Cancellations hit Billy Joel/Elton John tour

The double-bill Elton John/ Billy Joel tour came to a halt late last week after Joel came down with flu-like symptoms, Joel's camp told tour officials.

Concerts scheduled for Friday (7/24) in Buffalo, NY and Monday (7/27) in Albany, NY, were postponed. Joel, 60, has been told by doctors to rest for 72 hours, which would appear to keep the tour's Philadelphia shows later this week safe. Tour promoters are attempting to re-schedule the affected dates.

According to a statement posted Friday (7/24) on John's website, promoter AEG Live and Albany venue were "informed by management that Billy Joel has been advised by his doctor to cancel all public performances for the next 72 hours due to extreme physical fatigue and the need for additional testing."

The "Face 2 Face" tour, featuring the two veteran piano-playing singers, kicked off in March and has made its way through the spring and summer in roughly month-on/month-off fashion, with the current leg wrapping Aug. 1 before picking up again Nov. 4 in Seattle.

At a recent show in Washington, DC, Joel came to the rescue when equipment problems prompted John to leave the stage early in the concert. According to local press reports, Joel vamped and played for the crowd and pretended to attempt a fix on John's piano until the stage crew could make the actual fix, after which John returned to the stage and apologized for the incident.