Elton John announces three year final ‘Farewell Yellow Brick Road’ tour, Australian/NZ dates to last two months

After almost 50 years on the road, it was to be expected that Elton John would make a huge splash when he decided to give up touring.

“It’s time to come off the road so I fully embrace the next chapter of my life,” he said.

“Performing live fuels me and I’m ecstatic and humbled to continue to play to audiences across the globe.

“I plan to bring the passion and creativity that has entertained my fans for decades to my final tour.

“After the tour finishes, I’m very much looking forward to coming off the road so I can dedicate more time to raising my children.”

The flamboyant superstar’s Farewell Yellow Brick Road Tour will take in 300+ shows over three years with a new highly visual stage production.

Italian fashion house Gucci will be designing his wardrobe. Its S/S 2018 collection, designed by Alessandro Michele, was inspired by Elton’s sartorial flair.

The Yellow Brick Road winds down to Australia and New Zealand in December 2019, and lasts until February 2020.

Its Australian promoter Chugg Entertainment says, “It will be the most extensive tour he’s ever done of the countries.”

Dates are not announced until a few months. Fans are advised to register at chuggentertainment.com for updates.

John first toured Australia in October 1971, and has returned numerous times.

Even as his record sales dipped, he continued to break concert attendances in Australia, reaching new milestones in arenas which saw him honoured with his own suites.

Last year on the Once In A Lifetime Tour, he played four new Australian regional cities which he had not played before, and sold them out.

’Farewell Yellow Brick Road’ starts in the United States on September 8, 2018.

It hits Europe in April 2019 and Asia in November 2019. After the ANZ shows, he heads to South America in March 2020 before returning to Europe and the UK late 2020 and finishing up in North America in 2021.

The announcement of the world tour was made at a marquee event at Gotham Hall in New York City.

It was live streamed globally exclusively on YouTube in VR180, and simultaneously transmitted to venues in Los Angeles and London.

It included highs from his live career. The broadcast is available on YouTube.

During the Q&A component of the broadcast, he rejected speculation in the UK press that he was hanging up his touring boots because he was ill.

“I picked up an infection in South America and it knocked me sideways for seven weeks but I still did 96 shows last year.”

He emphasised, “Mostly I’ll be taking my kid to soccer academy – which is the most important thing.”

He also added that he will not be returning to the road after the end of the tour.

He quipped, “I’m not Cher, even though I like wearing her clothes — this is the end.”

Elton John has sold more than 250 million records worldwide. He holds the record for the biggest-selling single of all time, ‘Candle in the Wind 1997’, which shifted 33 million copies.