Glastonbury 2023: Watch Rick Astley and Blossoms cover The Smiths song ‘Panic’
During their eagerly anticipated performance at the 2023 Glastonbury Festival, Rick Astley and Blossoms played a rendition of ‘Panic’ amid their jam-packed set of Smiths covers.
‘Panic’, written by frontman Morrissey and guitarist Johnny Marr, was originally released by The Smiths in 1986. A historic moment in their catalogue as it was the first to feature second guitarist, Craig Gannon, it is noted for its critique of the era’s pop music, which Morrissey sings, “says nothing to me about my life”. The track also features the famous hook, “Hang the DJ”.
“The Smiths have always meant so much to Blossoms, with even their rainiest songs complete with wry humour and soul-reaching musicianship and melody,” Blossoms said in a September 2021 statement. “Their poppier moments are pure, joyful, danceable poetry.”
It continued: “Imagine backing Rick Astley to play the songs of The Smiths? We’ve had wilder dreams, but not many. We’ll barely be able to believe it until it happens, but the dates are set, we’re studying every note, line and beat to say ‘thank you’ to The Smiths alongside Rick and do both of them proud.”
The Glastonbury rendition was not the first time Rick Astley and Blossoms have covered ‘Panic’ In late 2021, they performed a pair of Smiths covers shows in Manchester and London, and for the northern edition at Manchester’s Albert Hall, it featured as the 13th part of their set.
After the duo of Smiths covers concerts were announced, however, former guitarist Johnny Marr expressed contempt for them, having been upset about a lack of communication. The band’s frontman, Morrissey, however, offered the opposite opinion, choosing to thank Astley and Blossoms. The vocalist said in a statement: “My sincere thanks to Rick and the Blossoms for their recent recentness. Anything that generates interest in that tired old Smiths warhorse is testimony to the wallop it packed. THANK YOU”.
Elsewhere, in a recent interview, Astley explained his “love” for The Smiths and how he had “always” wanted to form a cover band of them. “Even when I was in bands as a kid, we never played The Smiths’ songs because they were a bit too intricate for us,” he told the NME. “I never saw The Smiths but I’ve seen covers bands of them, and I just fall in love with them every time.”
Watch Rick Astley and Blossoms cover ‘Panic’ at Glastonbury 2023 below.
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