Continued in the comments 😯😯

Bernie’s words spark Reggie’s melodies automatically, intuitively, perfectly.
It’s one of the strangest and most successful songwriting partnerships in music history.
In 1967-1968, they write dozens of songs. None become hits. Record labels aren’t interested. Reggie is still playing pubs, still broke, still nobody.
But something has changed: Reggie now has complete songs. And he’s starting to believe maybe—just maybe—he could be somebody.
1969: Becoming Elton John
In 1969, Reggie decides he needs a new name.
Reginald Dwight sounds boring. Provincial. Like an accountant or a shopkeeper. It doesn’t sound like a star.
He borrows from two Bluesology bandmates: Elton Dean (saxophonist) and Long John Baldry (singer).
Elton John.
It sounds bold. Memorable. American, even. It sounds like someone who could fill stadiums.
The name change isn’t just branding. It’s permission to be someone other than shy, closeted, working-class Reggie Dwight—the boy his father wanted him to stay.
Elton John is who Reggie always wanted to be.
1970: Everything Changes
In April 1970, Elton John releases his self-titled album. It includes “Your Song”—Bernie’s uncertain, tender lyrics about love; Elton’s simple, beautiful piano melody.
“Your Song” becomes his first hit. Top 10 in UK and US.
In August 1970, Elton performs at the Troubadour in Los Angeles—a small club, an industry showcase. He’s twenty-three, terrified, wearing overalls and a T-shirt (no glitter yet, that comes later).
He plays. The audience goes wild.
Critics who came expecting another British singer-songwriter realize they’re witnessing something different: raw talent, emotional honesty, melodies that lodge in your brain.
By morning, Elton John is famous. Every label wants him. Radio stations request his music. Critics call him a genius.
From nobody to star in one night.
The Glitter Years: 1970-1975
What follows is a supernova:

Tumbleweed Connection (1970)
Madman Across the Water (1971)
Honky Château (1972) with “Rocket Man”
Goodbye Yellow Brick Road (1973) with “Candle in the Wind,” “Bennie and the Jets,” “Goodbye Yellow Brick Road”
Captain Fantastic and the Brown Dirt Cowboy (1975)

By mid-1970s, Elton John is the biggest star in the world. Outselling The Beatles’ solo careers. Selling out stadiums globally. Wearing increasingly outrageous costumes—feathers, sequins, platform boots, enormous glasses.
The shy boy from Pinner has become a flamboyant icon.
But there’s a secret. One that’s eating him alive.

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