Elton John performing in Montreux, Switzerland, in June 2019: a hundred or so shows down, just a few hundred to go.

I’m Still Touring

Frank Sinatra was a master of the long goodbye, but Elton John’s farewell is, like Brexit, a process

By Rachel Johnson

It is something of a trope that old troupers go on and on … and on and on.

Frank Sinatra announced his retirement in 1971, but in 1974 billboards proclaimed, ‘Ole Blue Eyes is Back’ – and a new album, a TV special and a world tour followed. He performed a thousand concerts between 1973 and his final final show, in a silvery toupée, the lyrics of his own songs on autocues placed amidst the footlights. It was not until 1995 – after singing for more than 60 years for kings, queens, mobsters, pirates and presidents – that Frank Sinatra stepped out on stage for the last time.