“The Sound of Silence” – it’s both a beloved Paul Simon tune and the only thing you’ll hear coming from the singer/songwriter’s tour bus later this summer, when he wraps up “Homeward Bound – The Farewell Tour.”

Simon, 76, is the latest in a string of music legends who’ve announced their own retirements/retirement tours in recent months, including Elton John, Neil Diamond, Ozzy Osbourne and Lynyrd Skynyrd. He kicks off his farewell tour in Vancouver on May 16, then crosses North American and Europe on a 28-date swing that culminates with a final show in London on July 15, which will feature appearances by James Taylor and Bonnie Raitt.

“I’ve often wondered what it would feel like to reach the point where I’d consider bringing my performing career to a natural end. Now I know: it feels a little unsettling, a touch exhilarating and something of a relief,” he said in a statement. “I love making music, my voice is still strong, and my band is a tight, extraordinary group of gifted musicians. I think about music constantly. I am very grateful for a fulfilling career and, of course, most of all to the audiences who heard something in my music that touched their hearts.”

Simon, a two-time Rock and Roll Hall of Famer (for his solo work and as one half of Simon and Garfunkel) and one of the most successful singer/songwriters of his generation, has been performing live since the early 1960s. The farewell tour is framed as the end of his performing career, which leaves the door open to future album releases and new tunes.

Aside from kicking off the Homeward Bound farewell tour in Vancouver, other Canadian dates include June 12 and 13 in Toronto and Montreal respectively. Tickets for the Canadian shows go on sale on Feb. 9 at 10 a.m. Click here for more ticket and tour information.