26/06/22
Walking through Hyde Park there was a very ‘West Coast’ feeling to the British Summertime Festival on Sunday Afternoon. I was so excited to see The Eagles headlining, I’d seen them a few years previously in Liverpool, but this was different. This was a festival set and I couldn’t wait!
A trip to the Peroni bar to buy a drink, as the west coast/Americana vibes washed over you with a great set from Little Big Town. A lovely rendition of what I later learnt was a Taylor Swift song, ‘Better Man’ and the penultimate song ‘Girl Crush’ were two of my favourites and I’ve got to say, the harmonies in the final song ‘Boondocks’ were out of this world!
I was so excited, not just see the Eagles, but to see Robert Plant too. Joined by Alison Krauss, the pair casually ambled onstage and launched into their set! Kicking off with a slightly rocky track, ‘Rich Woman’ from the 2007 album ‘Raising Sand’, it was a great set opener leaning more toward the folk rock tendencies of Zeppelin than the set of Americana that I was expecting.
Robert Plant and Alison Krauss delivered a stunning set. I loved the two Everley Brothers covers, ‘Gone Gone Gone’ and ‘The Price of Love’ and there was a Page/Plant song included, ‘Please Read the Letter’ which went down great too. The absolute highlight of the set for me was the three Led Zeppelin songs that were included. The final two songs were mind blowing, ‘The Battle of Evermore’ and ‘When the Levee Breaks’ – the musicians were on top form, but the set highlight for me was ‘Rock and Roll’, one of my favourite Led Zep tracks.
The signature drum opening was replaced by some hauntingly beautiful fiddle playing from Alison Krauss. I absolutely loved the rendition, it worked a treat! A perfect reworking of this Led Zeppelin classic. Quite possibly the highlight of the night!
The Eagles didn’t disappoint though; they arrived onstage at 8pm and played a fantastic set. I think they were very conscious of running over time and even more aware of Westminster Council’s draconian curfew policy, so this meant that the normal chit chat between songs was kept to a minimum. There were one or two moments, but certainly far less than is normal in an Eagles show. We didn’t even get a ‘How ya DOIN’’ from Joe Walsh!
He did have fans chuckling as he said at aged 74, “I had a lot more fun being in my 20s in the 70s than being in my 70s in the 20s!’ – His energy was coming through in shed loads!
The Eagles on Sunday were so tight and their harmonies were stunning. They unleashed a full two hour show and every song was a hit. In Don Henley’s words, the band took us on a ‘hell of a ridRelative newcomer Vince Gill sang a stunning rendition of ‘Lyin Eyes’ – a real crowd singalong moment and later delivered an equally gorgeous ‘Take it to the Limit’ – a song that really highlighted the superb quality of Vince’s voice.
Unlike the last time I saw the band, Glen Frey’s son Deacon was only a special guest this time around and joined the band onstage for a song his ‘dad used to sing’. An emotional take of ‘Peaceful Easy Feeling’ followed with the promise that Deacon will return later on.
The hits kept coming, they also dipped into the bands solo repertoires too, Don Henley’s ‘Boy’s of Summer’ which he dedicated to Taylor Hawkins and Joe Walsh’s ‘Funk #49’ and ‘Life’s Been Good’.
Again, conscious of the ever closer curfew, the band opted not to leave the stage, only to come back for the encore and instead carried on through. ‘Hotel California’, a fantastic ’Rocky Mountain Way’ and ‘Desperado’ brought the evenings proceedings to a close. But they weren’t done just yet, they had one more song in them, inviting Deacon Frey back to join them as well as tennis legend John McEnroe and Patty Smyth who joined on guitar and BV’s respectively to play the final song of the evening, ‘Already Gone’.
What an incredible day of music at Hyde Park. I absolutely loved it. Everything about the day was perfect, the music, the sound was incredible which is something so hard to get right, especially at outdoor events. And the bands were pure perfection. All in all, a great day at BST Hyde Park!
