Duran Duran’s Simon Le Bon explains why he’s “always refused” Glastonbury
Duran Duran frontman Simon Le Bon has explained why the band have “always refused” to play Glastonbury.
Despite being one of the most successful British bands of the last 40 years, Duran Duran have never played at Worthy Farm. However, this hasn’t been due to a lack of interest in booking the group. Instead, Le Bon wants their debut to be worth the wait and is only prepared to play the iconic Somerset event if they receive a prominent slot.
During a new interview with The Telegraph, keyboardist Nick Rhodes claimed Glastonbury know how to find them, noting: “I believe they have our telephone number, we haven’t changed it”. However, Le Bon added: “3pm in the Disco Tent isn’t really where we see ourselves.”
The frontman continued: “A long time ago, I vowed I would never set foot in Glastonbury unless it was on the Pyramid Stage at a decent hour of the night. So although I’ve been asked to camp, to glamp and invited to fly in and out by helicopter, I’ve always refused on principle.”
Elsewhere in the interview, Le Bon maintained: “The media always labels us, but we simply don’t fit into any pigeonhole. Anyone who sees our shows knows that Duran Duran isn’t just a band for the Eighties. We are a band for life.”
Glastonbury organiser Emily Eavis recently discussed her plans for 2024, revealing the legends slot will be occupied by a female artist and also hinted at two female headliners. She told the BBC Sounds podcast Sidetracked with Annie and Nick: “2024 is still a little up in the air…and I thought it was kind of taking shape, and then last week I just got a call, and this is what happens if you wait a little longer, because quite often we’ll be booked up from July.”
Earlier this week, Duran Duran teamed up with Måneskin’s Victoria De Angelis to deliver a cover of the Talking Heads classic ‘Psycho Killer’.
Bassist John Taylor is responsible for the collaboration coming together as De Angelis “met John at a party, and [they] immediately bonded talking about music and bass.”
She continued: “I told him Tina Weymouth was my absolute pinnacle of cool, attitude and incredible musicianship all rolled into one, and he told me he also started playing bass inspired by her, and she was one of his music idols.”
Listen to the cover of ‘Psycho Killer’ below.
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