Declaring a ‘Pulp Summer’ on the screen behind them, the band appeared on Glastonbury’s Pyramid Stage for another of the festival’s “surprise” performances.
Billed as the non-existent act Patchwork in the days beforehand, fans knew to expect something big, similar to when The ChurnUps turned out to be the Foo Fighters in 2023. A group of people mysteriously walked onto the stage in waterproof ponchos before the “secret” was revealed and the Pulp homage to fellow Saturday night performer Charli XCX’s Brat Summer appeared on screen.
Like Lewis Capaldi’s unannounced set on Friday, everyone at Glastonbury knew who to expect by the time Jarvis Cocker and co began at 6.15 pm, thanks to the bookies’ odds, “secret” sources and whispers around the festival. In tribute to their headline performance in 1995, when they famously took over from The Stone Roses at short notice, Pulp started with Sorted For E’s And Whizz and then straight into Disco 2000 – two songs played live for the first time on this same stage 30 years ago.
“It was the very, very first time they were played – you could say they were born in Glastonbury,” Cocker told the crowd.
From the Mercury Prize-winning Different Class, the album that propelled Pulp to topping the charts and platinum sales, and one of the most critically acclaimed records of the 1990s, the songs prompted a mass sing-along and jump-along from an enthusiastic crowd who knew every word. “My name’s Jarvis, this is Pulp,” Cocker announced, just in case anyone was in any doubt. “Sorry for people who were expecting Patchwork. Did you know that we were going to play?”
After their 1990s hits, the band launched into Spike Island, the lead single from More, their first album in 24 years, released earlier this month. It was a set full of memorable moments, including the Red Arrows flying over, and Cocker picking up an acoustic guitar for the poignant Something Changed. Do You Remember The First Time? And Babies also featured, before the band of course ended on their biggest hit – Common People.
