Elton John is ending the touring season of his career after starting his farewell journey five years ago. The rock icon performed more than 300 concerts throughout the sprawling tour, capping things off with one final appearance in Stockholm, Sweden.
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Throughout the concert at the Tele2 Arena, John performed some of his best songs such as “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 farewell. The song became even more powerful when John chose to include a video retrospective of him performing a hit song on the final show.
John, you’ve had the most amazing career, unbelievable. he told the crowd in Sweden. Fifty years of pure joy in playing music. How lucky am I?
“But I wouldn’t sit here and talk to you if it wasn’t for you,” he continued. “You’ve bought singles, CDs, albums, cassettes… Most importantly, you’ve bought tickets to shows. You know how much I love playing live. It’s been my lifeline to play for you guys. You’ve been absolutely amazing.”
Check out a 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 intended to evoke a sense of escapism—particularly Taupin’s need to escape a life of fame.
Tobin said in an interview with BBC. “I just can’t believe I was ever that naive. I guess I was just hoping that maybe there was some happy middle way to successfully exist in a quieter environment. I guess my only naivety was thinking I could do it so sooner. I had to travel a long way.” And visiting the school of hard hitting before I could even come close to achieving that goal.”
John decided to name his farewell trip after the song, given its subject matter. He announced his farewell tour in September 2018. Since that time, the tour has attracted an unprecedented number of people. He has surpassed Ed Sheeran split round becoming the highest-grossing tour in Boxscore history, grossing over $800 million.
Photo by Theo Wargo/Getty Images