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Elton John announces tour will be his last


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Elton John will no longer be touring after a 3-year long "Farewell Yellow Brick Road" tour. The 70-year-old British singer made the announcement at a press conference, which took place simultaneously in New York and London, on Wednesday.

 

https://www.cbsnews.com/amp/news/elton-john-farewell-tour-announcement-today-retiring-after-farewell-yellow-brick-road-3-year-tour/

 

 

"I'm so crazy, I don't know this is impossible! Hoo hoo!" - Daffy Duck

 

"The good news is that once you start piano you never have to worry about getting laid again. More time to practice!" - MOI

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I figured EJ would wind down touring as he recently talked about being a parent on a late night talk show. Good for him.

 

I'm sure his bandmembers will pick up other gigs and/or EJ will do enough spot dates to keep them working. :cool:

PD

 

"The greatest thing you'll ever learn, is just to love and be loved in return."--E. Ahbez "Nature Boy"

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I would love to see Elton John retire gracefully.. Im rooting for him. He is, after all, the true King of Pop.

The fact there's a Highway To Hell and only a Stairway To Heaven says a lot about anticipated traffic numbers

 

People only say "It's a free country" when they're doing something shitty-Demetri Martin

 

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just checked ticket prices in DC, American Express pre sale.

Pretty good seats are $250 plus taxes, fees, ect.

So $600.00 for 2 inc. cab fare or parking.

Thinking I'll pass.

Nosebleeds are $60 each plus fees but they are not being sold at the pre sale. When tickets go on sale they will be sold out in 1 minute.

:nopity:
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Been a fan of Sir Reg and his music from the time of his first release through to around the time of Don't Go Breaking My Heart.

 

Seen him several times including his first tour. Although I have access to guaranteed seats at the venue he will play in here I think I will pass unless I am subjected to undue spousal coercion.

 

At the risk of being blatantly ageist I find the type of audience attracted to see legends in high priced stadium concerts to be one that expects everyone to stay seated and politely clap.

 

Seems to suck the energy out of the concert compared to say the audience at a U2 concert. Not compatible with the way we behaved back in the day to Benny or Saturday Nights Alright. Rather relive the memory than come away feeling like I did when I took my Mum to an Andre Rieu concert.

 

 

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just checked ticket prices in DC, American Express pre sale.

Pretty good seats are $250 plus taxes, fees, ect.

So $600.00 for 2 inc. cab fare or parking.

Thinking I'll pass.

Nosebleeds are $60 each plus fees but they are not being sold at the pre sale. When tickets go on sale they will be sold out in 1 minute.

 

My wife got a AMEX pre-sale premium tick for $170. Her seat is billed as "obstructed", but it's just near the light or sound console. I think the code is still good: Use code INGOLD and see what you can get (just need to pay with AMEX).

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At the risk of being blatantly ageist I find the type of audience attracted to see legends in high priced stadium concerts to be one that expects everyone to stay seated and politely clap.

 

Yeah, it can be a double-edged sword. Nice to have enthusiasm....

 

OTOH, I saw Jason Isbell on Tuesday (great show) and the crowd was in the middle of the concert-going spectrum (I would guess 75% between 30 -> 45). Every time Jason did a quieter song, there were the handful of people who felt that a particularly poignant lyric spoke to them so powerfully that they had to give a big "Whoooooo...." It never ceases to amaze me how many people think they are the show.

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Got my tickets. Neither floor seats nor nosebleeds. Reasonable for the calibre of performer, and what I believe will really be his last tour. I have seen him, both with his band and on the face to face tour with Billy Joel four times now, most recently at his Las Vegas residency and they were easily the four most enjoyable concerts I've been to even though I'm no EJ fanatic. Looking forward!

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  • 1 year later...

Saw EJ last night in Cleveland. Fantastic concert, the best of the four times I've seen him (and the last time I saw him was ten years ago). He was in great voice, his piano playing was excellent, and the band was stellar.

 

Two things really elevated this show for me:

 

1. The set list. All the necessary hits, but more fan-favorite album cuts than I expected: we were treated to All the Girls Love Alice, Take Me to the Pilot, Burn Down the Mission, Levon, and Indian Sunset(!).

 

2. The presence of classic bandmate Ray Cooper on additional percussion. The three-tiered stage put Elton, Davey Johnstone, and Matt Bissonette on the floor (though Matt would occasionally climb up to stand next to the drum riser), Kim Bullard, Nigel Olsson, and John Mahon's keyboards, drum set, and auxiliary percussion on the next riser up, and then an entire top riser dedicated to Ray Cooper's congas, bongos, tubular bells, tom-toms, and timpani. Having two auxiliary percussionists really put the band in a deep pocket without cluttering up the arrangements the way extra guitarists or keyboardists would (the periods when Elton has added a second guitarist have been cool, since so many of his records have some deftly layered guitars, but I'm such a fan of Johnstone's playing that I'd rather see how he sorts it all out on his own). Beyond his musical contribution, Ray is such a visually captivating presence, with such a long history with Elton and so many other luminaries of that era. He sat out on a handful of songs, but also did one or two duo songs with Elton (Indian Sunset being the most impressive). It was great to see him in the flesh.

 

The show was visually stunning, as you'd expect, with video screens stretching above and around the band, the piano platform gliding across the stage, the effect of fire during Burn Down the Mission, fog during Funeral for a Friend, confetti during Saturday Night, and Elton ascending on a platform to disappear into a Yellow Brick Road at the end of the show.

 

But mostly, it was a treat to hear and see a legend play his ass off on song after wonderful song with a crack band. The show is very live -- several songs have long improvisational sections, and you can see Davey Johnstone watching Elton and throwing cues to the band; I think I even caught the band add an extra bar in Don't Let the Sun Go Down on Me to accommodate Elton's vocal entrance. I remember the last time I saw Elton, I took note of the telepathy and special chemistry that develops when some musicians play together for decades. What a privilege for the audience: Nigel Olsson played with Elton from his earliest tours through the late 70s, and has been back in the band full-time since 2000 (he had a few stints in-between as well). Davey Johnstone has been with him since 1973. Now with Ray Cooper in the band again, fully half of the ensemble has a musical connection going back 45 years. Even with the finest musicians, there's something special there that just can't be replicated. The rest of the band are certainly no slouches either, even though Kim Bullard and Matt Bissonnette are relative newcomers to the ensemble; John Mahon's been with him since the 90s and really, really knows how to harmonize with Elton, but the band runneth over with great vocals.

 

So glad I got to see him onstage again, probably for the last time. I've talked about Elton John's tremendous influence on my piano playing and songwriting elsewhere on the forum; it's always good to check in with the master. If I can play and sing anywhere near as well (or have half as much fun) when I'm in my 70s, I'll have lived quite a life.

Samuel B. Lupowitz

Musician. Songwriter. Food Enthusiast. Bad Pun Aficionado.

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Huge Elton fan and I was excited to see this show last year, but I guess as a result of my having seen him SO many times over the years (I'd say approaching 30 times, not sure exactly), i was actually a bit disappointed with the set list, "Indian Sunset" was actually for me the only deep-cut surprise; of the others you mention, "All the Young Girls Love Alice" has made it onto the set list many times, and the rest have been in pretty much every tour, certainly Levon and Take Me To the Pilot, and Burn Down the Mission only slightly less consistently (love that song though, one of my top faves so still glad to hear it), and the rest of the show was stuff he does every single time, every year, every show. In my earlier days of seeing him, 80's and 90's, every tour would bust out maybe two or three 70's album cuts, different every time, and there would always be a generous selection of cuts from whatever his latest album was (always a highlight for me too, I'd always have bought the album and become familiar with all the new stuff), but at a certain point in the last fifteen years he let it really settle in to a permanent list. Just thought that maybe for this special tour, he'd choose to shake things up just a little more, there are even other songs that were lesser hits that never get pulled out. (I've long been hoping for "Nikita" or "Blue Eyes" or "Bite Your Lip (Get Up and Dance)") Actually "Believe" was cool to hear this time too..

Rich Forman

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It would be kind of cool to do two "concurrent" tours... "all the hits" and the "deep cuts" perhaps on consecutive nights, and fans could choose the one to go to (or both, for the die-hards).

 

There was a period where Ian Anderson/Jethro Tull kind of did this... they were two entirely different tours (even different band members), but IA would play the bigger hit selection at the bigger venues under the Jethro Tull name, and the more unusual song selection at smaller venues under his own name.

 

Elton John would be big enough to do both kinds of shows at the biggest venues.

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just checked ticket prices in DC, American Express pre sale.

Pretty good seats are $250 plus taxes, fees, ect.

So $600.00 for 2 inc. cab fare or parking.

 

Seeing EJ live is priceless, but.....

 

...remember when concert tickets were $3.50, $4.50 and $5.50?

Steve Coscia

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Elton John announces 2 surprise shows in Houston

 

That was the local headline, they actually announced 24 new shows, so if you missed him, maybe he's coming your way. :thu:

"I'm so crazy, I don't know this is impossible! Hoo hoo!" - Daffy Duck

 

"The good news is that once you start piano you never have to worry about getting laid again. More time to practice!" - MOI

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Huge Elton fan and I was excited to see this show last year, but I guess as a result of my having seen him SO many times over the years (I'd say approaching 30 times, not sure exactly), i was actually a bit disappointed with the set list, "Indian Sunset" was actually for me the only deep-cut surprise; of the others you mention, "All the Young Girls Love Alice" has made it onto the set list many times, and the rest have been in pretty much every tour, certainly Levon and Take Me To the Pilot, and Burn Down the Mission only slightly less consistently (love that song though, one of my top faves so still glad to hear it), and the rest of the show was stuff he does every single time, every year, every show.
Oh certainly -- I've seen plenty of videos of the abovementioned album cuts from the last 20 years, but it was my first time catching any of them in person, and I was surprised to get all of them. My expectations were based on knowing Elton is mostly hits-oriented at this point -- he's never been like Springsteen or Dylan when structuring/shaking up his live shows. I was happy to finally see him do Burn Down the Mission in the flesh; at past shows between 2001 and 2009, he'd always bust out one or two surprises ("Madman Across the Water" at one show, "Believe" and "Pinball Wizard" at another) but typically the rest of the set had been big radio singles from the 70s and early 80s. If I'd seen him as many times as you, I'm sure Indian Sunset would have been the only real treat (but even that has shown up on his duo tours with Ray Cooper in the past).

(I've long been hoping for "Nikita" or "Blue Eyes" or "Bite Your Lip (Get Up and Dance)") Actually "Believe" was cool to hear this time too..
The family friend who went to the show with us was also hoping for "Bite Your Lip."

It would be kind of cool to do two "concurrent" tours... "all the hits" and the "deep cuts" perhaps on consecutive nights, and fans could choose the one to go to (or both, for the die-hards).
Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers did something like that in 2013 or so, didn't they? Maybe it was just a theater run that was heavier on deep cuts. But hey, the guy sells out arenas year after year playing "Your Song" and "Don't Let the Sun Go Down On Me" at every single show; I guess it's still satisfying to him, and what he feels the majority of his concertgoers want, and that's what he's powering on through to the end!

 

I'm sure those of us who want to hear, say, all of Tumbleweed Connection would buy tickets to that show, though. I missed his tour with Leon Russell in 2010, and that was probably the closest I would have gotten, since I wasn't born until well after his classic period.

 

Samuel B. Lupowitz

Musician. Songwriter. Food Enthusiast. Bad Pun Aficionado.

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I saw the "farewell" tour when it rolled through Montreal earlier this year.

Guess what? He is coming back to say farewell again in April.

Guess what? I'm going to say goodbye again.

Elton and his band are worth it.

Nord Stage 2 Compact, Yamaha MODX8

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