The third day of Hard Rock Calling, an annual music event held in London, already had the perfect ingredients to be memorable before it had even started. Across the UK, it was proclaimed the hottest day of the year so far, and with this came a sizzling line-up against the backdrop of Hyde Park.
As I walked through Hyde Park, amongst the normal hustle and bustle of London life, a devoted section of people made a beeline for “Entrance X9”, the gateway to Hard Rock Calling. There seemed a touch of happiness in the air, after the fresh memories of acts such as Stevie Wonder and Pearl Jam performing over the previous two days, and this anticipation could be seen in everyone, regardless of whether this was their first day at the event or not.
By the time I had entered the arena, the atmosphere was strangely tense, although this was as a result of the large mass of people following the football, rather than listening to Elvis Costello belting out his huge hit, ‘Pump It Up’. I did feel a bit sorry for Elvis, especially with the dismal performance that the England team put out, and I know that if people knew the result before the game started, the ratio of spectators would have swung much more in Costello’s favour. I was starting to wonder if this would be the most animated the crowd would be the whole day after the disappointment of England’s exit from the World Cup, but my doubts were extinguished as soon as Crowded House stepped on stage.
They had heard the England result, and managed to do what they wanted, get the crowd forgetting about the football, and religiously singing the words to numbers such as ‘Fall At Your Feet’ and ‘Don’t Dream It’s Over’. Before long the audience found themselves fist pumping to the Australians, while also practicing a Mexican wave several times at the request of the band. This seemed to bring the crowd closer together, as the chanting to ‘Weather With You’ reverberated around Hyde Park. I wouldn’t be surprised if it startled the Queen and all her Corgies in nearby Buckingham Palace.
The time quickly passed by, and suddenly before I knew it the star attraction was due on stage, Sir Paul McCartney. He made a fashionably late entrance, but my goodness he was worth it. Mixing up songs from his solo career and also his time with Wings and The Beatles, he performed an eclectic set that lasted just under three hours. Not bad for a man who’s old enough to collect a pension, but that shouldn’t cast a shadow over a man who has been a legend for the last fifty years. The highlight for me was the double hit of ‘Live and Let Die’ and ‘Hey Jude’ straight after one another, with an extraordinary fireworks display during the first exemplifying the pulsating nature of the song. I’ve got to say that during ‘Hey Jude’, it was the best atmosphere I’ve ever experienced, I thought there’d be a huge sing-a-long, but not a togetherness that feels more at home in families.
Such was the attention on Paul, a girl who was desperately crying out for her partner promptly got the response; "Shut up woman, we've come to hear Macca, not you whinging!" This atmosphere lingered well after the gig had finished, with people reciting several lyrics from the day's artists, also frequently joined by a half drunk, half adrenaline-rushed choir.
This experience will live long in my memory, and from the amazing time I had on the Sunday, I’m slightly disappointed with myself that I didn’t go on the Saturday to see another name in music folklore, Stevie Wonder. Next year for sure though, I will definitely consider Hard Rock Calling as a festival to attend.
However, Oxegen festival in Dublin is calling my name...
