David Furnish has admitted he’s “jubilant” about the fact his husband Sir Elton John’s decades of touring will end in a matter of days – but the question of whether the legendary singer is really quitting performing for good remains.
The Your Song star is nearing the end of his Farewell Yellow Brick Road tour, which began way back in 2018.
“It’s time to come off the road so I can fully embrace the next important chapter of my life,” Elton, then 71 years old, said at a press conference revealing the gigs in January 2018. “I need to dedicate more time to raising my children.”
Elton and David are parents to sons Zachary and Elijah, who were then eight and six respectively.
In the five years since his announcement, Elton has performed in the USA, Canada, Australasia and Europe, spending months at a time on the road with just a handful of pauses and postponements for the pandemic and short bouts of ill health.
Last month, he closed the UK portion of gigs with his first ever performance at Glastonbury, taking to the Pyramid Stage for a set that broke records for the festival and the BBC. Elton’s ‘last ever’ gig is scheduled to take place in Sweden this Saturday.
Speaking to Metro following his husband’s triumphant Worthy Farm set, David has shared his relief at Elton’s stints on the road (potentially) soon being a thing of the past.
“We could not be happier and more excited about [the tour ending],” he said. “And a lot of people would say, ‘Oh, you must be really emotional’, but at the end of the tour, he and I both sit at the table and go, ‘We can’t wait to be a family’.’
He added: “[Elton] loves his time on stage. He’s super grateful but he doesn’t need any more. Our boys are 10 and 12, they really need us more and more.
“To be able to do that is more satisfying, more joyful, more fulfilling and having that opportunity to co-parent those children brings us endless happiness, joy and satisfaction.”
However, this wouldn’t be the first time that Elton has delivered a ‘farewell’ tour only to return to the stage at a later date.
In 1977, the then-30 year old was on stage in London when he told the crowd: “I’ve made a decision tonight that this is going to be the last show. There’s a lot more to me than playing on the road and this is the last one I’m going to do.”
What happened next? Just two years later, he was back on the road.
In 2015, Elton again flirted with the idea of hanging up his sparkly stagewear for good and embarked on the short but sweet Final Curtain tour in the US. This time, he was back on stage again within a year.
The Goodbye Yellow Brick Road tour has admittedly felt different. It’s much, much longer than his previous ‘farewell’ jaunts and the setlist is a truly astounding – and bittersweet – ride through Elton’s incredible back catalogue.
But the biggest hint that he might not be done performing live after all has come from the man himself.
As he took to Glastonbury’s Pyramid Stage, in front of the iconic festival’s biggest ever crowd, he couldn’t quite bring himself to say a definitive goodbye.
“I never thought I’d ever play at Glastonbury and here I am,” Elton said. “It’s a very special and emotional night for me because it may be my last show ever in England and Great Britain.”
May be? Perhaps the Rocket Man isn’t quite done yet.