IF you were among the 40,000 fans that farewelled Sir Elton John at his two Hope Estate concerts in January 2020, the final moments of those shows are probably still ingrained in your memory.
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John, dressed in his colourful tracksuit, rose on a platform and seemingly disappeared down the yellow brick road and from the stage.
It was an epic and flamboyant departure from a musical icon who sits fifth on the all-time best-seller's list behind The Beatles, Elvis Presley, Michael Jackson and Madonna.
Tears were shed. It felt like saying goodbye to a dear old friend.
In the Newcastle Herald's review of the first Hope Estate show on January 11 we wrote, "And with that the Rocketman was gone. Not as a diminished version of himself, but with miles left in the tank."
Almost exactly three years later we're going to discover just how many miles John has left in the tank.
The piano-rock icon is going to draw the curtain once more when he opens another Australian farewell tour at Newcastle's McDonald Jones Stadium on January 10, 2023.
Despite having performed 229 concerts in Australia since 1971, it'll be the Candle In The Wind, Crocodile Rock and Benny and The Jets songwriter's first Newcastle gig.
An expected crowd of 35,000 will pack into the Turton Road venue for what will only be the second concert held at the home of the Knights and Jets.
The first was the famous Newcastle Earthquake Relief Concert featuring Midnight Oil, Crowded House and The Angels back in 1990.
Earlier this month Venues NSW chairman Tony Shepherd made his intentions known when it was announced that an application had been lodged with the City Of Newcastle for the Broadmeadow stadium to host five concerts a year.
As far as party-starters go, Shepherd and his team have delivered one hell of a coup. John is only playing four Australian cities on this extended farewell tour - Newcastle, Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane.
It'll undoubtedly be the biggest rock concert Newcastle has ever hosted.
For some music fans the news that the 75-year-old has yet again extended his farewell tour will lead to jokes about being the new "John Farnham." Even before the additional dates, John's worldwide Farewell Yellow Brick Road tour was ridiculously long, having began in September 2018.
However, I've got a feeling most fans will be happy to forgive Elton, as long as they score a ticket, of course.
Josh Leeson
Josh Leeson is an entertainment and features journalist, specialising in music, at the Newcastle Herald. He first joined the masthead in 2008 after stints at the Namoi Valley Independent and Port Stephens Examiner and has previously covered sport including the Asian Cup, A-League, Surfest, cricket and rugby league.
Josh Leeson is an entertainment and features journalist, specialising in music, at the Newcastle Herald. He first joined the masthead in 2008 after stints at the Namoi Valley Independent and Port Stephens Examiner and has previously covered sport including the Asian Cup, A-League, Surfest, cricket and rugby league.
