccable skills of John Mahon on percussion, Kim Bullard on keyboards and Matt Bissonette on bass. It was a celebration of musicmaking on every level, with explosive solos and extended jams that rocked the arena to its core.

Gorgeous ballads gave the 71-year-old a chance to connect intimately with the sold-out crowd: a breezy “Candle in the Wind,” a sumptuous “Levon,” an emotionally-charged “Daniel” and the beautifully romantic “Your Song” were spot-on.

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John took some risks, too. The message-laden “Border Song” and “Indian Sunset” did not generate the ovations of the rest of the evening’s lineup by any measure.

A lavishly dramatic production arrived with “Funeral for a Friend/Love Lies Bleeding,” heralded by that requisite concert warhorse — a sea of machine-generated fog — punctuated with a candlelight-filled video that called to mind “Phantom of the Opera.”

Elton John performs “Rocket Man,” Friday, Oct. 26, 2018 at the United Center, during his Farewell Yellow Brick Road Tour. | Miriam Di Nunzio Photo

The evening’s most profoundly compelling moment came courtesy of “Rocket Man,” with John at the piano nearly swallowed up by stunning images of the earth filling the screen behind him. It was an overwhelming tribute to one of the best songs to emerge from the Elton John-Bernie Taupin school of songwriting.

John will be on the road with this farewell trek for the next three years (at least), with a February 2019 return trip already sold out at the Allstate Arena. At one point in the show, he took time to thank his fans, and especially Chicago, where, in 1990, he “got clean and sober” and where “his life turned around” following a stint in rehab at a local facility. He compelled the crowd to embrace “the healing power of compassion and love… it’s exactly what needs to happen in the world now.”

“Love is the cure for what’s happening in the world today,” an emotional John said. “We need to be nicer to each other.”

The evening concluded with John exiting the stage by ascending into a starry firmament (courtesy of a mechanical lift of sorts). With his musicians gone, there was one last, brief video sequence to punctuate the night. For those who stuck around to the very end, John’s on-screen, whisper-soft voice succinctly summed up the concert — and his legacy: “my gift is my song, and, this one’s for you.”

Thank you, Elton.

SET LIST

Bennie and the Jets

All the Girls Love Alice

I Guess That’s Why They Call It the Blues

Border Song

Tiny Dancer

Philadelphia Freedom

Indian Sunset

Rocket Man (I Think It’s Going to Be a Long, Long Time)

Take Me to the Pilot

Someone Saved My Life Tonight