The Kinks were the first to say no to Glastonbury
Credit: RedFerns
The first Glastonbury Festival was where the disappointment began. In 1970, Michael Eavis, then an enterprising 35-year-old farmer, had arranged for The Kinks, and several other bands, to perform live at his Somerset farm. Admission would cost only £1 (about £15.20 today). The attendees were promised an “ox roast” to eat, and “free milk” on tap.
But Eavis was a farmer, and not well-versed in PR. He quipped to the press before his event that “playing skittles” was the acme of local culture; Melody Maker reported this, and described Eavis’s project as a “mini-festival”, no more. Ray Davies got wind, faked a doctor’s note about a sore throat, and The Kinks handed their slot, at the top of the bill, straight back.
David Bowie headlining Glastonbury Festival in 2000, Adele headlining in 2016
Credit: Dan Chung/Yui Mok
Using books and personal reminiscences, countless internet forums and old magazine reports, all headliners are ranked solely on the weight of the three performances.
Their rankings are ordered by the day they played (Friday, Saturday, Sunday).
Vehemently disagree? See you in the comments.
36. The Black Crowes, Lenny Kravitz, Wynton Marsalis (1993)
A weird line-up by any standards, partly due to Red Hot Chili Peppers dropping out (Lenny Kravitz stepped in). Anyone actually into music was at the Other Stage to see Suede, Spiritualised and Stereo MCs. Meanwhile the Black Crowes jammed endlessly, Kravitz didn’t really have the songs and trumpeter Wynton Marsalis was… pleasant.
Chai, a Band With an Ethos, an Aesthetic and a Sound All Its Own
This Japanese quartet undercuts traditional ideas about cuteness, gender and rock bands. Its latest album, “Wink,” is arriving on Sub Pop in the United States.
The members of Chai, from left: Yuna, Yuuki, Kana and Mana.Credit.Shina Peng for The New York Times
By Jeremy Gordon
May 18, 2021
The Japanese band Chai is a professional purveyor of whimsy. In concert, its four members perform wearing an array of colorful, coordinated outfits loads of pink, lots of orange, some reds and greens, but never black. Its lead singer and keyboardist, Mana, will sometimes deliver exuberant monologues about “Neo-Kawaii,” a band-created ethos meant to redefine modern ideals of cuteness. (The phrase translates directly to “new cute.”) The group has been known to cover Culture Club’s “Karma Chameleon.” The refrain of one of its most popular songs, “N.E.O.,” goes “You are so cute! Nice face!”