John, Joel: not only oldies

Elton John is looking to whip up a little something special for his upcoming Face 2 Face tour with fellow ‘70s piano man Billy Joel to make it more than just a greatest-hits outing. Returning to the concert trail together starting next spring for the first time in six years, John and Joel want to inject some new music into the mix.

“We’re thinking about recording three songs together,” John told The Times on Tuesday. “Definitely not our own songs, or oldies, but we’re interested in getting some people to write new songs for us. I’ve got Raphael Saddiq and Nile Rodgers working on something, so we’re booking some time to go into the studio and record.”

On their previous joint road trips in 1995, 2001-02 and 2003, the Face 2 Face tour turned into one of the top 10 grossing tours of those years. The 2009 tour is scheduled to open March 2 in Jacksonville, Fla., and will include Southland performances March 28 and 30 at the Honda Center in Anaheim.

-- Randy Lewis