As we celebrate an incredible year of live music as part of our Annual Report, we’ve named Glastonbury 2023 our Festival of the Year. Stick around for more lists, accolades, and exclusive interviews about all the best in music, film, TV, and pop culture of 2023, all of which can be found here.
On paper, a working dairy farm in a remote part of Somerset, England seems an unlikely location for Elton John’s final UK live performance. But this, of course, is Glastonbury – the 210,000-strong annual music festival that over the last five decades has grown to be one of the most significant events on the musical calendar. Its Pyramid Stage is bucket-list booking for artists around the world, and a fitting platform for The Rocket Man’s farewell to his home country’s fans.
After a forced shutdown over the previous two years, 2022 marked Glastonbury’s glorious return and a delayed 50th celebration for the Eavis family, who have tirelessly transformed their home and farmland into a music Mecca since 1970. For the famously muddy festival, it was a year of sunshine and release, revelers locked up for two years ecstatic to be back in the fields where so many feel at home.
So how then, would they begin to top such a magical year in 2023?
Glastonbury-goers love to tell you that the festival is about so much more than the lineup. From hedonism to healing, its myriad of smaller stages are a vital part of the weekend. But in 2023, the main stage bookings were unrivaled – a perfect blend of heritage and emerging, genre-spanning acts that thrilled the festival’s all-ages clientele. Rockers were sated with Guns N’ Roses’ Saturday night headline set, Axl Rose’s falsetto standing the test of time thrashing through a two-hour set of greatest hits.
Friday afternoon boasted a surprise set from “The Churnups.” Rumors had been swirling for a couple of weeks about who the unknown band slotted far too high up the main stage schedule could be. But after a rather telling Instagram post from Dave Grohl, Foo Fighters fans began crossing everything that the band would be making a sneaky return to Worthy Farm. It was not until the opening chords of “All My Life” started to play that they got their confirmation. “All right muthafuckers, let’s dance,” roared Grohl. It was a weekend highlight.
Foo Fighters at Glastonbury, photo by Yui Mok/PA Images via Getty Images
“We managed to keep that one completely under wraps and it really only was confirmed an hour or so before they played,” confesses festival organizer Emily Eavis. “What a set that was – an hour of hits blasted across the valley, it was awesome and insane to see them play like that in broad daylight.” Foo Fighters last played the festival as headliners in 2017, so to catch them play a lowly afternoon set felt like an incredible milestone. “It’s been a real joy to have built such a lovely relationship with the Foos since they headlined here,” Eavis gushed. “This year was their first time here since the passing of Taylor Hawkins, so it felt very poignant.”
Glastonbury has a history for forging magical moments, and over the five-day stretch from June 21st to 25th, they came thick and fast. Rick Astley – of Rick-rolling “Never Gonna Give You Up” fame – joined forces with Manchester indie kids Blossoms to perform the songs of The Smiths – an altogether more joyful experience than seeing Morrissey in 2023. At age 57, Astley also made his Pyramid Stage debut, something of a dream achievement for the ‘80s star.
“My daughter said, ‘’Just treat it like one of your pub gigs, Dad,’” Astley tells us. “It was something I’ll never forget and quite emotional, if I’m honest. I’m not saying it’s all downhill from there – but to be invited to play on the Pyramid Stage and then to get a really big audience and for people to get into it?” Even months later, he still recalls the performance with seeming disbelief.
“Festivals are about being in the moment. You can see some goth band from wherever and then go and see some poetry and, on the way, something else – but if you started off your day with me at 12 o’ clock on the Pyramid Stage, then that’s great,” continues Astley. “There’s something magical in that – the purity of music. Whether you’re an artist or someone in the audience, you should leave thinking that was a magical time in your life – and that’s what I got out of it.”
Elton John’s festival closing set – if we’re to believe him, the last UK show of his career – was a group sing-along through his unparalleled songbook. There had been much talk as to which guests may join him – Harry Styles? Dua Lipa? – but in the end, Elton continued the dedicated support of new talent he’s demonstrated via his Apple Music radio show and used this world stage to promote three up-and-coming stars: Rina Sawyama, Gabriels’ Jacob Lusk, and Stephen Sanchez. Confused murmurs of “who?” may have rumbled through the crowd as each took to the stage, but that was precisely the point: Elton was there to pay it forward and usher in a new era of talent. A class move.
“Finishing the weekend with Elton was as spectacular a moment as we could all create. It was just perfect,” recalls Eavis. “That’s a moment that made history and one very close to my heart. Working with Elton and his team in bringing this show to Glastonbury was a total pleasure. It will live on in my memory forever and is a moment both me and my kids won’t forget.”
Elton John and Rina Sawayama at Glastonbury, photo by Oli Scarff / AFP
The thing to remember about Glastonbury is that it’s a family affair. Founded by farmer Michael Eavis, now 88, who has mostly passed the baton down to his daughter Emily, the festival remains a far cry from the corporate takeovers of music events the world over. Instead of commercial advertisements, there are posters promoting love and unity. Where you might find a booze brand-sponsored dance tent, instead is one of the world’s most prestigious LGBTQ clubs – The NYC Downlow – found in the festival’s 24-hour “naughty corner” and boasting the best names in electronica.
