Sir Rod Stewart has confirmed he will be bringing three guests onto the Pyramid Stage for his Glastonbury set.
With just a few weeks to go, and Sir Rod cancelling gigs left, right and centre due to illness, some fans worried the 80-year-old may not be able to make his legends slot performance at the Worthy Farm festival on June 29.
As far as we can tell, Sir Rod is all set for his big Glastonbury appearance – the first since his 2002 headline slot – and the Maggie May singer is dropping further insights into what festival-goers can expect.
After confirming his former Faces bandmate and Rolling Stone Ronnie Wood will be joining him on stage for the coveted slot, now Sir Rod has announced there will be two further guests.
In an interview with the Radio Times ahead of his Las Vegas show cancellations, Sir Rod said of cramming his hits into one short set: ‘It’s difficult because they only gave me an hour-and-a-quarter slot. So I begged them: can I do another 15 minutes?
‘Because usually I play for two hours. It means that there’s a lot of songs that people love that I won’t be able to play – and I’ve got three guests coming on,’ he added, confirming they are singers.
He went on: ‘It is a different gig. It’s like when you’re playing a cup final: you’re trying to treat it like another game. But, of course, it’s not. It’s special. It’ll be glamorous, it’ll be sexy. And we’ve got a little orchestra coming on to play with us. And we may have some bagpipes…’
The singer, best known for songs including Da Ya Think I’m Sexy?, Every Beat Of My Heart, and Maggie May, revealed he always has a ‘little gargle’ on a rum and coke before going on stage.
‘The vocal cords need a lot of looking after. I mean, they’re absolute gold. I warm up for an hour, warm down for half an hour. And when I feel I’m losing my voice, I go into what they call “voice rest” and wear a little card around my neck that says “I can’t talk. Don’t talk to me,”‘ And it’s remarkable how your voice will come back,’ he said.
Taking to social media on June 7, Sir Rod announced the cancellations of six concerts US as he continues to ‘recover from the flu’.
‘So sorry my friends,’ he said, adding: ‘I’m devastated and sincerely apologise for any inconvenience to my fans. I’ll be back on stage and will see you soon.’
It came after Sir Rod explained he wasn’t ‘feeling well’ so was postponing his gig on Monday June 2 until June 10
While fans have worried about Sir Rod’s Glastonbury Pyramid Stage slot given his illness, he’s been seen out and about since, seemingly in good spirits.
Posting on social media, following the announcement, Sir Rod said: ‘After all these years, I’m proud and ready and more than able to take the stage again to pleasure and titillate my friends at Glastonbury in June. I’ll see you there!’
Alongside legends slot performer Sir Rod, headliners include The 1975, Neil Young and Olivia Rodrigo, with Charli XCX also billed to perform on the Other Stage.
There are a few TBA slots and a secret set from a non-existent band called Patchwork, which many are speculating is Pulp.
Other secret sets are rumoured to be Lewis Capaldi after his emotional performance in 2023 – which was cut short due to physical and mental health struggles – as well as Lorde and US band HAIM.
Glastonbury opens its gates on Wednesday June 25, with performances taking place from Friday June 27.
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