ON THE TOWN: Yes, it was a...

ON THE TOWN: Yes, it was a gala night for celebrity-gazing at the Chris Hillman/Lyle Lovett double-bill at the Roxy Tuesday night. It was impossible to miss Steve Stills (we still can’t figure out why he was pouring brandy into his beer bottle), who said hello to Bruce Hornsby, who in turn greeted Bernie Taupin and--yes--Elton John. La John, adorned with shades and a snazzy hat, whirled in with a sizable entourage, which included a stern-visaged bodyguard in a blue blazer who shadowed Elton’s every move (yes, even to the boy’s room). In fact, when Elton swept into the club, his guard was momentarily detained by a hapless doorman, who asked for his ticket. The loyal retainer scowled, then proceeded on, saying, “I’m Elton’s bodyguard. I go everywhere he goes.”

Just why Elton John needs a protector at a record industry watering hole is beyond us--even Sean Penn came to the Roxy recently without so much as a parole officer. Not that we’re being critical. When an observer, noting that Elton had put some yardage between his guard and himself, jokingly suggested that the bodyguard was too far away to prevent an assassination attempt, the guard responded with a withering stare that discouraged any further banter. And let’s give Elton credit--he stayed for the whole show. That’s more than we can say for the brass at MCA, the label for both artists on the bill. Most of the execs quietly slipped out of the club midway through Hillman’s set, missing his band’s exhilarating rendition of our favorite saloon serenade, “Close Up the Honky Tonks.”

And while we’re on the town: The Replacements will be the stars Tuesday of the latest KROQ-FM free noon concert at the Country Club, and the Cruzados’ recent show at the Music Machine was such a hit that the band has just agreed to a return engagement Friday night with (tentative) guest stars the Little Kings.