If you haven’t been living under a sizable rock, you’re probably well aware that Elton John is ending the touring portion of his lengthy and successful career.
In 2018, The Rocket Man began his farewell tour, “Farewell Yellow Brick Road,” but it wasn’t until this past Saturday that it came to a final, stunning conclusion.
According to John’s website, his performance at the Tele2 Arena in Stockholm, Sweden on July 8 marked the end of his career as a touring musician, though the iconic musician did make a suggestion that he might return in the future in some capacity.
According to CNN, the “Farewell Yellow Brick Road tour” was initially scheduled to end in 2021, but plans were curtailed by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Instead, Saturday marked the culmination of a career that has seen John actively touring over the course of five decades. In its entirety, this tour featured in excess of a whopping 300 shows. If John’s website is to be believed, the shows were watched by more than 6 million people around the world.
During a 2018 interview with CNN’s Anderson Cooper, John revealed that his decision to retire from touring came largely as a result of his wish to spend more time with his family; husband David Furnish and the couple’s two sons.
“We had children and had changed our lives and in 2015, we sat down with their school schedule and we said I’m going to miss too much of this,” the Your Song star told Cooper.
Naturally, John’s farewell tour stop at the weekend was a bittersweet event that marked the end of a chapter in one of the greatest musical careers ever.
A portion of the singer’s conversation with Cooper was played in a video that Elton shared to his Instagram on Saturday, just before the aforementioned concert in Stockholm. According to John’s caption,
“What a journey this tour has been and now we find ourselves at the end of it. Tonight is the final night.”
Following the culmination of his show in Stockholm, Elton told fans they will remain in his “head, heart and soul”. He also reiterated his stance that he will “never be touring again”, though did add that he might do a “one-off thing” at some point in the future.
We’re certainly going to miss Elton John, and we’re not the only ones! Are you a fan? If so, let us know your favorite song in the comments box.
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