HISTORY
Hard Rock Calling (formerly Hyde Park Calling) is an annual music festival held in Hyde Park, London, which first took place on Saturday July 1 and Sunday July 2, 2006. The music played is primarily rock music, and various performers, including The Who, Aerosmith, Neil Young and Bruce Springsteen have played at the event. The festival is organised by Hard Rock Cafe and Live Nation.
The inaugural festival had two stages, and was headlined by Roger Waters (performing in its entirety the Pink Floyd album The Dark Side of the Moon as part of his set) and his band (featuring Pink Floyd drummer Nick Mason) on the Saturday and The Who on the Sunday. Gates opened at 14:00 and the show ended at 22:15 on both evenings. The Who's Sunday headline performance was released as part of their Encore Series 2006 of CDs & DVDs.
The festival was a peaceful one (in part probably because of the older demographic that the headline acts were targeting). Being inside the city the event required attendees to rely on external accommodation - unlike more popular festivals such as Download Festival or Reading and Leeds Festival, which require camping on site for most people.
Despite the veteran status of the headline acts, most other bands were younger and with a more 'contemporary' audience, providing a contrast in musical styles. Since this festival, Razorlight particularly has acquired much fame and in under a year has gone from second slot in a smaller inaugural event like Hyde Park Calling to headlining the long-running and respected Reading/Leeds Festival. The festival main stage proved to be unusually British, with the British Isles being represented by seven English bands and one Scottish, with only one American and one New Zealand band from abroad. However of the ten second stage bands, three were from Canada and two from the USA.
Hard Rock Calling - Line Up 2011
The Killers, Kaiser Chiefs, James, Michael Kiwanuka, The Kills, Good Natured, Transfer, The Heartbreaks, Bon Jovi, Ray Davies, Black Cards, Lissie, Vintage Trouble, Imelda May, Ryan Bingham, Gianna Nannini, Evaline, Rainy Boy Sleep, Rosco Bandana, The Breakers, The Launderettes, The Contrast, Yellow Wire, Red, White & Blues, Lee Macdougall, Rod Stewart, Stevie Nicks, Adam Ant, Rumer, Train, Gugun Blues Shelter, Lighthouse Family, Mike And The Mechanics, Barenaked Ladies, James Walsh, Jay James Picton, Stefany June, Iamwe, Vetiver, Zze, Alessi, Cashier No.9, Gabriella Jones
Hard Rock Calling - Line Up 2010
PEARL JAM, Ben Harper & Relentless7, The Hives, The Gaslight Anthem, Robert Francis, Gomez, Funeral Party, Chief, Expatriate, Paul Thomas Saunders, STEVIE WONDER, Jamiroquai, James Morrison, Corinne Bailey Rae, Mary Mary, Micki Free American Horse, Melissa Etheridge, Alejandro Escovedo, Florence Rawlings, Rox, Rumer, Diane Birch, Maria Mena, PAUL MCCARTNEY, Crosby, Stills & Nash, Crowded House, Elvis Costello, Joshua Radin, More Than Me, The Breakers, The Cocktail Slippers, The Len Price 3, The Urban Voodoo Machine, Tiffany Page, Lissie, The Coronas, Delta Maid, Joe Echo plus many many more.....