Sunday Divas/Three From The Hip: Elton John

Sunday Divas/Three From The Hip

Elton John

In my big gay church there is a wing dedicated to The Divas Who Represent. They're not all flashy or cocks of the walk - in fact, some never officially came out of the closet during their lifetime - but they are all extraordinarily gifted, sharing their songs, music, and insights, allowing the world at large to learn, in the most subtle of ways, what it's like 'being green'. Thanks to their gifts and their bravery, they help make the world a little more gay every time their voices are heard. And that's been their true super power all along... their voice; they were heard. They mattered. And, whether they liked it or not, they represented!

Today's diva is is of the tantrums and tiaras variety. To this day, he sits upon his gilded throne, a piano bench, and we are so fortunate to call him our own... as is the world. 

Elton John.

Rocket Man.

He entered quite meekly. Musically deserving, he couldn't help but not go unnoticed. 

Then, as he began his reign in the world's Top 40, he grew brave. Flash and spectacle fired his audience's imaginations, just as surely as his music got their feet tapping or touched their hearts. 

But our diva had a secret that was not so secret... and he battled with it. In his attempts to define his sexuality, he resorted to several types of self-medicating in order to deal with his subsequent depression. 

How could he have it all and yet feel so?

That is the lesson he would have to learn - several times. In the end, he became true to himself and is now, as he has self-proclaimed, the most famous homosexual in the world. The concert stage, Broadway, film? He's conquered all. 

Through it all, the music remained constant. The pace, barely slowing down as he moved gracefully from pop star to legendary musician. 

As a result of owning who and what he is, the man has found true love and created a family. And he's never taken his privilege for granted, extending a helping hand to all those who needed a voice or attention. In particular, his advocacy for those affected by the AIDS crisis has been nothing short of remarkable, as has the attention he helped shine on the plight of gay youth facing brutality and bullying. 

Has he done it all with grace? Oh, hell, no. And he'd be the first to laugh about it. For that is the magnanimous power of coming to grips with who you are... you develop a sense of humor. And the ability to forgive yourself for past trespasses. 

The gospel according to him?

Well, here are three from the hip, dropping from his lips.

The topic? His Childhood

"I was just genuinely shy. I'd always been a shy kid."

"I never thought of myself as being handsome or good-looking or whatever. I always felt like an outsider."

"I went to a mixed school and I can't remember being bullied at school, ever. I was quite large, in those days. Usually, if you're going to be a bully, you'll pick on someone who is small. I didn't bully anybody, and I don't remember being bullied."

"I've got that resilient thing inside me. But I wasn't a happy bunny."

"I loathe gardening, but I love gardens, and I have two beautiful gardens. I can not bear gardening, but I love gardens."

"I grew up at my grandmother's house and she had a beautiful garden. I used to hate mowing the lawn and weeding, which is what you do when you're a kid."

"The worst thing you can do to a child, and I've seen it happen so many times, is the silver spoon."

"I used to get my money at the end of the week, buy my mum something, or buy a record, and that was it."

"My mum always used to buy a record every Friday."

"At heart I've always been a music fan. That part of me has never changed since I was a little kid, sitting in a room watching a record go round, looking at the color of the labels

"I love the idea of the teachings of Jesus Christ and the beautiful stories about it, which I loved in Sunday school and I collected all the little stickers and put them in my book. But the reality is that organized religion doesn't seem to work. It turns people into hateful lemmings and it's not really compassionate."

"Jesus wanted us to be loving and forgiving. I don't know what makes people so cruel."

"I grew up conservative because my mum was a conservative, and when I finally realized what conservatives were, I changed my mind immediately."

Your Song - Elton John

I'm Still Standing - Elton John

Hold Me Closer - Elton John / Britney Spears

And one last parting shot...

"I do like my rock stars to be a little larger than life. I don't mind the earnest ones at all, but I do like a bit of individuality."

"I think performers are all show-offs anyway, especially musicians. Unless you show off, you're not going to get noticed."

"When your persona begins to take over your music and becomes more important, you enter a dangerous place. Once you have people around you who don't question you, you're in a dangerous place."

"When Little Richard used to stand up and play it was just fabulous, and Liberace had the candlesticks and the rings and the gift of the gab. The piano's is the most ungainly rock' n' roll instrument of all time but those two people transcended it, as did Jerry Lee Lewis."

"I've always wanted to smash a guitar over someone's head. You just can't do that with a piano."