Elton John Pushes US Schedule Into Summer

NEW YORK (VIP NEWS) — With the spring portion of his North American tour already underway, Elton John has added summer dates to the itinerary following an extensive European leg.

John's full-band outing, which kicked off April 9 in Lubbock, TX, runs through a May 13 benefit concert in New York City. Since last check, 9 West Coast shows have been tacked on to the end of the schedule.

John's full-band outing comes on the heels of his on-again, off-again Face 2 Face tour with Billy Joel. Following months of postponements and cancellations involving dates on last year's joint trek, John and Joel made good on many of the missed gigs earlier this year.

"As far as I know, there will be no more Billy and Elton shows after the Albany show in New York on March 11th," John said during a February interview with WGN-TV in Chicago.

"It's not my decision, it's Billy's," John said. "He has decided to take a year off. It doesn't gel with my plans but he's a friend. And as an artist, you have to respect his decision."

The latest outing, which kicked off last spring, was the third time the two men have toured together, following similar jaunts in 1994 and 2003.