Fan report and photo by Marcus Krebs.

The crowd gave Elton a very warm welcome, with the first standing ovations before and after the first song "Benny And The Jets".

During the first song I saw Elton wobbling his chair two times. This tells a long time Elton fan at the beginning of a Elton show that he is in a good mood. And so it was.

This night he was able singing even the highest tones during "Love Lies Bleeding" and "Sorry Seems To Be The Hardest Word".

No question, after seeing him in Stuttgart last Dezember - as he was recovering from a virus infection - he and his voice were relaxed and in best condition.

We saw a very energetic opening of the show after "Benny And The Jets" with "Philadelphia Freedom" and "Believe" (one of my favorite songs of the Nineties).

After "Daniel" he did a 10 minute version of "Rocket Man", beeing worth the whole ticket price in one song with me wishing this song would never end.

He surprised us with a very upbeat version of "They Call Her The Cat" and a again impressive 5 minute intro to "Take Me To The Pilot" which was different from the shows last Dezember.

"Sorry Seems To Be The Hardest Word" was very emotional and received another standing ovation. After "Sacrifice" he played "Are You Ready For Love" in a light disco version bringing the crowd again on their feet for the whole songa and opening the best part of the show. At that point many fans headed to the front of the stage celebrating Elton and the band.

After coming back on the stage for the encores he gave autographes at the front of the stage signing tickets, covers, albums, T-Shirts, programms etc. for about three minutes.

Before "Your Song" he thanked the fans for their loyality and support during all the years by adding that he sees so many known faces every time, when he plays in Germany.

"Your Song" at the end was more emotional than older versions and a little bit changed in the phrasing and rhythm, but sounded refreshed. So this was the perfect ending of the show, leaving 11.000 happy souls back in Mannheim.

The only fact that it was not the perfect night for me was that my wife could not join me the show. One of my young kids was suffering from a bad cold and needed his mother.
But she enjoyed the first song ("Benny..." as her favorite song) and the encores via mobile phone. Hope she can join me to another fantastic Elton-Show soon.

The only difference in the setlist to the Manchester show was, that "Sad Songs" followed after "Are You Ready For Love".

Following is the complete set list of the Mannheim show on May 31, 2006:

• Bennie And The Jets
  
• Philadelphia Freedom
  
• Believe
  
• Daniel
  
• Rocket Man
  
• I Guess That's Why They Call It The Blues
  
• Turn The Lights Out When You Leave
  
• They Call Her The Cat
  
• The One
  
• Take Me To The Pilot
  
• Funeral For A Friend
  
• Love Lies Bleeding
  
• Tiny Dancer
  
• I Want Love
  
• Sorry Seems To Be The Hardest Word
  
• Sacrifice
  
• Are You Ready For Love
  
• Sad Songs (Say So Much)
  
• I'm Still Standing
  
• The Bitch Is Back
  
• Saturday Night's Alright For Fighting
  
  
• Don't Let The Sun Go Down On Me
  
• Your Song

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