Elton John
Mark G. Etess Arena
18, 19, 20-May-1990
Atlantic City, NJ USA
Regarding Sharon's comments about the Trump Taj Mahal shows in 1990, I also was in the arena during rehearsal where I heard Made for Me and also heard Healing Hands live, which is a great song in concert.
Elton wore his Versace suits with a Fedora hat with glitter and dark sunglasses until the encores, when he returned with clear glasses and a black top hat (remember the Diet Coke commercials with Paula Abdul and the hat on the piano stool). Elton used a Roland RD-1000 digital piano placed center stage on a riser which came from the 1984 tour (see Wembley Stadium videos of Breaking Hearts Tour and The Nighttime Concert) and I spoke with Davey Johnstone in the lobby of the hotel briefly before the rehearsal and he informed me that Elton would be taking an extended time away from touring -- I was heart broken.
Ultimately, it was best as his return in 1992 for the album The One and the tour in support thereof was one of his best musically and performance wise as well.
I also remember that Elton had his haired dyed bleach blonde and would occasionally lift his hat to wipe is brow and each time he did so the audience would roar with approval at the sight of the thin blonde hair!!
The shows were also short, approximately 1:45 to 2:00 hours including encores. A real highlight was that (like the shows in Europe that spring -- I saw Frankfurt at the Festhalle) and the previous year in America, he did a combination of Bitch is Back with the Rolling Stones Brown Sugar. Truly outstanding!!
I also remember how he explained to the audience how he had just written a song a couple days before and the band would perform the song -- and the crowd when nuts with excitement and awe that such a new song could come off live (Made for Me - from the Boxed Set).
If memory serves, the concert had a great beginning with a loud beating percussion and the backup singers marching like robots out to their places followed by Elton strolling out from the other side of the stage to his piano to begin, right on cue, the opening notes of a short version of Bennie And The Jets (i.e. no extended solos or band leaving the stage or playing under the piano etc.) All in all, I like a longer concert but seeing him 3 nights in a row doing shorter shows sort of made up for it!!
The set list notes are from 5-18-90 and my recollection is that it was the same each show. My usual practice is to write it down once and then to enjoy the show the next night without "taking notes."
My ticket stubs show sales were handled by ticket master and the tickets show "Mark G. Etess Arena - Trump Taj Mahal Presents An Evening With Elton John", however the name of the show was misleading as they use that designation for a solo show (like shows with Ray Cooper or current tour), however he had a full band with him consisting of Davey Johnstone, Fred Mandel, Guy Babylon, Romeo Williams, Jonathan "Sugarfoot" Moffett, and backing singers Marlena Jeter, Mortonette Jenkins and Natalie Jackson. Natalie gave EJ a big kiss when he introduced her and EJ performed the rest of the show with a BIG lipstick print on his cheek.
Bennie And The Jets
Tiny Dancer
Bitch Is Back (including Brown Sugar)
I Guess That's Why They Call It The Blues
Made For Me
Mona Lisas And Mad Hatters, Part I
Mona Lisas And Mad Hatters, Part II
Funeral For A Friend / Loves Lies Bleeding
Your Song
Daniel
Candle In The Wind
Sacrifice (Elton solo)
Club St The End Of The Street
Sorry Seems To Be The Hardest Word
Philadelphia Freedom
Healing Hands
Sad Songs (Say So Much)
Levon
Don't Let The Sun Go Down On Me
I Don't Wanna Go On With You Like That
I'm Still Standing
Rocket Man
Saturday Night's Alright (For Fighting)