Elton John is retiring from the road after his upcoming three-year global tour, capping nearly 50 years on stages around the world. He calls it a 鈥渨ay to go out with a bang.鈥�

鈥淚鈥檝e had a good run, I think you鈥檇 admit that,鈥� John said Wednesday, adding that he wanted to 鈥渓eave people thinking, 鈥業 saw the last tour and it was fantastic.鈥欌��

The 70-year-old singer, pianist and composer said he wanted to spend time with his family. His children will be 10 and 8 when he stops in 2021, and John said he hoped he might be able to take them to soccer practice. 鈥淢y priorities now are my children and my husband and my family,鈥� he said. 鈥淭his is the end.鈥�

John made the announcement at an event in New York in which he sat at a piano and performed 鈥淭iny Dancer鈥� and 鈥淚鈥檓 Still Standing.鈥� He wore his signature glasses and a colorful suit jacket that read 鈥淕ucci Loves Elton.鈥�

His final tour 鈥� dubbed 鈥淔arewell Yellow Brick Road鈥� 鈥� starts in September. It will consist of 300 shows in North America, Europe, Asia, South America and Asia. Tickets go on sale beginning Feb. 2. The tour stops in Toronto on Sept. 25 and 26, Ottawa on Sept. 28, Quebec City on Sept. 29 and Montreal on Oct. 4.

John said he decided on his retirement plans in 2015 in France. 鈥淚 can鈥檛 physically do the travelling and I don鈥檛 want to,鈥� he said. He also ruled out a residency but vowed: 鈥淚 will be creative up until the day I die.鈥�

At the Grammy Awards, to be presented in New York on Sunday, John is to perform alongside Miley Cyrus and will collect the President鈥檚 Merit Award. His Vegas residency ends in May after six years.

His hits include 鈥淵our Song鈥� and 鈥淐andle in the Wind.鈥� He has won five Grammys, an Oscar, a Golden Globe for 鈥淭he Lion King鈥� and a Tony Award for 鈥淎ida.鈥� He is the recipient of a Kennedy Center Honor.

John, who has sold 300 million records, launched his first tour in 1970 and boasts having performed over 4,000 times in more than 80 countries. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1994.

He has suffered several medical setbacks of late, including a bacterial infection last year that he contracted during a South American tour and an E. coli bacterial infection in 2009. He鈥檚 also suffered an appendicitis and has been fitted with a pacemaker.

From 1970-76, John released 10 original studio albums and seven consecutive chart toppers. He remained a hit maker over the following four decades, from 鈥淭he Lion King鈥� soundtrack song 鈥淐an You Feel the Love Tonight鈥� to a revision of his Marilyn Monroe ode 鈥淐andle in the Wind,鈥� released in 1997 after the death of John鈥檚 friend Princess Diana and one of the bestselling singles of all time.

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Online:

Mesfin Fekadu, The Associated Press

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