Sir Rod Stewart has opened up about his only frustration ahead of his highly anticipated performance at this year’s Glastonbury Festival. The 80-year-old music icon is set to take on the esteemed Legends slot on the Pyramid Stage this Sunday, where he will perform highlights from his five-decade career. While thrilled to be included in the line-up, Stewart admitted he is not particularly fond of how the slot is described. “I just wish they wouldn’t call it the tea time slot,” he told the BBC. “That sounds like pipe and slippers, doesn’t it?”
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Despite the label, Stewart has ensured fans will get the best of his showmanship. He successfully negotiated with organisers to extend his set from 75 minutes to 90. “Usually I do well over two hours so there’s still a load of songs we won’t be able to do,” he said. In order to maximise time, he added that he won’t make announcements between songs. “I’ll do one number, shout ‘next’, and go straight into the next one. I’m going to get in as many songs as I can.”
The rock legend will be joined onstage by former Faces bandmate Ronnie Wood, an orchestra, and three guest performers. Stewart teased that the set will be “glamorous” and “sexy”, with the possible inclusion of bagpipes to reflect his Scottish heritage. “It’s like when you’re playing a cup final,” he told Radio Times. “You try to treat it like another game. But of course, it’s not. It’s special.”
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Earlier this month, Stewart postponed six concerts in the United States due to a bout of flu. In a statement on Instagram, he said: “I have to cancel and reschedule my next six concerts in June as I continue to recover… I’m devastated and sincerely apologise for any inconvenience.” Last year, he confirmed that while he would not retire from music, his 2025 shows in Europe and North America would mark the end of his large-scale world touring career.
