Blur, The Specials, New Order - Hyde Park London
Kimbo and I went child-free to check out the Olympics Closing Ceremony Celebration in Hyde Park. It was essentially the same setup as I saw Springsteen at a few weeks earlier, with added Olympic Security (imagine the most extreme airport security you've ever encountered and double it!) which meant rather than a quick stroll through the gates we were stuck in a queue for 45 minutes.
Sadly this meant we missed the first half of New Order's set - but we did make it through in time to grab a drink and catch "Blue Monday", "Temptation" and a surprising "Love Will Tear Us Apart" (is it a cover when it's the same band with a different singer and name?)
Next up was The Specials, who I thought would be good - but turned out to be fantastic, getting the whole crowd skanking along. It was great to hear "Monkey Man" (mostly played in our house via The Wiggles cover with Kylie Minogue) and "Doesn't Make It Alright" but the biggest response was for a crowd pleasing "Message To You Rudy", and the set closing "Too Much Too Young". Apart from how great they sounded, what was most surprisingly about The Specials was how relevant their message of peace and tolerance still seems today.
Having seen Blur at Hyde Park during their "original" reformation, I was expecting a pretty similar show this time around - so it was great to see them dig a bit deeper and try a few new things - especially given the that this is rumoured to have been their final ever concert.
Kicking off with "Girls & Boys" they quickly dug into less obvious material with "London Loves". "Out of Time" was an early highlight with guest Arabic lute player Khyam Allami giving the song a new slant. Early B-side "Young & Lovely" was a surprise inclusion and sounded great, as was moody album track "Caramel".
The show really took flight with "Park Life", featuring guest Phil Daniels shouting out the lyrics. After a manic "Song 2" the main-set closed on a sombre mood with "No Distance Left To Run", "Tender" and a sublime "This Is A Low".
The encore kicked off with new single "Under The Westway" (especially written for tonight according to Damon Albarn) which was especially poignant, before a big finale of "For Tomorrow", into "The Universal".
Blur:
Girls & Boys
London Loves
Tracy Jacks
Jubilee
Beetlebum
Coffee & TV
Out of Time
Young & Lovely
Trimm Trabb
Caramel
Sunday Sunday
Country House
Parklife (with Phil Daniels)
Colin Zeal
Popscene
Advert
Song 2
No Distance Left to Run
Tender
This Is a Low
Sing
Under The Westway
Intermission
End of a Century
For Tomorrow
The Universal
The Specials:
Do The Dog
(Dawning Of A) New Era
Gangsters
It's Up to You
Monkey Man
Blank Expression
Doesn't Make It Alright
Rat Race
Stupid Marriage
Concrete Jungle
Friday Night, Saturday Morning
Do Nothing
Stereotype
Man At C&A
A Message To You Rudy
Nite Klub
Little Bitch
Too Much Too Young
New Order:
Elegia
Crystal
Ceremony
Isolation
586
The Perfect Kiss
Bizarre Love Triangle
True Faith
Blue Monday
Temptation
Love Will Tear Us Apart
Sadly this meant we missed the first half of New Order's set - but we did make it through in time to grab a drink and catch "Blue Monday", "Temptation" and a surprising "Love Will Tear Us Apart" (is it a cover when it's the same band with a different singer and name?)
Next up was The Specials, who I thought would be good - but turned out to be fantastic, getting the whole crowd skanking along. It was great to hear "Monkey Man" (mostly played in our house via The Wiggles cover with Kylie Minogue) and "Doesn't Make It Alright" but the biggest response was for a crowd pleasing "Message To You Rudy", and the set closing "Too Much Too Young". Apart from how great they sounded, what was most surprisingly about The Specials was how relevant their message of peace and tolerance still seems today.
Having seen Blur at Hyde Park during their "original" reformation, I was expecting a pretty similar show this time around - so it was great to see them dig a bit deeper and try a few new things - especially given the that this is rumoured to have been their final ever concert.
Kicking off with "Girls & Boys" they quickly dug into less obvious material with "London Loves". "Out of Time" was an early highlight with guest Arabic lute player Khyam Allami giving the song a new slant. Early B-side "Young & Lovely" was a surprise inclusion and sounded great, as was moody album track "Caramel".
The show really took flight with "Park Life", featuring guest Phil Daniels shouting out the lyrics. After a manic "Song 2" the main-set closed on a sombre mood with "No Distance Left To Run", "Tender" and a sublime "This Is A Low".
The encore kicked off with new single "Under The Westway" (especially written for tonight according to Damon Albarn) which was especially poignant, before a big finale of "For Tomorrow", into "The Universal".
Blur:
Girls & Boys
London Loves
Tracy Jacks
Jubilee
Beetlebum
Coffee & TV
Out of Time
Young & Lovely
Trimm Trabb
Caramel
Sunday Sunday
Country House
Parklife (with Phil Daniels)
Colin Zeal
Popscene
Advert
Song 2
No Distance Left to Run
Tender
This Is a Low
Sing
Under The Westway
Intermission
End of a Century
For Tomorrow
The Universal
The Specials:
Do The Dog
(Dawning Of A) New Era
Gangsters
It's Up to You
Monkey Man
Blank Expression
Doesn't Make It Alright
Rat Race
Stupid Marriage
Concrete Jungle
Friday Night, Saturday Morning
Do Nothing
Stereotype
Man At C&A
A Message To You Rudy
Nite Klub
Little Bitch
Too Much Too Young
New Order:
Elegia
Crystal
Ceremony
Isolation
586
The Perfect Kiss
Bizarre Love Triangle
True Faith
Blue Monday
Temptation
Love Will Tear Us Apart
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