Elton John is seen by many as one of the world’s greatest ever musicians. An exceptional pianist, personality and of course, songwriter. But, Richard E. Grant wanted to know, can he transform a typical oven manual into a hit song?
As part of a TV show called “An Audience With Elton John”, Elton John received a challenge that was so weird he couldn’t turn it down. The audience on the day had notable people such as: Cher, Boris Becker, David Copperfield, Stephen Fry, Richard E. Grant (who had brought an oven manual), Ewan McGregor, Robbie Williams and many other celebrities. During the show, Richard E. Grant challenged Elton to transform a typical oven manual into a hit song. Looking shocked at the ridiculousness of the challenge presented to him, he laughed and accepted. After a few attempts, we saw why he is regarded as one of the best musicians on the planet.
This wonderful musical scene was recorded back in 1997 in the UK as part of a TV show called “An Audience With”, this episode being “An Audience With Elton John”. This episode saw performances by multiple different stars of the times including The Spice Girls, Sting, and The Pet Shop Boys.
The audience would usually be comprised of people of note, in this episode we see: Cher, Boris Becker, David Copperfield, Stephen Fry, Richard E. Grant (wielding an oven manual), Ewan McGregor, Ian McKellen, Claudia Schiffer, Janet Street-Porter, Robbie Williams and many other celebrities.
Any musician will know just how hard it is to write a song when you’re put on the spot, especially without any rhyming in the lyrics! Even the musical genius needed a few hard thought minutes to get into his groove, but once he changed the tempo and turned the heat up on this oven manual, he creates a banger!
The video below is the first part of 11 which covers the full episode with Elton John. Unfortunately, it’s in 11 parts but you can watch them all on YouTube.