Elton John

Live From Moscow (2019)

    
 
 1. Daniel
 2. Skyline Pigeon
 3. Take Me to the Pilot
 4. Rocket Man
 5. Don't Let the Sun Go Down on Me
 6. Goodbye Yellow Brick Road
 7. Candle in the Wind
 8. I Heard it Through the Grapevine
 9. Funeral for a Friend
 10.Tonight
 11.Better Off Dead
 12.Bennie and the Jets
 13.Sorry Seems to be the Hardest Word
 14.Crazy Water
 15.Saturday Night's Alright For Fighting/
    Pinball Wizard
 16.Crocodile Rock/Get Back/Back in the U.S.S.R.
 

Before the Cold War began to thaw, and long before Glastnost became a household term, Elton John packed up his piano and ventured where few Western artists dared to tread—the Soviet Union. The year was 1979, and while Elton was still a household name, the glitter of his peak years was beginning to fade. It was a bold move, one that, at the time, garnered far more attention for its location than for the music itself.

Live From Moscow documents the final night of that historic tour, recorded in the Great Hall of the Moscow Conservatory, and released officially decades later. Stripped of his full band, Elton brought only longtime percussionist Ray Cooper with him, making for a sparse setup that, if nothing else, placed the piano front and center. What results is an interesting, if uneven, performance that carries more historical weight than musical brilliance.

To be clear, the performances aren’t bad. In fact, they’re often quite good. But they are occasionally ragged—less polished than what fans might expect from a typical Elton live release. And that’s fine. This wasn’t about studio-perfect renditions; it was about breaking barriers, even if just for a few nights. The Soviet audience, constrained by cultural expectation and strict regulation, wasn’t exactly going to rush the stage. Still, there's a palpable energy underneath the surface—respect, awe, and maybe even a bit of quiet rebellion.

As with Billy Joel’s own Russian excursion some seven years later, this release is less about the music and more about the moment. It represents a time when East met West, not through politics, but through piano chords. That matters.

The setlist leans heavily on the hits—Daniel, Rocket Man, Goodbye Yellow Brick Road—and that was undoubtedly the right move given the audience. You’re not going to roll out deep cuts for a roomful of first-time listeners behind the Iron Curtain. Still, for seasoned fans, it may feel a bit too familiar, especially compared to some of the more creatively curated solo tours Elton embarked on in the 1990s and beyond—often with Ray Cooper still at his side, and often featuring surprising detours through lesser-known gems.

Those later shows, it must be said, are often more musically satisfying. By then, Elton’s voice had aged into its lower register, but he had learned how to use it. The arrangements were more confident, the song choices bolder. In contrast, Live From Moscow feels very much like a time capsule. Fascinating, important even—but not necessarily essential listening if you’re here strictly for the music.

Still, this document is worth having, if only as a reminder of how Elton, even in a transitional period of his career, continued to take risks. Not many artists would hop on a plane to Moscow in 1979, let alone do so without a safety net of a full band.

Live From Moscow isn’t the best live Elton John album. It might not even be in the top three. But it’s certainly one of the most unique.