MANCHESTER, Tenn. (AP) – Jack Johnson says he hopes next year, he and his band will be playing with Mumford & Sons – instead of subbing for them. Johnson stepped in at the last minute at the Bonnaroo Music & Arts Festival for Mumford & Sons – which pulled out after bass player Ted Dwane had surgery to treat a blood clot on his brain. The folk-rock group chose to withdraw rather than go on with a sub. After taking the stage for his set on Saturday, Johnson dedicated the performance to Dwane and the rest of Mumford & Sons. Johnson got a call Thursday to take over the Saturday night headliner slot. After agreeing, he had to get his group to town and squeeze in some practice before the show. Johnson apologized for a flub during the end of their set, jokingly reminding the audience that his band had little time to rehearse.
Sometimes, even Paul McCartney gets wowed by a concert experience. He paused during his set at Bonnaroo on Friday, wrapped his arms around his Hofner bass and told the crowd, “Hey, listen, I’m going to take a moment just to drink all this in for myself.” McCartney’s set included rarely played songs like “Lovely Rita” and “Mean Mr. Mustard.” Someone in the crowd threw a stuffed walrus toy onto the stage, and McCartney put it on his piano and closed the show with “Carry That Weight.”
You could say of all the acts at the Bonnaroo music festival in Tennessee, R. Kelly stood the tallest. But not necessarily because of his music. At one point in his set, the lights went dark and the next time fans saw the R&B singer, he was standing in the basket of a crane 40 feet above the stage. R. Kelly’s performance of the song “Ignition” also featured dozens of chorus members.
