FEATURE:
Goodbye Yellow Brick Road
Elton John and Glastonbury 2023: An Emotional Final-Ever U.K. Gig
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YESTERDAY was an exciting day…
PHOTO CREDIT: Getty Images
where the first headliner for next year’s Glastonbury was announced. Elton John is embarking on his farewell tour, and will have his final dates in Europe next summer. It had been teased, but it was confirmed that he will play the Pyramid Stage at Glastonbury on 25th June. That Sunday headline slot is going to be more an emotional affair! It is strange to think that Elton John will not perform again after next year! Before carrying on, the BBC were among those who reported on the surprise and momentous Glastonbury announcement:
“Sir Elton John is to headline the Glastonbury Festival next summer, playing what will be the last UK date of his farewell tour.
The star will top the bill on the Pyramid Stage on Sunday, 25 June, and has promised a spectacular farewell.
"There is no more fitting way to say goodbye to my British fans," he said in a statement announcing the show.
"I can't wait to embrace the spirit of the greatest festival in the world. It's going to be incredibly emotional."
The show will come more than five years after Sir Elton announced his 350-date Farewell Yellow Brick Road tour.
It was originally due to wrap up in 2021, giving the 75-year-old more time to spend with his young family, but multiple dates had to be rescheduled due to both the Covid pandemic and a hip injury the singer sustained in a fall.
He recently wrapped up the US leg of the tour with a three-night stand at LA's Dodger Stadium - where, in 1975, he cemented his superstar status with two historic gigs, bedecked in a sequinned Dodgers Baseball uniform.
IN THIS PHOTO: Elton John at Dodger’s Stadium in 1975/PHOTO CREDIT: Terry O’Neill
That kit appeared again at his last US concert, as he played hits including Rocket Man, Tiny Dancer, Your Song and Philadelphia Freedom.
He was also joined by star guests Brandi Carlile, Kiki Dee and Dua Lipa, who duetted on the Pnau remix of Cold Heart - a song that introduced Sir Elton to a new generation of fans last year.
His Glastonbury set will undoubtedly contain similar surprises.
The star teased the announcement on Thursday, posting an Instagram photo captioned: "One final date to announce... the Rocket Man is incoming."
Around the same time, the BBC's Glastonbury webcam featured an image of a rocket ship in the sky above the Pyramid stage.
The hint dropped 24 hours before the official announcement of Sir Elton's Glastonbury performance
Confirming the news on Friday morning, festival organiser Emily Eavis said: "It gives me enormous pleasure to let you know that the one and only Elton John will be making his first ever Glastonbury appearance, headlining the Pyramid Stage on the Sunday night next year.
"This will be the final UK show of Elton's last ever tour, so we will be closing the Festival and marking this huge moment in both of our histories with the mother of all send-offs."
Sir Elton added that he "couldn't be more excited" to play at Worthy Farm.
"Every week I speak to new artists on my radio show and Glastonbury is often cited as a pivotal moment in launching their careers," he said.
"The festival's genuine, enthusiastic support for the best emerging talent is something I've long admired."
By the time his tour wraps up, Sir Elton will have spent more than 50 years on the road, playing 4,000 shows in 80 countries
The show will come at the end of the UK leg of Sir Elton's farewell tour, which kicks off in Liverpool next March.
After Glastonbury, he only has seven dates left to play in Europe before he retires from touring.
However, the star has not completely ruled out the possibility of one-off concert dates in the future - telling the BBC in 2018 that his "dream thing" would be a theatrical residency where he could play lesser-known tracks like Amoreena and Original Sin instead of hits like I'm Still Standing and Candle In The Wind.
"I've sung these songs nearly 5,000 times, some of them, and although they're wonderful songs, and I'm very appreciative of them, I've sung them enough," he said.
Sir Elton is the first headliner to be announced for next year's Glastonbury festival - for which tickets have already sold out.
Other rumoured performers include Arctic Monkeys, Taylor Swift and Guns N' Roses”.
We all hope that Glastonbury can go ahead next year without any hitches or lockdowns. Not least because it will be historic seeing Elton John give his last-ever U.K. date. I am not sure who will be joining him as a headliner in June, though I suspect that Taylor Swift will be announced soon enough. There was an outpouring of love and excitement when it was confirmed that Elton John would play Glastonbury. He has never played the festival before, so it is high time that he is involved now! Not only will it be a fantastic festival experience for everyone attending, but it is also going to be a night where John says goodbye to his U.K. fans in a live capacity. Maybe we will get more albums from him but, at seventy-five, you can understand why he is not going to play live again. I have been thinking about his album, Goodbye Yellow Brick Road, as it turns fifty next year. I sort of feel like the title can be applied to his touring career. The end of something magical. One wonders which song Elton John will perform at Glastonbury. It is this massive gig that means so much! With one of the best catalogues in music to select from, it will definitely be a challenge. I don’t think there is any danger of people being disappointed! Such is the spectacle and energy of his live shows, the headline set is sure to go down in history as one of the very best.
More than the music and those hits that we all know and love, the Glastonbury date has resonated and hit people, because it is a field of thousands of people singing along and giving fans to a legend. I first heard John’s music back in the 1990s when I was a child. He has always been a part of my life, and I know that this is the case with countless people around the world. Having toured since 1970, the man has done his due and thrilled millions! I am sure the performance will be recorded for a separate release but, as this is the last U.K. gig from Elton John, it is going to be so charged and iconic. When he bids farewell and bows at the end of the set, you can imagine the emotion that will come from him! I love his music, so it will be wonderful seeing John perform at Glastonbury for the first and last time. I hope that the new announcement compels people who may not know about his work to listen to his albums. There is such a rich and varied body of work. It is such a treat exploring his music and diving into the albums. I think that my favourite is either 1973’s Don't Shoot Me I'm Only the Piano Player or its follow-up, Goodbye Yellow Brick Road. That was an especially fertile period for Elton John. Whatever your experiences with his music, one cannot deny that the Sunday night closing headline set at Glastonbury will be one of the most important ever. It will be a very special chance for fans there to thank Elton John…
FOR all he has given us.