Elton John has closed the touring chapter of his career after launching his farewell trek five years ago. The rock icon has played over 300 concerts across the sprawling tour, wrapping things up with one final appearance in Stockholm, Sweden.
Videos by American Songwriter
Throughout the concert at the Tele2 Arena, John played through some of his biggest hits like “Bennie and the Jets,” “Tiny Dancer,” and the finale of the night, “Goodbye Yellow Brick Road.”
The song, released in 1973, is the perfect song from John’s discography to use as a sendoff. The song was made all the more powerful when John chose to include a career-retrospective video during his performance of the hit at the final show.
“I’ve had the most wonderful career, beyond belief,” John told the crowd in Sweden. “Fifty years of pure joy playing music. How lucky am I?
“But I wouldn’t be sitting here and talking to you if it wasn’t for you,” he continued. “You bought the singles, the CDs, the albums, the cassettes … More importantly, you bought the tickets to the shows. You know how much I love to play live. It’s been my lifeblood to play for you guys. You’ve been absolutely magnificent.”
Check out the performance of “Goodbye Yellow Brick Road,” below.
The lyrics to “Goodbye Yellow Brick Road” were penned by John’s writing partner, Bernie Taupin. The lyrics are meant to evoke a feeling of escapism – particularly Taupin’s need to escape a life of fame.
“I don’t believe I was ever turning my back on success or saying I didn’t want it,” Taupin said in an interview with the BBC. “I just don’t believe I was ever that naïve. I think I was just hoping that maybe there was a happy medium way to exist successfully in a more tranquil setting. My only naiveté, I guess, was believing I could do it so early on. I had to travel a long road and visit the school of hard knocks before I could come even close to achieving that goal.”
John decided to name his farewell jaunt after the song, given its subject matter. He announced his farewell tour in September 2018. Since that time, the tour has pulled in an unprecedented amount of people. He surpassed Ed Sheeran’s The Divide Tour to become the highest-grossing tour in Boxscore history, exceeding $800 million in total earnings.
Photo by Theo Wargo/Getty Images
