Elton John Quotes

“At heart I've always been a music fan. That part of me has never changed since I was a little kid, sitting in a room watching a record go round, looking at the colour of the labels.”

“Bands today have to learn their craft by putting the hard work in that we did when we were young performers.”

“Because, I figured that, because I was a successful man, I was wealthy, I was, you know, seemingly intelligent – even that I am not intelligent enough to ask for help.”

“Everything I thought I'd hate about having children – the crying, the screaming – nothing fazes me. I love it all, and it's relaxed me.”

“Fame attracts lunatics.”

“For me, music is so passionate, I have to give it my all every time I go onstage. Onstage, it was always comfortable for me, because that's where I felt at home.”

“I am the biggest technophobe of all time.”

“I am the most well-known homosexual in the world.”

“I could never go onstage in denims.”

“I couldn't wait to change my name anyway, because I'm not too fond of the name of Reginald. It's a very kind of '50s English name.”

“I do like Britney Spears. I think she's cute. I think she's fun. And I like her records. You know, I'm not a pop snob whatsoever. I think she makes great pop records.”

“I do like my rock stars to be a little larger than life. I don't mind the earnest ones at all, but I do like a bit of individuality.”

“I grew up at my grandmother's house, and she had a beautiful garden. I used to hate mowing the lawn and weeding, which is what you do when you're a kid.

I loathe gardening, but I love gardens, and I have two beautiful gardens. I can not bear gardening, but I love gardens.”

“I grew up conservative because my mum was a conservative, and when I finally realized what conservatives were, I changed my mind immediately. As children, we tend to copy our parents.”

“I have a lot of money stashed away, but I do live my life from day to day.”

“I have a pretty good relationship with the press and the paparazzi. It's just when they step over the line that, you know, enough's enough.”

“I have no one to leave the money to. I'm a single man. I like spending my money.”

“I just go into the studio, look at the lyrics for the first time when I put them on the piano, and go.

If I haven't got it within 40 minutes, I give up. It's never changed, the thrill has never gone, because I don't know what I'm going to get next.”

“I loathe celebrity. I can't stand it.”

“I love every minute of fatherhood, staying up all night, changing nappies, kids crying, I find it really funny and inspiring. It connects you to the world in a new way.”

“I love places that have an incredible history. I love the Italian way of life. I love the food. I love the people. I love the attitudes of Italians.”

“I love the idea of the teachings of Jesus Christ and the beautiful stories about it, which I loved in Sunday school and I collected all the little stickers and put them in my book. But the reality is that organised religion doesn't seem to work. It turns people into hateful lemmings and it's not really compassionate.”

“I never thought of myself as being handsome or good-looking or whatever. I always felt like an outsider.”

“I think performers are all show-offs anyway, especially musicians. Unless you show off, you're not going to get noticed.”

“I was just genuinely shy. I'd always been a shy kid.”

“I went to a mixed school and I can't remember being bullied at school, ever. I was quite large, in those days.

Usually, if you're going to be a bully, you'll pick on someone who is small. I didn't bully anybody, and I don't remember being bullied.”

“I'm lucky enough and wealthy enough to be able to buy photographs and buy art that inspires me from day to day. I don't want a Picasso on my wall; it's great art, but it's dead art to me. I'd rather have a photograph by someone I've never heard of that really inspires me.”

“I'm not everybody's cup of tea. But sometimes criticism can be hurtful. Be respectful. I'm a good piano player, I can sing well, I write good songs. If you don't like it, fair enough. But give me a break.”

“I've always wanted to smash a guitar over someone's head. You just can't do that with a piano.”

“I've got that resilient thing inside me. But I wasn't a happy bunny.”