80s music legend declares final tour — details

Lou revealed to Ultimate Classic Rock: "I just feel like there's some other things that I want to do. I want to spend more time with my children — my older children and my younger child — and spend more time playing with my cars while I'm still capable of driving." The singer admitted that his successful career came with a lot of "sacrifices," many of which he'd like to make up for now. He revealed: "[I'd like to] just stay off the road and enjoy my home, the surroundings and my family and friends, something that I've had to sacrifice for over 50 years."

Lou recalled his busy lifestyle and is proud of the mark he's made. He expressed: "I've been doing this for over 54 years, [including initial group] Black Sheep. You know that was a professional band. We had two albums out on Capitol Records [and] did some serious touring." The entertainer feels fulfilled and ready to close this chapter. He added: "I've done all there is to do I feel. And being in the Songwriters Hall of Fame and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame are huge milestones for me." Lou is trusting his intuition on the big decision and continued: "You know, I think in this business, you just know when it's time."

Before Lou officially steps off the stage, he's enjoying the limelight one final year. He's been touring with Foreigner and his solo band and said: "I've been doing shows with them and I've been enjoying it a lot. The band is excellent. They portray the songs [in a way that] an original member of Foreigner would be proud to play along with. They have their own style, but they stick close enough to the original [versions] where no one's going, 'Hey, where's that part?' So it's a lot of fun."

He's also using his time wisely by completing several songs from the Foreigner's archives, which have been left unfinished, such as "Turning Back the Time," and "Food if You Love Him." The band also reissued their album 4 which was previously released in 1981. Besides his group projects, he's also honed in on his solo ones. Lou went back to work on tracks that weren't included in his previously released albums Ready or Not and Long Hard Look, which came out in the late 80s.  

The full circle moments of bringing unreleased music to life brought the singer both nostalgia and inspiration. He shared: "It was a labor of love, for sure, going back to listen to some of these almost finished songs from my solo albums. You know, a lot of the stuff that you write and record, the songs that get finished first are the ones that end up on the album. Some of the ones that aren't finished soon enough to make the cut are some of the gems. It's funny, after you release the album, those great ideas that almost made it, but time constraints were against it, you forget about them."

Many of those new tracks that didn't initially make the cut will be featured in his upcoming album Released. Lou shared his excitement and expressed: "You know my focus is on Foreigner right now going into the 50th anniversary and new material and this and that. But I am also very, very dedicated to the work I've done on my own, and I'll be touring to support it. I hope everybody gives it a listen."