After decades of light-hearted barbs, it appears Elton John and Rod Stewart's friendship may have been badly damaged by Stewart's comments about John's latest tour. Photo / Getty Images
After decades of light-hearted barbs, it appears Elton John and Rod Stewart's friendship may have been badly damaged by Stewart's comments about John's latest tour. Photo / Getty Images
For more than 50 years, Sir Elton John and Sir Rod Stewart have indulged in playful teasing as each has tried to write his name in lights as the more successful pop superstar.
The pair even refer to one another by affectionate drag nicknames: the pianist and songwriter is called "Sharon", while the rasping rock singer with Scottish roots is known as "Phyllis".
However, their testy friendship appears to have soured beyond repair after Stewart criticised John's farewell retirement world tour as "money grabbing" and poked fun at Rocketman, the biopic about John's life.
Stewart, 74, has now announced the pair are "not talking" and described Rocketman as "not very flattering" and failing to match Bohemian Rhapsody, the recent Queen biopic.
In an interview with Scottish radio, he added: "I do love Elton, only we're not talking at the moment. We've had a spat." Asked the cause of the dispute, he replied: "Because I criticised his tour as being money grabbing."
Elton John performs in Wellington in 2015. Photo / Supplied
The falling out could bring an end to five decades of professional rivalry that has become the stuff of rock 'n' roll legend.
The pair became friends in the 1970s, and their penchant for one-upmanship became evident in Las Vegas when John spotted Stewart's banner for his Blondes Have More Fun tour outside Caesars Palace.
Not to be outdone, John put up a rival hoarding on the opposite building which read: "But Brunettes Make More Money."
Stewart, famous for his bouffant hairstyle, exploited the theme by sending John a salon hair dryer to underline his hair loss.
In 1983, they were interviewed together and both insisted they were "actually very good friends".
However, the theory that they were intensely competitive was confirmed when John revealed: "We're all right until we both get in the Top 10."
In 1985, Stewart hired gigantic football-shaped balloons to hoist above Earl's Court in London to promote his shows there. John promptly hired a sniper with an air rifle who shot them down.
Rod Stewart performs in Auckland four years ago. Photo / NZ Herald
In 1998, Stewart was jealous when John became Sir Elton. He said: "Sharon's been knighted. I don't know why I haven't ... I do my bit for charity."
In 2016, Stewart upped the ante by saying: "Our albums came out at more or less the same time and we have been comparing how the sales are ... I'm winning."
He said they text "back and forth - how many albums I've sold and how many albums he has sold".
However, it is believed that John took exception to Stewart's catty comments last year about the pianist's farewell tour. Appearing on an American television chat show, Stewart was asked for his thoughts about his rival's retirement, to be marked with 300 concerts as part of the Farewell Yellow Brick Road tour, which reaches New Zealand next year.
He replied: "I did email her [John, now 72] and said, 'What, again dear?' And, I didn't hear anything back."
He criticised the tour because it "stinks of selling tickets" and is "not rock 'n' roll."
