Elton John Announces ‘Classic Concerts’ Livestream Series

Elton John announced his Classic Concerts livestream series featuring footage from the iconic artist’s archive. The series premieres Friday, July 3 at 12 p.m. ET/9 a.m. PT via Elton’s YouTube channel with his September 17, 1976 solo piano show at Edinburgh’s Playhouse Theatre.

After the premiere on Friday, the series will continue to air the other five concerts on Saturday at the same time. The Elton John: Classic Concert Series serves as a fundraiser for the Elton John AIDS Foundation’s COVID-19 Emergency Fund. “My Foundation’s COVID-19 Emergency Fund helps frontline partners prepare for and respond to the pandemic and its effects on HIV prevention and care for the most marginalized communities,” Elton said as per uDiscoverMusic.

“We cannot jeopardise HIV testing and care during this time or else the results could be disastrous for the 37.5 million people living with HIV,” Elton continued. “So, I’m really happy to connect this YouTube Concert series to benefit our Foundation’s urgent COVID response.”

The 1976 Edinburgh concert came just after Elton had his first No. 1 hit in the UK with “Don’t Go Breaking My Heart,” a duet with Kiki Dee which the pianist performs solo for the first time live at the Playhouse Theatre. The show also includes favorties like “Rocketman,” “Bennie And The Jets” and “Saturday Night’s Alright (For Fighting).”

Watch the trailer for the performance below: