The Rock of the Westies Tour was a North American concert tour by English musician and composer Elton John, in support of his 10th studio album Rock of the Westies. The tour included a total of 17 shows across the United States and Canada.
Background
John and his new band (now without Jeff "Skunk" Baxter but including backing vocalists Cindy Bullens, Jon Joyce and Ken Gold) warmed up for their Rock of the Westies Tour by playing five shows in three nights at The Troubadour nightclub in Los Angeles, the place where John had first conquered America exactly five years before. Kiki Dee joined in on these shows, which were benefit concerts for the Jules Stein Foundation and were commemorated by the promotional book "Five Years of Fun".
The western leg of the US tour began on 29 September 1975, at the San Diego Sports Arena, and finished up on 25 and 26 October at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles, the first time a rock act had played there since The Beatles in 1966. These two shows, the culmination of "Elton John Week" in the city and played in front of 55,000 people each night, were filmed for British television and remain some of the most famous concerts John has ever given. Following opening sets by Emmylou Harris and Joe Walsh, John and the band were later joined on stage by Billie Jean King and the 45-member James Cleveland Choir singing on selected numbers.[1]
