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After thumbing through Monday’s editions of the AJC, USA Today and The New York Times and finishing his morning tennis match, Buckhead resident Sir Elton John rang the BuzzBerry to thank us for mentioning the woman who oversees his Atlanta household.

“Lucy’s over the moon that her name was in the paper this morning,” John told us, laughing.

The singer said he’s having as much fun on his current tour with Billy Joel as the ticket-holders (to read some of the glowing comments from fans who attended Saturday night’s Philips Arena show, go to our new brand-new Peach Buzz blog at blogs.ajc.com/peachbuzz/).

When we inquired about the possibility of a new studio project from him (John has made no secret of his displeasure over the less-than-stellar promotion of his last album, 2006’s “The Captain and the Kid”), the singer ended up giving us an exclusive.

“I’m talking to [pianist and singer] Leon Russell and [producer[ T-Bone Burnett about recording an album with Leon," he told us.

Russell, now 67, first came on the scene as a session player for legendary producer Phil Spector in the early 1960s before embarking on a wide-ranging solo career that's included penning modern standards like "A Song For You" and "This Masquerade." A mesmerizing 1976 live performance of Russell was recently restored for the DVD set of "Saturday Night Live: The First Season."

"I've always loved Leon, and I think it's terrible that he's been almost forgotten about now," Elton added. "He's been such an influence on my playing and his music has been such a big part of my life. It will be a duets record. I'm a huge fan, and he's just such a great guy as well. I'm hoping it will all come together, maybe the beginning of next year. These days, I just want to focus on recording things that I really want to do, and I've always wanted to work with Leon."

While we had him on the phone, we had to ask about Sir Elton's on-stage salute to Atlanta filmmaker Tyler Perry Saturday night.

"When his studios opened last year, I read about it in the AJC and I thought it was such an incredibly positive thing for this city. So I called to tell him that, and he ended up coming to my Oscar party this year. We got on really well. What he's bringing to Atlanta is just incredible."

Tonight, John is back on the plane to resume his tour with Joel in Tulsa, Okla. The tour dates run through November.

Added Elton: "This will probably be the last time that Billy and I do this together and so we're taking it around the world. We're having a blast together. I was thrilled we got to bring it home to Atlanta.

Orengo: "Owning the auditorium"

Elijah P. Orengo, 17, of southwest Atlanta has once again won the state poetry reciting competition. Photo by Allen Sullivan/AJC

Elijah P. Orengo, a Latin-speaking, preppy-dressing 17-year-old student from Westlake High School in Southwest Atlanta, has won the state’s poetry reciting competition for the second year in a row and will represent Georgia at the national

competition April 28 in Washington, D.C.

“I am so happy, it feels so good,” said Orengo on Monday, during a break in classes. Referring to the national championship, he added, “Hopefully, I can bring it home this time.” Orengo finished among the top 12 of more than 50 competitors at last year’s national finals, sponsored by the National Endowment of the Arts.

In competition Sunday at Georgia Public Broadcasting headquarters in Midtown, Orengo recited “Preludes” by T.S. Eliot, “The Princess: Now Sleeps the Crimson Petal” by Alfred Lord Tennyson and the deeply peculiar “The Man-Moth” by Elizabeth Bishop. The latter poem is rarely recited in competition, said Atlanta poet Chelsea Rathburn, one of the judges at Sunday’s contest.
“It’s a wild poem, extremely dense, and about two pages long,” she said. “That poem, I think, blew everyone out of the water. I’ve never seen it used before.”
Of Orengo, she said, “He had this terrific presence, very confident, very fluid. He assumed control of the stage from the moment he walked out. He just owned that auditorium.”
Along with a $500 prize, Orengo won an expense-paid trip to Washington D.C. He celebrated Sunday with a meal at California Pizza Kitchen.

Radio Transitions

We’re thrilled to report that Rene Miller is once again gracing Atlanta’s airwaves. Miller is set to start an 11 a.m to 3 p.m. Sunday shift on Clark Atlanta University’s 91.9FM, “The Jazz Voice of the City.”

Listeners will recall Miller spent seven years on Jazz Flavors in the 1990s and seven years at Smooth Jazz on 107.5. She’s now seeking other TV and radio gigs as well as speaking engagements.

“Once radio is in your blood, you bleed radio,” she told us. Noting that 91.9 is celebrating its 35th year on the air, “I’m excited to be on a heritage jazz station.” The music mix, she said, will be a blend of contemporary and mainstream jazz.

Guitarist Paul Kantner (Jefferson Airplane/Jefferson Starship) is 68. Singer-songwriter John Sebastian (Lovin’ Spoonful) is 65. Actor Rob Lowe is 45. Singer Billy Corgan (Smashing Pumpkins) is 42. Rapper Swifty (D12) is 32.

Contributing: Bo Emerson and Rodney Ho.

Got scoop for Buzz? Send it to us at buzz@ajc.com. For Buzz Central updates throughout the day, follow us on Twitter. Go to twitter.com and search “PeachBuzz.”