Elton John halted his concert in Las Vegas on Saturday night to pay tribute to "lovely angel" Whitney Houston after learning of her death hours earlier.

The Rocket Man dedicated his song "Don't Let the Sun Go Down on Me" to the late superstar, and introduced the tune with a heartfelt message.

He said, "My dearest, gorgeous, lovely angel, we wanna do this song for you. Thank you for giving us your talent and one of the most beautiful voices I've ever heard in my life."

Houston passed away in her suite at the Beverly Hilton hotel in Los Angeles.

Slideshow: The Incredible Whitney Houston