Elton John's foul-mouthed fury at Universal records

Nov 6, 2006, 12:10 GMT

Sir Elton John left fans shocked after launching into a foul-mouthed outburst at a concert - in which he said "f**k" 15 times in one minute.

The flamboyant singer was performing at the Nassau Coliseum on Long Island, in New York, when he started ranting against his record label.

Elton was introducing new song 'Postcards From Richard Nixon', from his latest album 'Captain And The Kid', when his expletive-filled tirade started.

He fumed: "I'm going to play a song but I'm sure you haven't heard it because the f***ers haven't promoted it!

"My record label isn't doing anything to help. F**k Universal... They're useless. Here's a message to Universal Records - please drop me. Just let me go somewhere else."

Elton's rant didn't go down too well with his fans. One angry audience member said: "What is wrong with Elton? He needs an ego check."

The swipe at his record label comes around a week after the 'Rocket Man' singer's manager Merck Mercuriadis stopped representing him by "mutual agreement" - a decision believed to have been influenced by Elton's disappointment at his poor album sales.

Although 'Captain And The Kid', released on September 19, reached number six in the UK album chart in its first week it fell out of the top 40 altogether by just the third week.

It didn't fare much better in the US, peaking at number 18 in the Billboard 200.

However, Elton's agent, Gary Farrow, insists the 59-year-old musician has no problem with the way his LP has been promoted.

Farrow said: "I think you'll find it was tongue-in-cheek about the record company. You have to look for the humour. The reviews Elton's had over the last six months have been the best he's had for a record in ten years."

(C) BANG Media International