since 1988 THE MAG inside this issue: EXCLUSIVE interview with Gus Dudgeon Elton speaks about the current music scene How TV appearances have influenced Elton's career New Elton candles European tour report & set list What does EJ think of the fans? Plus News, Lyric Quiz, Your letters, Small Ads, Cartoons, Photos, Tour Dates and more! June 2002 Issue No: 59 Fanzine of the Elton John THE MAG Fan Club Issue No. 59 FAN CLUB INFORMATION JUNE 2002 HERCULES Chief Editor IMPORTANT NOTICE TO MEMBERS Tammi Law 49 Horseshoe Crescent From 1st January 2002, membership rates will be Peatmoor charged in Euro. Fees will be: Swindon SN5 5AX Europe: Euro 20 Rest of the World: Euro 35 UNITED KINGDOM [email protected] Please be sure to change any standing orders Hercules is a registered member accordingly if you are paying into one of our accounts. Editorial Assistants: of the National Association of Barbara Turner, Michael S English Fan Clubs Design: Turnstyle Design Annual membership fee for the UK is £14 if paid by Translations: Standing Order/VISA/Mastercard. By Cheque/Postal Sabine Asenkerschbaumer Order it is £15. For the rest of Europe it is £14, and Mireille Mölbert for the USA it is 17£/US$30. Please note that your For subscription details, please renewal date is printed on your address label in write to your local HERCULES European format day/month/year. department or to HERCULES Coordinaton: Membership passes are available from your local HERCULES department: send a small photo of yourself when requesting your pass. HERCULES Coordination CONTENTS c/o Stephan Heimbecher Please don't send enquiries or fan mail to the Elton Berg-am-Laim-Str. 87 John management, but to HERCULES Coordination. D-81673 München, Letters will be passed on if necessary. GERMANY FEATURES Tel. +49 (0)89 48900369 HERCULES is a quarterly publication released in Fax +49 (0)89 48900370 Gus Dudgeon [email protected] talks to Hercules ........14 March, June, September and December. In event of circumstances beyond our control, there is no HERCULES Fan Adviser Lunch around the guarantee for punctual shipment. It is published in c/o Mireille Mölbert world ............................23 Albrechtstr. 32 English and German. D-80636 München, Newsnight Interview ....18 GERMANY Printed articles do not necessarily reflect the editors' Tel. +49 (0)89 3244146 St Petersburg Times opinions. All information is based on the best of [email protected] knowledge and belief. Reproductions permitted only Face to Face revue ....13 HERCULES USA/Canada by prior arrangement with HERCULES. Barb Crowley Tell me what the PO Box 692392 papers say....................21 Member participation is always welcome. We are ORLANDO thankful for your submissions of any kind: reports, FL 32869-2392 TV camera never lies....10 articles, photos, drawings, [email protected] What does he really and suggestions. Please HERCULES U.K. think of us ..................20 send them to the Editor, PLEASE REMEMBER... c/o David Wright Tammi Law. Please 100 Winkworth Road When the rain set in... understand that we cannot ALWAYS state your Banstead Surrey SM7 2QR Verona concert always publish all membership no. if you UNITED KINGDOM review ............................9 contributions. All photos send a cheque to [email protected] will be returned. Hercules, or pay into one of the Club accounts. HERCULES Benelux Web site c/o Tim Blezer ALWAYS let us know the Pastoor Pendersstraat 8 http://www.eltonfan.net 6262 PA banholt REGULARS expiry date of the card, and NETHERLANDS COPYRIGHT: HERCULES the cardholders name. Tel. +31 (0)43 4571703 Club Information ............2 Please note that if you have paid [email protected] Deadline for Issue No. 60 your Membership Fee by Credit News Bullets ....................4 is 10 August 2002 Card, your card will HERCULES Italy automatically be charged again c/o Luca Zerbini Lyric Quiz ......................21 No. 60 will be released for the renewal fee, at the end Via Scheiwiller n.9/A September 2002 of your membership year. If I-20139 Milano, ITALY Membership Matters ....24 your card has expired in the [email protected] Front cover pic: meantime, or if you have Letters to the Editor......26 Elton shares a relaxed switched companies, please HERCULES Nordic moment as he prepares to forward your new Credit Card Urpu Kallio Small ads ........................27 address the US Senate with a Uudenklänpolku details to Hercules Coordination 05200 Rajämaki ground breaking speech in time for your next renewal. Tour Dates ......................27 regarding funding for AIDS FINLAND research, April 11 2002 email: [email protected] 2 Hercules. The Elton John Fan Club FROM THE ello and EDITOR... Hwelcome to the summer issue of The Mag, number 59. The big news this quarter is Elton’s tour with the band, which started in Australia and received rave reviews for the 9 sell-out arena gigs. The tour is currently heading across Europe, see page 27 for details of the dates. On page 9 we have a review of the first European show, with details of the set list. As most of you will know, the fanzine will be finishing later this year. Please read the details of your remaining membership fee details, and how the changes at Hercules will be affecting you, on page 24. Elton often seems to be involved in many areas of current affairs these days, not just the music industry. His interest in fashion and art is well documented, and recently he addressed the US Senate as his interest in fund raising for Aids research and politics grows. As a result of these many interests, he is often seen on our TV screens. We have a light hearted look back over Elton’s many TV appearances in the US over the years, and how television helped launch his career, in our specially written article on page 10. We are very excited that Gus Dudgeon, who had such an influence on Elton’s early career, chose to speak to Hercules recently. Read part one of our exclusive interview on page 14, where Gus reveals what Elton’s famous temperament was like in the early days. Part two of this fascinating interview will follow in our September issue. Thanks for all your letters and please continue to send them in. I look forward to seeing many of you at Elton’s forthcoming UK shows later this summer. I hope that those of you lucky enough to be seeing Elton and the band during their current tour have a fantastic time! Photograph: J Young J Photograph: Quarterly Fanzine. Issue 59. June 2002. 3 Full details of the following news items have appeared on our Website ELTON AND BAND KICK OFF ELTON SLAMS UK GOVERNMENT ELTON QUITS WATFORD EUROPEAN SUMMER TOUR 2002 OVER AIDS Elton has resigned as chairman of Watford, ending a After a short holiday to Elton has said the UK 25-year association with the recover from the success of both Government should be English first division club. "With the Face to Face AND the "ashamed" of its record on Aids the huge changes taking place in Australian tour, Elton and the spending. He appealed to the football, it is obviously necessary band kicked off their European British Prime Minister, Tony Blair, for the board to be led by a summer tour 2002 in Benidorm, to pile more cash into the fight chairman who will be able to against the disease. Elton turned devote more time to the club Spain, on May 22. The tour will on the Government and said: than I have been able to," Elton continue with shows in Italy, "They should be thoroughly said in a statement on the club's France, Belgium, Denmark, ashamed of themselves. I did Web site. Norway, Finland, Sweden, vote for them, but I'm disgusted "The directors will now Germany, Netherlands, with the way the health service commence their search for a Switzerland, Austria, the UK and in England is operating and to successor and I am sure that they Ireland. Surprises in the set list someone who is passionate about will find the right person who included Holiday Inn and Have Aids, every year seeing the will be able to devote time and Mercy on The Criminal. See amount of aid money allocated energy to leading the club to Aids go down is not good." through these difficult times," report on page 9 for more details added Elton. Elton, who returned Speaking in Vienna on May of the set list. to Watford five years ago, has 19th, where he was attending the also resigned as a director of the fundraising Life Ball, Elton said: "I club. QUEEN'S JUBILEE CONCERT would appeal to the Government Watford's chief executive Tim and Tony Blair to say, come on, Shaw thanked the singer for his ON VIDEO we had a great record on Aids role in overseeing Watford's rise when we first started. That record from the old fourth division in Don’t worry if you missed is now not as good as it was the late 1970s to the upper Queen Elizabeth's jubilee under the Thatcher government. reaches of the first division. "On concerts, you'll still be able to You should be ashamed of behalf of the club and all its see Elton’s performance on yourselves - you're socialists, or supporters, I want to thank Elton video. "Party at the Palace" on so you're supposed to be." for everything he has done," June 3, celebrated the 76-year- A Department of Health Shaw said in a statement. "There old monarch's 50 years on the spokesman defended the is no doubt that, without his throne.