Barry Gibb at Glastonbury 2016
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Barry Gibb made a surprise appearance during the grand finale of Glastonbury 2016 and sang with Coldplay two classic Bee Gee tunes to the enthusiastic crowd
At around that time "Barry Gibb" was reportedly trending in the U.K. social media. Barry Gibb himself tweeted: "Wow! I’m on the pyramid stage with Coldplay at GlastoFest. Go figure! Another lifetime experience! Wish me luck!"
Here are some of what the press had to say about the memorable performance.
There were rumours. (…) But the reality proved to be greater than any of them, with the Bee Gees’ Barry Gibb joining Coldplay on stage to close their Sunday night set on Glastonbury’s Pyramid Stage (June 26). Martin was taking Instagram requests for songs to perform near the end of his band’s set, as they often do on their ‘Head Full of Dreams’ tour, when a video from the legend Sir Michael Eavis revealed he wanted to see the Bee Gees live.
It seemed a tall ask as the Bee Gees aren’t actually a thing anymore following the deaths of Barry’s brothers Robin and Maurice, but oh wait. Yep. Coldplay made it happen.
BARRY GIBB joined the band on stage, guitar in his legendary arms, ready to make Eavis’ dream a reality. Cue, the audience going absolutely nuts.
They started with the emotional ballad ‘To Love Somebody’ before launching the boogie-to-end-all-boogie MASSIVE TUNE ‘Stayin’ Alive’.
And FYI Barry Gibb still slays.
Alongside Chris Martin, the pair waged a Game of Thrones-worthy battle to see who could hit that top note the best. And we think Barry just had it. (Sorry Chris.)
Michael Eavis comes over the video feed talking up the Bee Gees, and then Barry Gibb of the actual Bee Gees comes out and sings. “Now we’re having a Glastonbury referendum. Should Barry Gibb stay or go?” says Gibb (sic). Again, they vote “stay” and are rewarded with “Stayin’ Alive.”
Coldplay frontman Chris Martin promised he’d have something special up his sleeve for the Pyramid Stage crowd. And, boy, did he deliver.
The band welcomed on to the stage the legendary former Bee Gees member Barry Gibb; delivering a double-whammy of tunes from the classic band. First up, a melodic rendition of "To Love Somebody".
Followed by the iconic tune, "Stayin’ Alive"; which inevitably had the entire crowd going wild, and dancing their cares away in the muddy chaos of the Glastonbury fields.
It was certainly a surprise for the crowd; as Gibb had previously pulled out of his guest spot alongside Coldplay due to a close family member falling ill. The former Bee Gees member is a good friend of Martin and of the band, and had previously expressed a great amount of disappointment at having to cancel the appearance.
Coldplay have given Glastonbury’s grand finale, with a little help from the Bee Gees.
Barry Gibb joined the band for two Bee Gee covers: To Love Somebody and what Chris Martin called "the greatest song of all time", Stayin’ Alive.
Gibb was meant to play Glastonbury’s "legend" slot this year, but pulled out when a family member fell ill.
The Bee Gee tribute came towards the end of a multicoloured, carnivalesque set that defied the pouring rain.
Great reviews! It was good to see Barry welcomed so fervently by the crowd and asked to "stay."
You can now watch the performance on You Tube (To Love Somebody and Stayin’ Alive) . Barry’s looking and sounding so fine! Hope the family member has now fully recovered. We all felt there was a good chance that this "surprise" might happen, and a surprise like this is always welcome.
Plus, BarryGibb.com is suddenly looking different now. So it’s Columbia or Sony? It seems we can all look forward to some great news.
