In 2010, some Christian groups in the US criticised John after he described Jesus as a "compassionate, super-intelligent gay man who understood human problems". Bill Donohue, president of the Catholic League for Religious and Civil Rights and opponent of gay marriage, responded: "To call Jesus a homosexual is to label him a sexual deviant. But what else would we expect from a man who previously said, 'From my point of view, I would ban religion completely.'" John stated, in his 2019 Me: Elton John Official Autobiography, that he had received many death threats as a result of his statements. Neal Horsley, a Christian Reconstructionist from Bremen, Georgia, was arrested for making terrorist threats, after posting a YouTube video stating: "We’re here today to remind Elton John that he has to die".
In October 2003, John announced that he had signed an exclusive agreement to perform 75 shows over three years at Caesars Palace on the Las Vegas Strip. The show, The Red Piano, was a multimedia concert featuring massive props and video montages created by David LaChapelle. Effectively, he and Celine Dion shared performances at Caesars Palace throughout the year; while one performed, the other rested. The first of these shows took place on 13 February 2004. In February 2006, John and Dion sang together at the venue to raise money for Harrah's Entertainment Inc. workers affected by the 2005 hurricanes, performing "Sorry Seems to Be the Hardest Word" and "Saturday Night's Alright (for Fighting)."
More InfoIn 1992, John released the US number 8 album The One, featuring the hit song "The One". He also released "Runaway Train", a duet he recorded with his longtime friend Eric Clapton, with whom he played on Clapton's World Tour. John and Taupin then signed a music publishing deal with Warner/Chappell Music for an estimated $39 million over 12 years, including the largest cash advance in music publishing history. In April 1992, John appeared at the Freddie Mercury Tribute Concert at Wembley Stadium, performing "The Show Must Go On" with the remaining members of Queen, and "Bohemian Rhapsody" with Axl Rose of Guns N' Roses and Queen's remaining members. In September, John performed "The One" at the 1992 MTV Video Music Awards and closed the ceremony performing "November Rain" with Guns N' Roses. The following year, he released Duets, which featured collaborations with 15 artists, including Tammy Wynette and RuPaul. This included a new collaboration with Kiki Dee, "True Love", which reached the Top 10 of the UK charts.In the same year, The Bunbury Tails, a multi-artist charity album, was released, which was the soundtrack to the British animated television series of the same name. "Up The Revolution" was John's track, alongside contributions from George Harrison, the Bee Gees and Eric Clapton. The album was issued briefly, and only in the UK.
More InfoIn February 2013, John performed a duet with singer-songwriter Ed Sheeran at the 55th Annual Grammy Awards. Later in 2013, he collaborated with rock band Queens of the Stone Age on their sixth studio album, ...Like Clockwork, contributing piano and vocals on the song "Fairweather Friends". He said he was a fan of frontman Josh Homme's side project, Them Crooked Vultures, and had phoned Homme to ask if he could perform on the album. In September 2013, John received the first Brits Icon Award for his "lasting impact" on the culture of the United Kingdom. Rod Stewart presented him with the award on stage at the London Palladium before the two performed a duet of "Sad Songs (Say So Much)". John's 31st album, The Diving Board, produced by T-Bone Burnett, was released in September 2013 and reached number three in the UK and number four in the US. In October 2015, it was announced he would release his 32nd studio album, Wonderful Crazy Night, on 5 February 2016. It too was produced by Burnett. The album's first single, "Looking Up", was released in the same month. This album marked John's first full album recorded with his touring band since 2006's The Captain & the Kid. He also had a major role, as himself, in the action sequel Kingsman: The Golden Circle, which was released in September 2017.
More InfoAs part of his farewell tour, in June 2019, John was presented with France's highest civilian award, the Legion d'honneur, by President Emmanuel Macron during a ceremony at the Élysée Palace in Paris. Macron called John a "melodic genius" and one of the first gay artists to give a voice to the LGBT community. On 25 June 2019, The New York Times Magazine listed John as one of hundreds of artists whose master recordings were reportedly destroyed in the 2008 Universal Studios fire.
More InfoA duet with Luciano Pavarotti, "Live Like Horses", reached number nine in the UK in December 1996. A compilation album, Love Songs, was released in 1996. Early in 1997, John held a 50th birthday party, costumed as Louis XIV of France, with 500 friends. He performed with the surviving members of Queen in Paris at the opening night (17 January 1997) of Le Presbytère N'a Rien Perdu De Son Charme Ni Le Jardin De Son Éclat, a work by French ballet legend Maurice Béjart that draws upon the AIDS crisis and the deaths of Freddie Mercury and the company's principal dancer, Jorge Donn. Later in 1997, two close friends died: designer Gianni Versace was murdered on 15 July, and Diana, Princess of Wales died in a Paris car crash on 31 August.
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