Iconic British artists head to the Rock for annual music festival

The Gibraltar Music Festival returns to the Rock next month with three nights of international live music at the Europa Point Sports Arena. Featuring an impressive line of artists, each evening presents international acts alongside a host of local talent.

The festival began in 2012 and has since attracted world-renowned bands and artists such as The Kings of Leon, Take That, Duran Duran, Madness, Kaiser Chiefs, Bryan Ferry, Ricky Martín and Liam Gallagher, among others.

Once again, this year’s festival, which takes place between Thursday 3 and Saturday 5 September, focuses mainly on British musicians. The opening night features James Morrison, an English singer whose career took off in 2006 with his debut single You Give Me Something and who was nominated the 2007 Brit Award for Best British Male Artist. He will be joined by Gibraltar rock band Melon Diesel, who have achieved considerable success since forming in 1995.

Fans of 1980s and ‘90s British pop music will be in for a treat on Friday, when Tony Hadley, former vocalist of Spandau Ballet, takes to the stage. Known for his distinctive voice and performance style, Hadley will take the audience on a tour of his solo compositions, as well as some of the chart-topping hits of the iconic pop band, which included songs like True and Through the Barricades.

Also on the bill on Friday is Sophie Ellis-Bextor, the English singer and songwriter who rose to stardom in 2001 with hits such as Murder on the Dancefloor; and Rosario (daughter of legendary Spanish singer Lola Flores), a two-time Latin Grammy Award-winning singer and actress.

Nostalgic music continues on Saturday with 10cc, a band and musical project that was part of the bridge between 1960s pop and 1970s progressive music. Although there is only one founding member in the band today (Graham Gouldman), the group are sure to perform top hits like Rubber Bullets, The Wall Street Shuffle, I’m Not in Love and The Things We Do for Love.

Billy Ocean, the Trinidadian-British singer and songwriter, will also perform on Saturday. Ocean had a series of hit songs in the UK and internationally during the 1970s and ‘80s. These included Love Really Hurts Without You, Caribbean Queen and When the Going Gets Tough, the Tough Get Going.

Also appearing on Saturday are The Real Thing, England’s most successful Black soul act of the 1970s. The group began touring with British pop sensation David Essex and their success helped restore Liverpool’s musical reputation during the ‘70s. The band’s progressive, soul-influenced covers of American hits attracted considerable attention, eventually securing them a recording deal with EMI. This was followed by a string of top-ten hits, including You To Me Are Everything, Can’t Get By Without You and Can You Feel the Force?

Tickets are available for individual nights or as a full festival pass.

www.gibraltarmusicfestival.com/