Elton John ‘Wants to Be Present’ for Sons Zachary and Elijah After Retiring From Touring

Elton John insisted that he is done with touring for good as he aims to spend more time with his sons, Zachary and Elijah.

“We’ve got our sons, you know, they’re getting into their teenage years now,” Elton’s husband, David Furnish, told Entertainment Tonight in an interview published on Thursday, June 27. “We don’t want to miss anything. We want to be present for that. It’s sort of a key decade, I think, in a child’s life.”

“He’s been doing it for 60 years,” David, 61, added. “So it’s nice to have that time to spend at home with family.”

Elton, 77, marked the final show of his Farewell Yellow Brick Road tour in Stockholm, Sweden, on July 8, 2023.

“The last show in Stockholm on the farewell tour after Glastonbury, I got in the car and went: ‘Yes! yes!’ We went out on the biggest high, just the way I wanted to, and there’s no going back [after] that,” he said of his final hoorah on stage.

He played “Your Song” and “Goodbye Yellow Brick Road” to close out the final show.

“I’ve had the most wonderful career, beyond belief,” he told the crowd before signing the two hits. “Fifty-two years of pure joy, playing music. How lucky am I to play music? But I wouldn’t be sitting here and talking to you if it wasn’t for you. You bought the singles, the CDs, the albums, the cassettes. But more importantly, you bought the tickets to the shows. And you know how much I love to play live. It’s been my lifeblood to play for you guys. You’ve been absolutely magnificent. Thank you.”

After the show, Elton shared an emotional statement about wrapping up such an illustrious chapter of his career.

“When we set off on my final tour in 2018, I couldn’t have foreseen in my wildest dreams the twists and turns and the highs and lows this tour — and the whole world — would have experienced in the next five years,” he said in a statement to Entertainment Weekly at the time. “And every step of the way, my fans have been there. They have stuck with me, they have supported me, they have been patient, and they have kept turning out for every single last show.”

“Tonight has been magical. I’m trying to process it, and I don’t think it will sink in for a while yet that I’ve finally finished touring,” the statement continued. “I can’t tell you how much I’m going to miss the fans and how much their support has humbled me — it will stay with me forever.”

The “Rocket Man” crooner underwent knee replacement surgery earlier this year.

“He’s walking brilliantly,” David told Variety in an update about his husband’s health in March. “Both his knees were bent so badly, but his left knee is now perfectly straight. His right knee is still bent so he’s going to have another surgery in April.”

“He’s been working away,” the filmmaker added. “I don’t think you’re going to have to wait too long [for new music]. I can’t say when but he’s making real progress. It was important for him when he came off the road to have a little bit of a breather and a break. But he’s always said he’s retiring from touring, but he’s not retiring from working.”