R.E.M.'s 1999 Glastonbury Headliner Will Be Released for 72 Hours On August 6th

Continuing celebrations around the 50^th anniversary of Glastonbury Festival this year, R.E.M.’s historic headline set from the Pyramid Stage in 1999 will be released globally next Thursday, August 6th. Fans can tune in for the YouTube premiere at 8:00pm BST / 3:00pm EST here. The show will remain live for a limited 72 hour window only.

Audio from this headline set was recently released as part of the band’s R.E.M. at the BBC collection.

On June 25, 1999, shortly into their European Summer tour and at the end of a long, sunny day in Somerset, England, R.E.M. took the iconic Pyramid Stage around 10:30 pm following earlier performances from Blondie, Bush and Hole. 

Michael Stipe recalls,

“Hole did such a great set, I was like—I’ve got to ramp this up, I’ve got to be great.  I think it was maybe a moment for R.E.M. and the UK where we had kind of been forgotten or pushed aside by younger bands, and that was a particular moment at Glastonbury where I think we pulled ourselves back to the front of the line and actually proved, this is what we’re capable of. It was a great show for us!

I felt triumphant every time we played Glastonbury. The band really stepped up. It’s such a beloved and legendary event that, y’know, whatever stars are aligned for us personally and as a group; we managed to show the best of ourselves at each of the shows we played there.”

Backed by flashing neon signs, the band performed a selection of old and new songs, including “Daysleeper,” “The One I Love,” “Losing My Religion,” “Everybody Hurts,” “Man on the Moon” and “Its the End of the World As We Know It (And I Feel Fine).”