Elton John, or Elton Hercules John, KBE, is a Grammy and Oscar-winning singer and pianist. Born Reg Dwight in Pinner, Middlesex, England, he was a piano prodigy, John was able to play music by ear at a very young age. http://funsite.unc.edu/mal/MO/philm/elton/elton.html At 11, he won a junior scholarship to the Royal Academy of Music in London, though he preferred to play Little Richard melodies over Bach. http://www.8notes.com/biographies/john.asp

After a short-lived stint with his friends in the band Bluesology, which backed Long John Baldry, Patti LaBelle and the Isley Brothers on various tours, John answered a songwriter ad in the New Musical Express magazine in 1967. His assignment: to write music to a set of lyrics penned by Bernie Taupin. To this day, Taupin still writes the lyrics for Elton's songs. http://www.8notes.com/biographies/john.asp

Elton has received many awards during his career, including 5 Grammys. He won the 1995 Oscar for "Best Original Song." He has written music for four musicals. The song Candle in the Wind 1997, has been the best selling single hit of all time.

On January 12, 2011, Elton John announced the dates of his "Greatest Hits" tour, which will include guitarist Davey Johnstone, drummer Nigel Olsson, bassist Bob Birch, percussionist John Mahon and keyboardist Kim Bullard. The concert dates are as follows:

• 17 February - Eugene, OR - Matthew Knight Arena
• 19 February - Reno, NV - Reno Event Center
• 25 February - Kahului, HI - Maui Arts & Cultural Center
• 11 March - Uncasville, CT - Mohegan Sun Arena
• 12 March - Worcester, MA - DCU Center
• 16 March - New York, NY - Madison Square Garden
• 20 March - New York, NY - Madison Square Garden
• 23 March - Pittsburgh, PA - Consol Energy Center
• 25 March - Philadelphia, PA - Wells Fargo Center

Despite an original intention to write music for other artists to cover, John and Taupin eventually started recording music with John singing. After being partnered with producer Gus Dudgeon and orchestrator Paul Buckmaster, John released his self-titled second album in 1970, featuring the hit ballad "Your Song."

Following a historic performance at The Troubadour in Los Angeles, John's career took off with seven consecutive #1 albums, and a string of hit singles, including Tiny Dancer, Rocket Man, Daniel, Philadelphia Freedom, Crocodile Rock and Bennie and the Jets, the latter of which came from the Goodbye Yellow Brick Road album.

In the 1980s, John's career declined in popularity, despite a continuing run of Top 40 singles. After witnessing the plight of AIDS activist Ryan White, John admitted himself to a Chicago hospital to combat his drug abuse, bulimia and alcoholism.http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0005056/bio John himself later became an activist, establishing the Elton John AIDS Foundation in 1992.http://www.wtt.com/page.aspx?article_id=1310

In the 1990s, John's career hit an upswing, starting with the single "Can You Feel The Love Tonight," which won him a "Best Original Song" Oscar in 1995.http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0005056/awards Two years later, John recorded "Candle In The Wind 1997," which was a re-written hit for Princess Diana following her death.http://www.songfacts.com/detail.php?id=1313 The single went on to becoming the fastest- and biggest-selling single upon its release.

With his music being sampled in songs of all genres, like TuPac's "Ghetto Gospel," and being featured in films like Cameron Crowe's Almost Famous, John has enjoyed a renaissance as of late, recording critically acclaimed albums like Songs From The West Coast and The Captain and the Kid in the 2000s. He continues to write music with Taupin, and he performs many of their biggest hits at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas for his "Red Piano" show.

On December 25, 2010 Elton John and his partner, Dave Furnish, became fathers with the birth of their son through a surrogate mother.http://www.usmagazine.com/momsbabies/news/sir-elton-john-baby-fulfills-longtime-dream-for-the-couple-20102912 The boy, named Zachary Jackson Levon Furnish-John, weighed in at 7 pounds, 15 ounces.http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1655047/20101229/john_elton.jhtml The baby was born in California.ttp://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1655047/20101229/john_elton.jhtml The couple has decided to keep the biological father of the child a secret so that the boy will grow up seeing them both as equals in the relationship.http://www.ctv.ca/CTVNews/Entertainment/20101230/elton-john-baby-secret-101230/ According to CTV News, the birth certificate records Elton John as the father and Dave Furnish as the mother of the baby.http://www.ctv.ca/CTVNews/Entertainment/20101230/elton-john-baby-secret-101230/ The surrogate mother remains unidentified.http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1655047/20101229/john_elton.jhtml

John and Furnish have decided to share primary caregiving for their son, with only minimal household help. "We want to be active parents," stated Furnish.http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-1347469/Elton-Johns-stay-home-father-baby-Zachary-He-enjoys-busy-day-Beverly-Hills.html?ito=feeds-newsxml They reportedly have a household staff of 22, including chauffers and housekeepers, and have bought a separate apartment for their son.http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/entertainment/hollywood/news-interviews/No-paternity-leave-for-Elton-John/articleshow/7274933.cms Michael Nazir-Ali, the former Bishop of Rochester has publicly raised concerns about the parenting that the couple can provide, without a female mother and because of the age of John, who will turn 64 in March of 2011.http://www.openpr.com/news/158589/It-s-not-even-a-month-Elton-John-welcomed-his-first-son-Zachary.html

John and Furnish serve as god parents to six children.http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1655047/20101229/john_elton.jhtml

In February, 2010, an interview of Elton John was published by Parade magazine, in which he said, " I think Jesus was a compassionate, super-intelligent gay man who understood human problems. On the cross, he forgave the people who crucified him." John gave the interview as advanced publicity for an annual Oscar fund-raising event to support to HIV/AIDS Foundation he created. Leaders of the religious right spoke out about his comment. http://gayrights.change.org/blog/view/elton_johns_gay_jesus

In 2009, Elton John and David Furnish, sought to adopt a 14-month old old Ukrainian child with HIV. However, on September 14, the Ukranian Youth and Sports Minister Yuriy Pavlenko told The Associated Press that the adoption will not happen because adoptive parents must be married and the singer is too old. Regardless, Ukrainians are reluctant to adopt ill children or those older than 10. Pavlenko said that only about 30 HIV-positive children have been adopted since 2007. Sheremet, the head of Ukraine’s Gay Forum, a leading gay rights organization in Ukraine, said the regulations were depriving the boy of a chance to find a family and love. “If I were that child, I would feel very bitter and sad,” he said. http://sain.sunsite.utk.edu/cgi-bin/textonly/0141/news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/8252952.stm

John admitted to being bisexual in a 1976 interview with Rolling Stone magazine.http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0005056/bio Despite a four-year marriage to recording engineer Renate Blauel, John would later come out as being gay instead.http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0005056/bio On December 21, 2005, John and longtime partner and film maker, David Furnish, officially entered a civil partnership in London.http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/4546670.stm

• 1969: Empty Sky
• 1970: Elton John
• 1970: Tumbleweed Connection
• 1971: Madman Across the Water
• 1972: Honky Château
• 1973: Don't Shoot Me I'm Only the Piano Player
• 1973: Goodbye Yellow Brick Road
• 1974: Caribou
• 1975: Captain Fantastic and the Brown Dirt Cowboy
• 1975: Rock of the Westies
• 1976: Blue Moves
• 1978: A Single Man
• 1979: Victim of Love
• 1980: 21 at 33
• 1981: The Fox
• 1982: Jump Up!
• 1983: Too Low for Zero
• 1984: Breaking Hearts
• 1985: Ice on Fire
• 1986: Leather Jackets
• 1988: Reg Strikes Back
• 1989: Sleeping with the Past
• 1992: The One
• 1993: Duets
• 1995: Made in England
• 1997: The Big Picture
• 2001: Songs from the West Coast
• 2004: Peachtree Road
• 2006: The Captain & the Kid
• 2010: The Unionhttp://www.eltonjohn.com/about/discography.jsp