Music icon Elton John lost a friend that was near and dear to his heart on Friday — his cocker spaniel, Arthur.
John told his fans during his final concert in Las Vegas on Friday that Arthur had passed early that morning. According to The Blast, who acquired video of the concert, John dedicated a rendition of the song “Don’t Let The Sun Go Down On Me” to his 14-year-old deceased dog.
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John and Arthur were famously close, with John receiving him as a present for his 56th birthday and Arthur serving as the “Best Man” for John and husband David Furnish’s wedding according to The Blast.
John, who is wrapping up his Las Vegas residency, found himself in the headlines earlier this week when he stormed off the stage during a concert when a fan got too handsy onstage.
He went on to explain his actions on Instagram.
“Thursday night in Las Vegas a fan put his hands on the piano keys while I was playing and continued to do so even after I asked him to stop,” John wrote. “He then proceeded to reach over the piano and try to take pictures, completely disrupting the performance. I bring fans onstage every evening when we play ‘Saturday Night’ in the set, it is always a lovely part of the show where I get to meet them, shake their hands and have them right there with me while I play. They have always been very courteous to the fact we are in the middle of playing a song live. This guy was rude, disruptive and had no care or respect for our show and so I let him know how I felt, then left the stage until they had removed him.”
John has a full schedule for the remainder of 2018, which includes the conclusion of his Vegas residency, attending the royal wedding of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle and beginning what he claims to be the final tour of his career, the “Farewell Yellow Brick Road Tour.”
He explained his reasoning for wrapping up his touring career in an interview with Anderson Cooper back in January.
“My priorities have changed in my life,” John said. “My life has changed. My priorities now are my children and my husband and my family.”
“I definitely want to make a couple more albums, but that will be easy since I can do that at home,” he said. “I want to see friends. I want to spend time at my house and with my photography collection. I’m really looking forward to this tour and I’m really looking forward to the 300th date.”
