Elton bloody John 🚀

[Hugh Jass II]

1 hour ago, nikkic said:

 

Where as most people love Elton.

(Could just be my perception of course). 

Elton's public image has undergone quite the redemption in recent years.

Time was he was considered a huge diva and a bit of a nasty piece of work.

[Isaact]

57 minutes ago, Skip997 said:

Why do they need to go anywhere re "historical significance, weather, crowd,  massive name bringing the hits and a unique set, international attention etc."  If EJ is the end fine, they've had a good run. As we all know tickets will sell out anyway, so where's "the problem".

Going for three younger headliners should be the default anyway. Last year, with the exception of Macca, should be the template going forward.

And if GFL can dig up any more old duffers, then put them in the legends slot.

Agreed - I'd like the festival to do more Stormzy-style headline bookings.

Give at least one day to an up and coming British artist who's big but not Pyramid-big, and give them the chance to really use it as a platform to boost their standing.

This year was too 'safe'.

[CaledonianGonzo]

Yeah, the movie and his book have helped a lot there.

Maybe also a realisation that a lot of his bad reputation arose from things like homophobia and him constantly being monstered by the tabloids after he sued The Sun.

Came across as nothing but humble and very aware of the significance of the gig on the night itself - and we loved to see it.

[Hugh Jass II]

2 minutes ago, CaledonianGonzo said:

Yeah, the movie and his book have helped a lot there.

Maybe also a realisation that a lot of his bad reputation arose from things like homophobia and him constantly being monstered by the tabloids after he sued The Sun.

Came across as nothing but humble and very aware of the significance of the gig on the night itself - and we loved to see it.

His book is great, comes across as a genuinely funny guy.

Every time I've seen him live he's been nothing short of charming.

[Skip997]

3 minutes ago, Isaact said:

This year was too 'safe'.

Embarrassingly so

[CaledonianGonzo]

That's got f**k all to do with the Elton booking though, which was a huge coup.

[kalifire]

3 minutes ago, Isaact said:

Give at least one day to an up and coming British artist who's big but not Pyramid-big, and give them the chance to really use it as a platform to boost their standing.

[CaledonianGonzo]

No - when I said bump someone up I meant Wolf Alice or Foals!

[nikkic]

28 minutes ago, kalifire said:

Distinct lack of bangers.

(I say this as a big fan). 

[henry bear]

33 minutes ago, Isaact said:

Agreed - I'd like the festival to do more Stormzy-style headline bookings.

Give at least one day to an up and coming British artist who's big but not Pyramid-big, and give them the chance to really use it as a platform to boost their standing.

This year was too 'safe'.

Personally I don't agree with this. There's a natural order to things, and I don't see why one artist should get an artificial boost while the rest of their peers don't. You can give up and coming acts a boost by letting them perform at Glastonbury and let them work their way up (or indeed down) the bill depending on their appeal.

[gherkin8r]

2 minutes ago, nikkic said:

Distinct lack of bangers.

(I say this as a big fan). 

Grey area has all the bangers. That EP (drop6?) Had a couple too. Never really hit the charts though and the last two albums have been less bangery.

[nikkic]

41 minutes ago, Hugh Jass II said:

Elton's public image has undergone quite the redemption in recent years.

Time was he was considered a huge diva and a bit of a nasty piece of work.

Oh totally.

Maybe he was and has mellowed with age. 

Or he was misunderstood.

Either way his stock has never been higher. 

[nikkic]

13 minutes ago, gherkin8r said:

Grey area has all the bangers. That EP (drop6?) Had a couple too. Never really hit the charts though and the last two albums have been less bangery.

This is more what I meant tbh. 

Tunes like Venom and 101 FM slap, but she wouldn’t pass the “Mum” test. 

Edited July 6, 2023 by nikkic

[O'Doyle Rules]

Someone has mentioned but I do think that was probably the peak of Glastonbury in terms of the excitement, scale and coverage re a headliner (by virtue of them having booked nearly every other legend over the years).

Can't see that level of mass excitement happening in the future. Doesn't mean there are not going to be great headline sets and future stars (of course there will be) but in a weird way it like a passing of the torch for the festival to the next generation rather than constantly looking back to grab "legends".

And I think Elton wanted it that way.

[Frankly Mr Shankly]

2 hours ago, nikkic said:

I’m seeing her in November, so hoping it’s the former! 

Me too, assuming the tour isn’t postponed, nobody seems clear on what’s happening yet? 
 

In all seriousness if they have got Madonna signed up, there’s a chance she pushes it back to 2025 if the North American dates get rearranged for next spring/summer. 

[shuttlep]

1 hour ago, MEGABOWL said:

The guests were great. He said from the start one of the attractions of doing it was the way the festival breaks young acts. He even did a BBC special flagging up some of the upcoming acts elsewhere on the bill. Giving some the oxygen of publicity on his stage was a great idea. 
 

The internet might have gone way over the top expecting him to get into some kind of special guest pissing contest with Macca but that isn’t his fault. He never promised that. 
 

Setlist-wise he added Pinball Wizard and Are you ready for Love? and binned some more obscure tracks.

it was great 

 

it didn't feel special , i understand what people are about new young singers. I am not there to see new young singers I am there to  see a spectacular .  I was left stood there saying "who " when he got the guests on.   next week I won't remember the guests , i will even forget that one was Mr Flowers I will just remember the sing along 

[hodgey123]

The only thing that would ever beat that for me is Oasis. And I wasn't even at the Pyramid to see it.

[MEGABOWL]

1 hour ago, shuttlep said:

it was great 

 

it didn't feel special , i understand what people are about new young singers. I am not there to see new young singers I am there to  see a spectacular .  I was left stood there saying "who " when he got the guests on.   next week I won't remember the guests , i will even forget that one was Mr Flowers I will just remember the sing along 

4 special guests and a customised setlist is pretty special. Not sure what else he could do. No promises were made about guests, that’s just an issue with people’s expectations

[Skip997]

1 minute ago, hodgey123 said:

The only thing that would ever beat that for me is Oasis. And I wasn't even at the Pyramid to see it.

Things that have beat it: Beyonce, Jay Z

I wasn't at the Pyramid to see it either.

[shuttlep]

15 minutes ago, MEGABOWL said:

4 special guests and a customised setlist is pretty special. Not sure what else he could do. No promises were made about guests, that’s just an issue with people’s expectations

No promises were made , maybe i expect too much of him,   I think he could have done more , if he wanted to. maybe he didn't want anyone to out shine him . not saying he wasn't good,  I think he could have done more , I could be wrong maybe that was his limit 

[CaledonianGonzo]

Short of bringing on the Lion King lads, what else could he have done?

[Frankly Mr Shankly]

9 minutes ago, CaledonianGonzo said:

Short of bringing on the Lion King lads, what else could he have done?

I think he made the mistake of saying ‘4 special guests’ without setting the bar for who they were. If he’d said I want to use the slot to ‘highlight some great new talent’ then people’s expectations might have been lower and the crazy suggestions like Eminem, Britney & the Spice Girls wouldn’t have appeared. 

[CaledonianGonzo]

"I'm going to have some guests, but please don't get your hopes up because you probably haven't heard of them"

[dotdash79]

Gutted he didn't have Barry from Eastenders on

[Hugh Jass II]

27 minutes ago, CaledonianGonzo said:

Short of bringing on the Lion King lads, what else could he have done?

Step into Christmas.