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Glastonbury braces for 'The Boss'
Agence France-Presse
Page 7
2009-06-29 12:31 AM
Tributes to Michael Jackson kept coming at Britain's Glastonbury music festival as fans looked forward to a landmark appearance by another rock legend, Bruce Springsteen, on Saturday.

Many of the 140,000 festival goers were sporting T-shirts with slogans like "Michael Jackson RIP" and "I was at Glasto when Jacko died," while graffiti paying tribute to "The King of Pop" adorned tents.

The T-shirts were printed hastily by enterprising stallholders when news of the death emerged as the festival started Thursday.

Some revellers were starting to strip off as the sun shone brightly on the 900 acre site on a farm in south-west England - a welcome contrast to the traditionally muddy conditions.

Stars like Lily Allen have already paid tribute to Jackson in their acts - "Smile" singer Allen wore a single white glove during her set Friday, echoing one of Jackson's favourite wardrobe accessories.

The Streets covered "Billie Jean" and Gabriella Cilmi incorporated a snippet from the song in her set.

Rapper Pharrell Williams, who performed with his band N*E*R*D, said Jackson and his producer Quincy Jones had "opened the door for human beings to explore a higher level of musical consciousness."

Glastonbury founder Michael Eavis added: "You realize what a fantastic legend we've lost, the like of which we can't really replace. As an exponent of song and dance, no-one came close."

Many fans were waiting eagerly to see whether former Pulp frontman Jarvis Cocker will mention Jackson's death during his set late Saturday.

Cocker invaded the stage when Jackson was performing "Earth Song" live at an awards ceremony in 1996 and made disrespectful gestures.

Although there has been no official tribute at Glastonbury, many revellers took part in impromptu mass sing-alongs to some of his best-known hits as "Billie Jean" and "Thriller" blared from food stalls and tents.

Following a headline set from Neil Young Friday, Springsteen, known as "The Boss," was be the biggest draw Saturday.

With reunited Britpop heroes Blur headlining yesterday, the line-up represented a return to Glastonbury's rock roots after a more leftfield excursion last year, when U.S. rapper Jay-Z topped the bill.

That move was criticized by some festival goers as well as Oasis guitarist Noel Gallagher, prompting Jay-Z to hit back by covering Oasis's hit "Wonderwall" in his set.

"I'll be going to Springsteen and I went to Jay-Z last year," said one fan, 32-year-old John. "It was a great performance but was a one-off. Glastonbury is primarily a rock festival so it's nice to return to its roots."

Australian veteran Rolf Harris received an enthusiastic reception from the crowd Saturday, performing songs like "Two Little Boys" as fans chanted and waved inflatable kangaroos.

A host of celebrities have been spotted on site ranging from U.S. singer Katy Perry to Sarah Brown, wife of the British prime minister, who was promoting a motherhood charity.

 
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