Phoenix Festival
The Phoenix Festival was set up by
History
The first year of the festival (1993) featured headline performances by Sonic Youth, Hole, Faith No More and The Black Crowes, and included other notable acts such as Manic Street Preachers, Julian Cope, The Young Gods and House of Pain. However, the event was marred by controversy. Travelers refused free entry, blocked the entrance meaning many spent their Friday night in their vehicles in long queues. Festival goers were made to put out camp fires and turn off sound systems at midnight. These rules were in contrast to the 24-hour culture of the Glastonbury Festival, with which many of those present at Phoenix were familiar. There were even demands for refunds, and the festival's reputation was marred from the outset. The enforcement of these rules by security staff led to many of the festival goers showing their displeasure in no uncertain terms. Fencing and light rigs were toppled, fires set and physical clashes between festival goers and security staff also occurred.
The festival never really recovered from its poor reception, and although it attracted consistently popular acts, festival goers were less than happy with the site (an old airstrip) and there were also complaints about the prices on site. Such were the problems with security that when the Big Top managed by experimental theatre company 'Dancin Dog' was three times over capacity no staff were available to remedy the situation leading to fights between performers and audience and artists unable to leave the stage resulting in crowds demanding more for several hours and performers continuing until they collapsed from exhaustion and in fear for their lives.
Problems with the event reached a climax in 1996 when many festival goers missed David Bowie on the Thursday night due to problems letting people on site. Having sold out that year for the first time, due to the Glastonbury Festival taking its usual year off (once in every five years in a cycle), the organisers struggled to cope with the crowds and extreme heat. Temperatures on site exceeded thirty degrees Celsius on all days. The weekend was further marred with problems with water being unavailable in parts of the site. The event was notable for the fact that the Sex Pistols headlined their first major UK festival that weekend.
The festival continued for one more year but could never compete with its main rival, the
In July 2011, Vince Power announced his intention to resurrect the festival in his introduction to the programme of the Hop Farm Festival. Power wrote: "For those of you who remember the Phoenix Festival, it's my intention to resurrect this festival next year as Glastonbury is taking a break."
Line ups
1993
The 1993 Phoenix was held from 16 to 18 July at Long Marston, Stratford-Upon-Avon.
Phoenix Stage | |||
Friday | Saturday | Sunday | |
---|---|---|---|
Sonic Youth |
Faith No More |
The Black Crowes |
Zine Stage | |||
Friday | Saturday | Sunday | |
---|---|---|---|
|
Billy Bragg Trash Can Sinatras The Fat Lady Sings Pele The Tansads Velocity Girl Nervous |
The Wedding Present |
Jazzterrania Stage | |||
Friday | Saturday | Sunday | |
---|---|---|---|
James Taylor Quartet Mother Earth Jason Rebello Vibe Tribe |
Gil Scott-Heron And The Amnesia Express |
Gangstarr Quartet with Donald Byrd and Roy Ayers Secret Society
|
Lime Lizard Stage | |||
Friday | Saturday | Sunday | |
---|---|---|---|
Utah Saints Band Of Susans St. Johnny Sidi Bou Said |
|
Cornershop Credit to the Nation Strangelove Radial Spangle Fretblanket |
1994
The 1994 Phoenix was held from 14 to 17 July at Long Marston, Stratford-Upon-Avon.
Phoenix Stage | |||
Thursday | Friday | Saturday | Sunday |
---|---|---|---|
stage closed |
Carter USM The Fall Squeeze The Posies Jah Wobble The Goats Fun-Da-Mental Whiteout |
|
Iggy Pop |
Vox Stage | |||
Thursday | Friday | Saturday | Sunday |
---|---|---|---|
Gary Clail On U Sound System |
The Pogues The Trash Can Sinatras David Gray The Coalporters Ben Harper |
The Beautiful South |
Inspiral Carpets Mother Earth The Grid Beat Traders A Certain Ratio Suns of Arqa Youthu Yindi Terry Edwards Baby Chaos |
Melody Maker Stage | |||
Thursday | Friday | Saturday | Sunday |
---|---|---|---|
T.Rextasy Head |
Spiritualized |
|
Brick Layer Cake The Raincoats The Pastels Bailterspace Tsunami Mambo Taxi AC Acoustics |
Jazzterania Stage | |||
Thursday | Friday | Saturday | Sunday |
---|---|---|---|
Incognito |
Donald Byrd Freakpower Ian & Rob |
Galliano |
Herbie Hancock |
Loaded Comedy Stage | |||
Thursday | Friday | Saturday | Sunday |
---|---|---|---|
|
Mark Thomas Alistair MacGowan Dave Spikey |
Lee Evans Lee Hurst Linda Smith Dominic Holland Hattie Hayridge |
Eddie Izzard |
1995
The 1995 Phoenix was held from 13 to 16 July at Long Marston, Stratford-Upon-Avon.
[3][4]
Phoenix Stage (host & DJ: Jo Whiley) | |||
Thursday | Friday | Saturday | Sunday |
---|---|---|---|
stage closed |
Tricky Van Morrison The Fall The Wedding Present Chumbawamba Salad Velvet Crush |
Public Enemy Terrorvision Paradise Lost Body Count Ice-T EMF Senseless Things (no-show) Gallon Drunk Shootyz Groove Pitchshifter |
Brand New Heavies Warren G (no-show) George Clinton & Parliament-Funkadelic The Charlatans Underworld Spearhead Credit to the Nation Marion |
Melody Maker Stage | |||
Thursday | Friday | Saturday | Sunday |
---|---|---|---|
Spiritualized Electric Mainline Man or Astroman? AC Acoustics Gorky's Zygotic Mynci |
The Wildhearts (no-show) |
Kiss 100 Stage | |||
Thursday | Friday | Saturday | Sunday |
---|---|---|---|
Megadog Stage | |||
Thursday | Friday | Saturday | Sunday |
---|---|---|---|
African Headcharge
|
Comedy Tent | |||
Thursday | Friday | Saturday | Sunday |
---|---|---|---|
|
|
1996
The 1996 Phoenix Festival was held from 18 to 21 July at Long Marston, Stratford-Upon-Avon.[5]
Phoenix Stage | |||
Thursday | Friday | Saturday | Sunday |
---|---|---|---|
Frank Black Placebo Kenickie |
|
Björk Genius/GZA The Wannadies Guru's Jazzmatazz Ruby Cecil |
Sex Pistols Drugstore Honeycrack Linoleum |
Guardian Stage | |||
Thursday | Friday | Saturday | Sunday |
---|---|---|---|
Cocteau Twins The Dirty Three Earl Brutus |
G Love & Special Sauce Bis Baby Bird Super Furry Animals Jonathan Richman Barenaked Ladies Dr. Robert Rare Perfume Elcka Agent Provocateur Nervous |
Shed Seven 60ft Dolls Catatonia Audioweb No Way Sis Collapsed Lung New Kingdom Scheer Revelino Soda |
Reef |
Megadog Stage | |||
Thursday | Friday | Saturday | Sunday |
---|---|---|---|
CJ Bolland System 7 Hardfloor Darren Emerson Earth Nation Outer Active Alabama 3 J Pac |
Grooverider |
Ingrid Schroeder Spooky William Orbit Slab The Aloof James Lavelle Interact |
Jazz Café Stage | |||
Thursday | Friday | Saturday | Sunday |
---|---|---|---|
Incognito |
Guru's Jazzmatazz |
Mother Earth Jazz Passengers feat. Debbie Harry Terry Callier Dee C Lee Jazz Co Tech Dancers Pucho & The Latin Soul Brothers Eusebe |
James Taylor Quartet Maxwell Monday Michiru Attica Blues |
1997
The 1997 Phoenix Festival was held from 17 to 20 July at Long Marston, Stratford-Upon-Avon.[6] "David Bowie requested some odd items on his Phoenix rider but came close to not getting a few," recalled promoter Neil Pengelly. "An urgent, eleventh-hour delivery of his bullworker and carrot juicer required a dash through the arena in a golf cart – not a problem until a plucky punter nicked the cart from under the nose of the briefly distracted driver. A Benny Hill-style chase ended when the man dumped the cart and ran off into the crowd. Adding insult to injury, three girls spotted the key still in the cart and ram-raided the cigarette stall."[7]
Main Stage | |||
Thursday | Friday | Saturday | Sunday |
---|---|---|---|
Black Grape |
The Charlatans Hurricane#1 Sussed |
US3 ABC Olive Lamb Corduroy The Prisoners Groove Connection |
David Bowie |
Guardian Stage | |||
Thursday | Friday | Saturday | Sunday |
---|---|---|---|
Spiritualized |
Rollins Band Gold Blade Smaller Broadcast Mogwai Midget Libido |
60ft Dolls Subcircus Laika The Candyskins David Devant & His Spirit Wife Linoleum Stereophonics One Inch Punch Jolt |
Sinéad O'Connor |
Mean Fiddler Stage | |||
Thursday | Friday | Saturday | Sunday |
---|---|---|---|
Afro-Celt Sound System Bhundu Boys The Radiators Otis, Ed & Ben |
Red House Painters The Hitchers Sintra Hank Dogs Hugger Mugger |
Gallon Drunk Dharmas Gretschen Hofner The Diggers The Smiles The Kaisers Simon Warner My Friend The Chocolate Cake Comfort Dakota Suite The Hormones Pregnant |
The Saw Doctors Dr Didg Sirenes Rev Hammer Sara Sara Mary Coughlan Duncan Sheik Jel Loot Competition Winner Baby On Board |
References
- ^ "Mr John Vincent Power - Director at Croftedge Limited". Duedil.com. 8 April 2014. Retrieved 30 June 2014.
- ^ "Entertainment | Phoenix called off due to poor ticket sales". BBC News. 10 June 1998. Retrieved 30 June 2014.
- ^ "phoenix95nd3". imageshack.us. Archived from the original on 5 December 2012. Retrieved 11 June 2023.
- ^ "rage Magazine Archive Pages - Issue 5 - Phoenix festival review". Ragemagazine.co.uk. Retrieved 30 June 2014.
- ^ Hodgson, Chris (7 September 2012). "World In A Bottle: Blast from the past : Phoenix Festival 1996". Corben-dallas.blogspot.co.uk. Retrieved 30 June 2014.
- ^ "Music festivals; Your definitive guide to summer 1997". Independent.co.uk. Archived from the original on 26 May 2022. Retrieved 15 August 2018.
- ^ "Festivals of '97". Q #137. February 1998. p. 98.