Sir Elton John has told the thousands of adoring fans in Sweden that he “better make it a good show” as kicked off the final date of his mammoth farewell tour.
The 76-year-old musical megastar has been travelling around the globe performing his Farewell Yellow Brick Road show since 2018, and his second night at the Tele2 Arena in Stockholm on Saturday will finally bring the 330-date run to a close.
In classic spectacular fashion, The Rocket Man singer donned a black suit jacket with colourful beading on the lapel as he took to the stage to open with his hit Bennie And The Jets, which first appeared on the Goodbye Yellow Brick Road album in 1973.
After a rousing rendition of Philadelphia Freedom, he riled up the audience by waving and said: “Good evening Stockholm. Well this is it.
“This is it. I’m very glad to be in Sweden and this beautiful country… We better make it a good show. Here we go.”
He then launched into I Guess That’s Why They Call It The Blues.
The veteran musician dedicated the next track on his set list – Border Song – to the late Aretha Franklin.
He recalled to the masses that when his self-titled second album came out in 1970, that he and his long-term songwriting partner Bernie Taupin “could not believe our luck” when she covered the song.
Sir Elton said that he went on to meet and record with the soul singer and that she insisted on performing for his Aids Foundation six months before she died in 2018, despite being ill.
After the poignant anecdote, he dedicated the song “to the legacy of the queen of soul”.
He followed it up with a vibrant performance of his hit song Tiny Dancer, Have Mercy On The Criminal and his classic Rocket Man – the song that lent its name to his biopic, with Taron Egerton playing the singer.
The tour was paused at various points due to the pandemic and shows in Europe and the UK had to be rescheduled due to the veteran singer sustaining an injury to his hip after he suffered a fall in 2021.
The Stockholm show marks the end of Sir Elton’s touring career after around 50 years on the road which has included more than 4,000 performances in over 80 countries since launching his first tour in 1970.
It is also one of the highest-grossing concert tours since records began with Billboard reporting that it is the first to do 900 million US dollars (£701 million) worth of ticket sales, with Sir Elton saying more than six million people have come to watch him.
Announcing the end of his touring five years ago, Sir Elton said his “priorities have changed”, adding that his and husband David Furnish’s two sons, Elijah and Zachary, had changed their lives.
He vowed not to do a “Cher”, adding: “This is the end”.
The musician is expected to continue working on making music after releasing his collaborations with Dua Lipa, Stevie Wonder, Britney Spears and Sheeran as part of his The Lockdown Sessions releases in 2022.
Sir Elton, a five-time Grammy winning artist, has also contributed to the music of Billy Elliot the Musical, Gnomeo & Juliet, The Lion King and most recently Rocketman.
