TWO SIRS, WITH LOVE (LIVE AT THE TROUB)

"I tell you, my lad, you're sitting in a veritable mecca of music history," the legendary Sir Elton John tells Mercury/Republic breakout Stephen Sanchez on the occasion of the young artist's second sold-out show at L.A.'s storied Troubadour. "Why, it was from this very spot that John Lennon was once tossed out for heckling the Smothers Brothers." Meanwhile, UMG boss Sir Lucian Grainge anticipated being called onstage to play some glockenspiel. We kid, of course.

During his set, Sanchez (whose "Until I Found You" f/Em Beihold sits in the Top 25 on Spotify's global chart) paid tribute to Sir Elton, who's been a stalwart supporter of his career as well as a huge influence, by performing "Benny and the Jets." It was in 1970, you'll recall, that a fledgling Elton knocked the socks off the U.S. music world with his Troubadour bow. In a related story, a HITS staffer once attempted to install a pipeline to pump Slivovitz directly from Dan Tana's to the upstairs bar.

Photo: Conor Petersen