POP REVIEW : ELTON JOHN STIRS UP MEMORIES

Elton John burst onto the pop music scene in 1970 with wild stage antics and colorful costumes that were in stark contrast to the serious, blue-denimed emotionally sensitive singers who were the order of the day.

He has now returned to concert stages, after a two-year retirement from touring, with his flamboyance renewed at a time when serious, blue-denimed politically sensitive singers are the new de rigueur in rock.

Recalling his outrageous concerts of yore, John made his entrance before a capacity crowd Saturday night at the 18,800-seat Pacific Amphitheatre in a sparkling black tuxedo with tails. He looked like a punk Amadeus under a multitoned blue-frizz wig and sporting sunglasses that sprouted Captain America-like wings.

The two-hour-plus show began with a surprising three-song set from “Blue Moves,” the double album that marked the beginning of John’s fall from rock ‘n’ roll grace in the late ‘70s. He then moved on to the hits, from the early “Rocket Man” and “Philadelphia Freedom” through the more recent “Sad Songs (Say So Much)” and “Nikita.”

In most respects, the energetic and entertaining performance echoed those John gave at his peak of popularity a decade ago: The antics were the same, most of the songs were the same and the audience was much the same, only 10 years older on all counts.

And given that most of the two dozens songs in his set were Top 40 singles, it’s even more remarkable to consider how many of his other hits were not played: “Crocodile Rock,” “Goodbye Yellow Brick Road,” “Island Girl,” “Tiny Dancer,” “Don’t Let the Sun Go Down on Me,” “Little Jeannie” . . . and more.

That’s a powerful reminder of what a consistent hit-making team John and Bernie Taupin (who wrote the words to most of the songs) have been for 16 years.

Why, then, did so many of his classy pop and rock tunes seem to have so little emotional impact Saturday? One reason: overblown new arrangements. The secret behind John’s initial success wasn’t just his inventive melodies and expressive vocals, but carefully tailored arrangements that were among the most distinctive since Beatles and Creedence records.

But in an apparent attempt to freshen up the old songs, the new band (longtime sidekick Davey Johnstone on guitar plus eight other instrumentalists and three backup vocalists) was put to work too often. All the musical muscle was simply distracting during a haunting ballad like “Someone Saved My Life Tonight” and even turned a driving rocker like “The Bitch Is Back” into so much decibel-pounding. Most John-Taupin tunes need musical space to breathe, yet they got it too infrequently.

A more significant factor may be time itself. When John was in his prime, his songs and concerts were on the cutting edge of pop (not rock). He took accessible, commercial Top 40 music and constantly pushed at its boundaries, virtually single-handedly bringing the piano back as a starring instrument in rock and proving that showmanship still had a place in rock even in the sensitive ‘70s.

But his ‘80s hits fit comfortably within the borders of contemporary pop and while they are often lovely, they have expanded little upon his old approach.

It’s a frequently joyful, crowd-pleasing retrospective, but one that stirs old memories rather than inspiring new ones. This leg of the tour concludes with a sold-out, seven-night engagement at the Universal Amphitheatre that begins Tuesday.