Playing Elton John is a mission for fashion designer/singer
When Tom Cridland got the chance to talk to Sir Elton John one on one, the conversation wasn’t about the pop music icon’s hits, flamboyant costumes or career.
It was about his recovery from alcoholism.
“It all went by in a flash. It was probably five to 10 minutes, who knows, but it felt like two seconds,” Cridland recalled. “It was a great moment and it’s not something you could aim for or expect as a fan. He’s just one of those people who’s that famous where he gets bugged and harangued all the time, so it was an honor to have a unique conversation with him.”
The singer-pianist not only inspired Cridland’s sobriety but was the foundation for his tribute act, which stops at Century II Mary Jane Teall Theatre on Friday night.
The 33-year-old British fashion designer says he finally gave up alcohol in 2017.
“There were several turning points,” he said in an April interview, before his Wichita concert was originally scheduled. “Falling down the stairs, cutting my face open, my knees open, putting myself in a vulnerable position and getting assaulted, drinking so much that I’d be bedridden for days, blacking out hundreds of times. The physical and mental damage was really extreme.”
Already a fan of Elton John’s music, Cridland developed a closer connection as the singer’s drummer, Nigel Olsson, became a fan of his fashions.
“I became even more enamored by the music and obsessed by the music and the way they played it live,” he said. “That was something to cling onto and a source of hope and comfort and soulfulness when I was giving up alcohol and feeling very empty.”
Elton John, Cridland said, has been sober since the early ‘90s.
“He still continued to tour and be a very larger than life character and that’s what I found very inspiring about Elton himself,” he said.
It was Cridland’s wife, he said, who told the singer he was the inspiration for her husband’s recovery.
Cridland was content as a fashion designer and an Elton John fan until the pandemic, when he learned to play piano and debuted his act in a New Orleans bar in January 2022.
“It was a way of staying sober, because I came close to drinking again during the lockdown,” he said. “But it’s turned into a lot more than that.”
It’s been a challenge, Cridland said, to play the piano somewhere close to the precision that John does while imitating the singer.
“Both are very difficult, especially at the same time. But I love doing it, but as with all musicians and singers the key is to focus on what you need to do and aspire to get better every day. I find my mind’s more at ease when I’m doing all I can do and working as hard as I can,” he said. “Otherwise, it feels like an endless ocean of improvement’s ahead of you.”
Although Cridland plays songs from every era of Elton John’s career, he said he prefers the musician’s work in the 1970s.
His favorite songs that aren’t among the biggest iconic hits are “Funeral for a Friend/Love Lies Bleeding,” “Burn Down the Mission,” “Take Me to the Pilot” and “The One.”
“There’s an abundance of great songs to choose from,” Cridland said. “We always try to play the biggest hits every night.”
Although he takes the stage with Elton John-inspired sparkly glasses and shoes, Cridland said he doesn’t take any costume changes, which would take up time that could be spent playing two or three songs.
“I love to be the larger-than-life character on stage and be flamboyant,” he said, “but this is also a very music-focused show.”
TOM’S ELTON TRIBUTE
When: 7 p.m. Friday, Oct. 4
Where: Mary Jane Teall Theatre, Century II, 225 W. Douglas
Tickets: $25-$40, from the Century II box office, selectaseat.com or 316-755-7328