Elton John returned to the stage last night to resume his ‘Farewell Yellow Brick Road’ tour – you can see the setlist and watch fan-shot footage below.
- READ MORE: The NME Big Read – Elton John: “I’m not interested in the past – not even Elton John’s past”
After multiple delays, the legendary artist played at the Smoothie King Center in New Orleans, Louisiana yesterday (January 19) where he treated the sold-out crowd to a career-spanning, hit-packed set.
The musician kicked off the 21-track concert by performing ‘Bennie And The Jets’ from his 1973 album ‘Goodbye Yellow Brick Road’. He went on to dust off favourites such as ‘Tiny Dancer’, ‘Rocket Man’, ‘I’m Still Standing’, ‘Crocodile Rock’ and ‘Your Song’.
Towards the end of the show, John performed a solo rendition of ‘Cold Heart (PNAU Remix)’ from his star-studded latest studio album, ‘The Lockdown Sessions’. It marked the first live airing of the song.
Check out a selection of videos from the concert here:
Last night’s show marked John’s first ‘Farewell Yellow Brick Road’ gig since he performed in Australia in early March 2020. Since then, ongoing COVID-related restrictions have prevented the star from making his live comeback.
“This is a new experience for us,” John told the crowd at the start of yesterday’s concert. “I’ve never had this amount of time off in my life, as far as playing music. Well, at least since I was 17 years of age.
“I have a fact for you: you have been holding on to these tickets for 745 days. And I can’t thank you enough for being so patient. We live in funny times but we’re gonna have a great time!”
Elton John played:
1. Bennie And The Jets
2. Philadelphia Freedom
3. Border Song
4. Tiny Dancer
5. Have Mercy On The Criminal
6. Rocket Man
7. Take Me To The Pilot
8. Someone Saved My Life Tonight
9. Levon
10. Candle In The Wind (solo)
11. Funeral For A Friend/Love Lies Bleeding
12. Burn Down The Mission
13. Sad Songs (Say So Much)
14. Don’t Let The Sun Go Down On Me
15. The Bitch Is Back
16. I’m Still Standing
17. Crocodile Rock
18. Saturday’s Alright For Fighting
19. Cold Heart (solo)
20. Your Song
21. Goodbye Yellow Brick Road
John was due to play a run of rescheduled UK headline dates between October and December 2021. However, he was forced to postpone the shows to 2023 after sustaining a hip injury from an “awkward” fall.
Speaking to NME as part of a Big Read cover interview in October, Elton John said he was determined to finish the tour, but confirmed that it will also certainly be his last.
“It’s something I wanna finish,” he told NME. “I’m looking forward to doing it and going out on the high that we were on – we were an express train that hit the buffers. At the moment I finish supposedly in 2023, in the summer, by which time I’ll be 76 – and that’s it, baby.”
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