The cathedral fell into a holy silence as Elton John, draped in a long black coat and dark glasses

The cathedral fell into a holy silence as Elton John, draped in a long black coat and dark glasses, slowly approached the grand piano at Ozzy Osbourne’s funeral, the weight of decades of friendship and shared stages heavy in every step, and when he began to play the opening chords of “Goodbye Yellow Brick Road,” his voice — trembling, raw, and stripped of its usual grandeur — filled the vaulted space like a prayer, transforming the pop classic into a heartbreaking farewell for the Prince of Darkness.

Sharon Osbourne, seated in the front pew with her children, buried her face in her hands as tears streamed down, while mourners described rock icons like Tony Iommi and Robert Plant quietly bowing their heads, overcome by the moment. As Elton reached the final line, his voice broke completely, and he whispered, “Goodbye, my friend,” before letting the last note linger into a silence so deep it felt eternal, a silence that shattered as the entire cathedral slowly rose to its feet, fans later calling it “a farewell only Elton could give — intimate, devastating, and divine.”