Elton John at Princess Diana’s funeral.Photo: Anwar Hussein/Getty
Newly released government documents show what went on behind the scenes ofElton John’s famous performance of “Candle in the Wind” atPrincess Diana’s funeral in 1997.
“This is a crucial point in the service and we would urge boldness. It is where the unexpected happens and something of the modern world that the princess represented,” the Very Reverend Dr. Wesley Carr wrote in his plea.
Princess Diana and Elton John.GERARD JULIEN/AFP via Getty
“He has written new words to the tune which is being widely played and sung throughout the nation in memorial to Diana. It is all the time on the radio. Its use here would be imaginative and generous to the millions who are feeling personally bereaved: it is popular culture at its best,” he added.
Furthermore, a first draft of the funeral service had the iconic musician noted as performing “Your Song,” although it was listed as “Our Song.”
John’s performance of “Candle in the Wind” went on and became one of the most memorable aspects of the funeral.
“There was a sense in which it was the biggest gig of my life — for four minutes, I was literally going to be the center of the world’s attention — but equally, it wasn’t an Elton John moment, it wasn’t about me at all,” Johnlater said.
From left: Prince Philip, Prince William, Charles Spencer, Prince Harry and Prince Charles walk behind Princess Diana’s casket at her 1997 funeral.JEFF J. MITCHELL/AFP/Getty
John and Princess Diana met at Prince Andrew’s 21st birthday party in 1981, the singer recalled in his 2019 autobiographyMe.
“She was blessed with an incredible social ease, an ability to make people feel totally comfortable in her company,” he wrote. “That night in 1981, she arrived in the ballroom and we immediately clicked. We ended up pretending to dance the Charleston while hooting at the disco’s feebleness.”
John said that Diana was “fabulous company, the best dinner party guest, incredibly indiscreet, a real gossip: you could ask her anything and she’d tell you.”
The friends had a falling out about a year before her death when Princess Diana pulled out of contributing to a book for charity that John had organized.
“It was only really when Gianni Versace was murdered that we both got on the phone to each other and said, ‘This is so stupid. We haven’t talked,’ you know,” John said onCNNin 2002. “It’s one of those things that friends sometimes do. You know, they’re too proud to pick up the phone.”
Elton John, Prince William and Prince Harry.Getty
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The singer maintained a relationship with Diana’s two sons. In 2007, 10 years after the royal’s tragic death,Prince Williamand Prince Harry joined John on stage at Wembley Stadium in London for a tribute concert for Diana, where he performed “Your Song.”
source: people.com
