Legendary blues-rock singer Sir Elton John has been delivering timeless classics for decades. This British musical sensation burst onto the scene in the mid 1960s and is still performing today at some of the world’s biggest and most reputable venues. John was born Reginald Kenneth Dwight on March 25, 1947 in Pinner, Middlesex, England.

John was an exceptionally intelligent young man who left school at the age of 17 to follow his dreams of being a musician. Despite his father’s urging to become a banker or practically anything but a musician, the young man was eager to break away from his repressive childhood and let loose on stage with his own brand of music and personality.

Both of John’s parents were gifted musicians in their own right, and Elton was playing the piano by age 3 and was accepted into the Royal Academy of Music at only age 11. It was the gigs John landed as the pianist at local pubs that really developed his taste for music and performing. He went by the name Reggie and played popular classics.

Elton formed a band called Bluesology in 1964, and in 1966, they landed a gig touring different cabarets throughout England. However, John wanted to do more. He auditioned to be the singer for the bands Gentle Giant and King Crimson but was turned down. He then answered an ad for Ray Williams, manager of Liberty Records.

It was here that John would meet his career-long musical partner Bernie Taupin. Bernie had answered the same ad. Later, John wrote the music and sent it off to Bernie to write the lyrics. The resulting song was titled Scarecrow, and the two formed a partnership in 1967 that still continues today.

Only a few months later, Reginald Dwight changed his name to Elton John in homage to his former band members Elton Dean and Long John Baldry. John’s and Taupin’s partnership wasn’t a smashing success at first. They were teamed together to write music for other popular acts. Elton’s only success was as a backing singer in the late 60s.

Eventually, Elton got his chance to record and release songs. His first album, Empty Sky, was reviewed well but failed to sell. Then a self-titled album came, Elton John, in 1970 and was released on DJM Records in the UK and Uni Records in the US. John’s second single from the album, Your Song, climbed to the US top ten and he immediately began touring with his now working formula.

John was releasing two albums a year after the takeoff, but it wasn’t until 1973 that he became a world famous artist. On his album Don’t Shoot Me I’m Only the Piano Player, John released the hits Crocodile Rock and Daniel – both of which, including the album, became hits.

His next album, Goodbye Yellow Brick Road, was even more successful, with tracks like Candle in the Wind, Bennie and the Jets and the namesake Goodbye Yellow Brick Road. John’s career started to soar to new heights, and not only did he pick up better contracts with better labels, but he even started his own label on the MCA name.

Elton John’s professional career has been a marvel of the music industry and is almost impossible to sum up. He took a break from music in the late 1970s but returned with a bang in the 1980s. His personal life has also been explosive. John was married to a woman for a while before finally coming out of the closet and declaring his homosexuality.

John has recorded over 30 albums, been in numerous bands, worked with some of the best artists in the industry, and is always a charitable and gracious person. After the deaths of friends Ryan White and Freddie Mercury, he started the Elton John AIDS Foundation and has raised and donated millions for the cause.