Joel, John Postpone U.S. Shows

NEW YORK (AP) — Billy Joel and Elton John have postponed the rest of their US concert dates together to allow Joel to recover from an illness.

The two were scheduled to play at Madison Square Garden on Monday night; at the Nassau Coliseum in Uniondale, N.Y., on March 20, 22, 28 and 30; and at the Continental Airlines Arena in East Rutherford, N.J., on April 4, 8, and 11.

Joel's spokeswoman, Claire Merucuri, said Monday that the "Face to Face" tour shows will be rescheduled in the next day or so.

"He's being treated for an inflamed vocal cord and an upper respiratory infection," Merucuri said. "We expect him to make a 100 percent complete recovery."

On Monday, a New York Times review of Friday night's concert at Madison Square Garden suggested that Joel "seemed to have ingested something quite a bit stronger than cough syrup," and described him as rambling and bellowing.

Merucuri declined comment on the review, saying only, "He was sick."