Tiny Dancer singer Sir Elton returned to the stage in New Orleans on Wednesday night. The legend’s stop-start global retirement tour launched in September 2018 only to be postponed due to Covid restrictions in March 2020.

But a grinning Sir Elton looked like he’d been desperate to get back as he told fans: “Wow, we haven’t played a show since the 6th of March 2020.

“This is a new experience for us, I’ve never had this amount of time off in my life.”

He laughed: “I have a fact for you, you have been holding these tickets for 745 days. And I can’t thank you enough for being so patient.”

Resplendent in a floral-styled tuxedo blazer and red-tinted specs, the star looked reinvigorated as he launched set opener Bennie And The Jets.

Sir Elton, who in September pushed back the tour’s 2021 European dates due to hip problems, will perform across North America until April followed by dates in Europe. But with the tour not due to wrap up until 2023, goodbye, not sorry, seems to be Elton’s hardest word.