Isle of Wight Festival, review: Duran Duran send the crowd out on a high

For British festivals, Summer 2021 will go down as a qualified triumph, in the face of unparalleled logistical adversity. They’ve been disconnected from the usual supply of international stars thanks to ongoing travel restrictions, refused government-backed insurance to cover for cancellation, and ever tossed on the waves of relentless public-health uncertainty – anyone who pulled off an outdoor weekender this year really deserves a knighthood.

Isle of Wight organiser John Giddings suffered more than most: his original dates in mid-June fell just the wrong side of lockdown lifting, so requiring a complete rebooking for mid-September, and losing big draws like Happy Mondays in the process.

Come the opening Thursday, however, victory was within grasp, as the Red Arrows flew overhead, and Giddings declared his Seaclose Park site “safer than a supermarket”, bathed in unfailing sunshine, and packed to its revised capacity of 50,000 with rainbow-themed revellers, with only a couple of minor acts pulling out due to isolation protocols.

Inevitably, IoW21’s musical fare had the air of wartime rations about it, as, last in the queue, it presented domestic-only attractions recycled from preceding events. Emerging names bumped up the bill, such as turquoise-booted pop belter Becky Hill, were excruciatingly out of their depth, and it was left to a seasoned pro like Tom Jones, 81 years young, to carry the day.

Sporting a remarkable jacket juxtaposing camouflage with traditional tweed, the hardy crooner flexed his ageless tonsils over all the obligatory classics, including Delilah rendered à la Tex-Mex by his rootsy combo. Newer material from his Johnny Cash-style twilight makeover, such as I Won’t Crumble with You if You Fall, brought a reverent hush to the main field, as the veteran offered words of strength in challenging circumstances.

It’s unlikely that Jones, as he’d jokingly predicted pre-show, ended up poaching Liam Gallagher’s fanbase, but the erstwhile Oasis frontman similarly wheeled out the trusty weaponry of vintage hits including Rock’n’Roll Star, Cigarettes & Alcohol, and a rousing Stand by Me, aided by his old band’s guitarist, Paul “Bonehead” Arthurs, and three female backing singers.

For Acquiesce, he enlisted the audience to sing the chorus originally handled by his elder brother Noel. “The little fella who normally does the backing vocals is at home, counting his money,” Gallagher Jr spat, treating the crowd to their own special slice of British rock’s most notorious fraternal argument. And there was further drama overnight, when Liam Tweeted a picture of his own face bandaged and bruised, claiming that he “fell out the helicopter” on his way home.

Otherwise, rock’n’roll hijinx were kept to a minimum, as a succession of younger acts struggled to impress across the remaining two days. It was left to Duran Duran to close out the Sunday night with a dazzle of screens, star magnetism and priapically vigorous singalongs, including Planet Earth, Save A Prayer and The Wild Boys. In truth, the absolute highlight from white-suited Simon Le Bon and his gang was their smirkingly self-parodying take on the early-rap nugget White Lines (Don’t Do It) – these ’80s pin-ups remain unrepentant about their druggy excesses back in the day.

As ticker tape blasted from the stage for the climactic Rio, however, this festival all about survival, and survivors, went out on a high.