NEW YORK (REUTERS) - Former Beatle Paul McCartney, following his doctors' orders as he recovers from a viral illness after falling ill in Japan last month, has rescheduled some US dates on his world tour.

"I'm sorry but it's going to be a few more weeks before we get rocking in America again. I'm feeling great but taking my docs' advice to take it easy for a few more days," McCartney said in a statement released on Monday.

He is expected to make a complete recovery.

The 71-year-old Grammy-winning musician cancelled his sold-out Out There tour dates in Japan and a concert in South Korea after being hospitalised for the illness.

The tour will resume in Albany, New York, on July 5. Concerts are scheduled from June 14-26 in Lubbock, Texas; Dallas; New Orleans; Atlanta; Jacksonville, Florida; Nashville, Tennessee; and Louisville, Kentucky, have been rescheduled in October.

All tickets for the original shows will be honoured for the new dates, according to the statement.

McCartney and drummer Ringo Starr are the only surviving members of the Liverpool band that shot to international prominence and made their US television debut on The Ed Sullivan Show 50 years ago. The group's last public appearance together was in 1969.

After the group split up, McCartney formed the band Wings and has also had a long and successful solo career.