Click Here to read more about The Tom Fontaine Elton John Collection presented in this auction.
Please Note: A portion of the proceeds from sale of the Elton John lots, 229–281, will be donated to The Elton John Aids Foundation.
Offered is an incredible Elton John stage-used piano bench which has been signed and inscribed to a lucky, front row fan by both Elton and Bernie Taupin. The bench was given to the fan on July 14, 1976, at the Charlotte Coliseum. Charlotte, North Carolina was of 37 cities on Elton's 1976 "Louder than Concorde" U.K and U.S. concert tour in support of his album Rock of the Westies. That night in Charlotte, Elton had broken the piano bench during his, as per usual, kinetic and over-zealous performance. When Bernie Taupin noticed a young gentleman that was in a wheelchair near the front of the stage, he arranged to have Elton and himself sign and inscribe the bench and have it presented to the man.
The bench was signed in blue permanent marker (which has faded only slightly to green) and reads: "To Patrick Best Wishes and Much Love Bernie Taupin." and "To Partrick with Love Elton John."
The accompanying July 8, 2013, letter from Cory Wall describes acquiring the bench from "Patrick" and the details of it being presented to him on that evening in 1976:
My name is Cory Wall, and I'm writing this letter to tell my account of the Elton John/Bernie Taupin signed piano bench. I bought this bench from another fellow Ebay member last year. His story on the bench was that he attended an Elton John concert on July 14, 1976 at the Charlotte Coliseum in Charlotte, North Carolina. He was at the time in a full body cast, so he was propped right up by the stage near the speakers. During the show, Elton managed to break the bench. At the end of the show, Bernie told the guy and his father to wait by the stage. He came out later with the bench, which him and Elton both signed backstage.
Takes your breath away. What an amazing act of compassion by Bernie Taupin to make a fan's day who obviously really needed a boost! Also included are an original ticket stub and show program from the concert. The white, deeply padded piano bench measures 22 x 16 inches and is 8 inches deep. This is a seriously professional-grade piece of stage equipment, weighing in at nearly 30 pounds. Nonetheless, Elton really did a number on it. It has been separated from the legs, of course, but on the underside a large crack is visible, as well, and one of the heavy duty adjustment knobs on the sides is no longer attached.