TENS OF thousands of revellers watched the Rolling Stones make an energetic Glastonbury festival debut on Saturday (June 29) after half a century in the music business.
‘If this is the first time you’ve ever seen the band, do come again,’ an almost 70-year-old Mick Jagger told a cheering crowd, most of whom were not yet born when the Stones played their first gigs.
Jagger began his highly anticipated set at the festival in southwest England in a glittering green sequined jacket with the 1968 classic ‘Jumpin’ Jack Flash’ to a backdrop of fireworks.
The Stones’ frontman prowled and pranced around the main Pyramid stage for more than two hours of music that included crowd-pleasers from the veteran rockers’ 1960s and 70s heyday.
Country-style song ‘Factory Girl’ was given a makeover to become ‘Glastonbury Girl’ and refer to festival traditions including the gumboots often worn against the English mud.
Jagger donned a black ostrich feather cloak for ‘Sympathy for the Devil’ as fire burst out of the top of the pyramid and a giant mechanical phoenix atop the stage came to life.
‘The old black magic still crackles,’ wrote a reviewer for the Observer newspaper.
Fans had claimed their spots up to 12 hours ahead of the show, which culminated with bouncing encores of ‘You Can’t Always Get What You Want’ and ‘Satisfaction’.
Guitarist Keith Richards and former band member Mick Taylor each performed showcase tunes.
The mostly young audience, many wearing Stones T-shirts and masks, danced and sang along.
‘It was amazing,’ said Kathy Dixon, 26, who works in music management in London.
‘It felt like lots of generations were coming together. It felt very special – almost spiritual,’ she said.
‘They look as young as they were in the sixties,’ said 22-year-old marketing professional Walter Hudson, from Oxford.
‘The only place you can see their age is in their skin – their energy is the same.’
Glastonbury, the country’s most popular celebration of music and performing arts, is now in its 43rd year.
Organiser Michael Eavis is said to have spent years persuading the Stones to appear.
‘We’ve waited a long time for the Stones to play. For them to be here is brilliant,’ Eavis’s recorded voice told the audience as he introduced the band, one of the world’s top-selling acts.
Organisers had expanded the viewing area as a large proportion of the 135,000 festivalgoers on the sprawling 900-acre farm sought to witness this small piece of music history.
The Glastonbury festival, held at Worthy Farm in Somerset, southeast England, began as a hippie gathering of 1,500 people in 1970.
It now has 58 stages and formal accommodation ranging from pre-assembled tents to glamorous yurts costing several thousand pounds.
It continues to sell out months in advance even though Britain’s unpredictable weather often transforms it into a mudbath.
The Stones, once icons of rebellious youth, have been playing a series of North American dates on their ‘50 and Counting’ tour ahead of several British concerts this summer.
Reports said Jagger had undertaken a gruelling fitness regime to prepare for his Glastonbury act before flying in by helicopter on Friday (June 28).
The bandmates tweeted a series of photos of themselves at the festival, with Jagger showing off his yurt accommodation while guitarist Ronnie Wood proudly displayed red rain boots bought for the occasion.
Festivalgoers could also catch vintage acts Primal Scream and Elvis Costello on Saturday (June 29), as well as younger first-timers such as acclaimed Californian trio Haim.
Broadcasters reported that third in line to the throne Prince Harry, 28, was spotted at the festival site on Saturday (June 29), along with footballer Wayne Rooney, supermodel Kate Moss and other British stars.
The three main days of the festival conclude on Sunday (June 30) with a headline set from folk band Mumford and Sons.
