Foo Fighters play triumphant surprise set at Glastonbury - setlist and photos
A Churnup for the books!
Last updated 23rd Jun 2023
Foo Fighters performed a surprise set on The Pyramid Stage at Glastonbury this evening (23rd June) under their pseudonym The Churnups.
Back at the end of May, Glastonbury unveiled its full 3,000-strong line-up and listed a mystery band called The Churnups as playing The Pyramid Stage at 6.15pm on the Friday night.
The announcement sent the rumour mill into overdrive, with bands including Pulp, Tenacious D, Red Hot Chili Peppers, blur and Foo Fighters all rumoured for the coveted main stage slot.
The speculation that it was Foo Fighters intensified when Dave Grohl shared a thank you note to fans on 6th June following the band’s first shows with new drummer Josh Freese.
Alluding to The Churnups, Grohl wrote towards the end of the note: “… it feels good to see you, churning up these emotions together.”
Earlier this afternoon, Foo Fighters’ not-so-secret set was confirmed when a photograph of Dave Grohl holding a cup of coffee backstage was shared on Twitter.
Confirming their Glastonbury slot, Foo Fighters themselves then posted a photo of a 'Churn It Up' flag in the crowd in front of The Pyramid Stage.
An hour later, Foo Fighters duly took to The Pyramid Stage in front of a colossal crowd and launched into a riff-heavy rendition of ‘All My Life’ and a blistering ‘No Son of Mine’ featuring tantalising snippets of Metallica’s ‘Enter Sandman’ and Black Sabbath's 'Paranoid'.
After a suitably anthemic ‘Learn to Fly’, Dave Grohl told the audience, “we gotta keep going! We can’t stop!” before they dispatched ‘But Here We Are’ lead single ‘Rescued.’
Josh Freese's drum kit featured The Churnups band name in a death metal font alongside a hawk in homage to the late-great Taylor Hawkins.
Following 'The Pretender', Dave said: “Hi! You guys knew it was us this whole f---ing time! Well it's nice to see your face again, it’s been a long time.
"This is beautiful. Another beautiful day and a beautiful audience. I’ll make it short, they only gave us an hour so we’ve got to f--king pack it in..."
The ever-captivating frontman then led the 100,000 crowd into a powerful singalong of 'My Hero', yelling "f---ing louder! Let's go!"
Bringing out his daughter Violet, Dave then introduced the shoegazey 'Show Me How', saying: "This is a song we wrote for my mother (the late Virginia Hanlon Grohl who died in 2022), Violet's grandmother."
Naturally a band of Foo Fighters' calibre attracted not only an admiring crowd out front but also a host of watchers on stage. Paul McCartney could be seen applauding his former bandmate Grohl, whilst Dave emplored Chris Shiflett to shred a guitar solo, pointing to a shadowy figure weraing sunglasses in the wings and shouting "Slash is over there!"
The all-too-short set continued with a gargantuan sounding 'Best of You' - "We could do this all f---ing night!", screamed Dave.
Confirming Foo Fighters' 2024 UK tour plans, Dave said before the finale: "Well it's been nice to be here for 58 minutes and 22 seconds. We usually play this one as our way of saying goodbye because we never like to say goodbye.
"We're coming back next summer for a whole f---ing tour, so I'll see you guys again," Dave said.
The nine-song performance culminated with a pulsating and poignant 'Everlong', which Dave dedicated to his late band mate and best friend Taylor Hawkins.
See photos of Foo Fighters at Glastonbury 2023:
Foo Fighters at Glastonbury
Foo Fighters at Glastonbury
Foo Fighters at Glastonbury
Foo Fighters at Glastonbury
Foo Fighters at Glastonbury
Foo Fighters at Glastonbury
Foo Fighters at Glastonbury
Foo Fighters at Glastonbury
Foo Fighters at Glastonbury
The Glastonbury performance this evening came six years after Foo Fighters headlined The Pyramid Stage at Glastonbury.
Dave Grohl also made a surprise appearance during Paul McCartney’s set at Glastonbury in 2022, guesting on The Beatles’ ‘I Saw Her Standing There’ and Wings’ ‘Band on the Run’ before returning to the stage for the finale performance of ‘The End’ with McCartney’s other special guest Bruce Springsteen.
It’s not the first time Foo Fighters have adopted a pseudonym, as the band released the disco covers album ‘Hail Satin’ in July 2021 as The Dee Gees.
Foo Fighters’ setlist at Glastonbury 2023:
All My Life
No Son of Mine
Learn to Fly
Rescued
The Pretender
My Hero
Show Me How (with Violet Grohl)
Best of You
Everlong
The real names of 100 rock stars, including Foo Fighters' Pat Smear:
Cozy Powell’s real name: Colin Trevor Flooks
Alex Lifeson’s real name: Alexandar Živojinović
'Lifeson' is a semi-literal English translation of the Yugoslavian surname Živojinović, which means 'son of life'
Ginger Baker's real name: Peter Edward Baker
John 5’s real name: John William Lowery
Yngwie Malmsteen’s real name: Lars Johann Yngwie Lannerback
Rudy Sarzo’s real name: Rodolfo Maximiliano Sarzo Lavieille Grande Ruiz Payret y Chaumont
Eric Carr's real name: Paul Charles Caravello
Vinnie Vincent’s real name: Vincent John Cusano
Tina Turner’s real name: Anna Mae Bullock
King Diamond’s real name: Kim Bendix Petersen
Joey Tempest's real name: Rolf Magnus Joakim Larsson
Michael Monroe’s real name: Matti Antero Kristian Fagerholm
Mikkey Dee’s real name: Micael Kiriakos Delaoglou
Jonathan Cain’s real name: Jonathan Leonard Friga
Nikki Sixx's real name: Frank Ferrano
Steven Adler’s real name: Michael Coletti
Axl Rose's real name: William Bruce Rose
Bon Scott's real name: Ronald Belford Scott
Fish’s real name: Derek William Dick
Eddie Vedder's real name: Edward Louis Severson III
Peter Criss’ real name: George Peter John Criscuola
Freddie Mercury's real name: Farrokh Bulsara
Flea's real name: Michael Peter Balzary
Perry Farrell's real name: Perry Bernstein
Geddy Lee’s real name: Gary Lee Weinrib
Mick Mars' real name: Robert Deal
Tré Cool's real name: Frank Edwin Wright III
Courtney Love's real name: Courtney Michelle Harrison
Pat Smear's real name: Georg Albert Ruthenberg
Gene Simmons' real name: Chaim Klein Witz
Spike’s real name: Jonathan Gray
Iggy Pop's real name: James Newell Osterberg, JR.
Alice Cooper's real name: Vincent Damon Furnier
Slash's real name: Saul Hudson
Mike Dirnt's real name: Michael Ryan Pritchard
Ronnie James Dio's real name: Ronald James Padavona
Brody Dalle's real name: Bree Joanna Alice Robinson
Skin's real name: Deborah Anne Dyer
Nicky Wire's real name: Nicholas Jones
Amy Lee's real name: Amy Lynn Hartzler
Bill Wyman's real name: William Perks
Izzy Stradlin's real name: Jeffrey Isbell
Paul Stanley's real name: Stanley Eisen
Vince Neil's real name: Vincent Neil Wharton
Duff McKagan's real name: Michael McKagan
Jack Black’s real name: Thomas Jacob Black
Lemmy's real name: Ian Fraser Kilmister
John Paul Jones' real name: John Baldwin
Joan Jett's real name: Joan Larkin
Eric Clapton's real name: Eric Patrick Clapp
Siouxsie Sioux's real name: Susan Janet Ballion
Rachel Bolan’s real name: James Richard Southworth
David Bowie's real name: David Robert Hayward Stenton Jones
Little Richard's real name: Richard Wayne Penniman
Sid Vicious' real name: John Simon Ritchie
Ace Frehley's real name: Paul Daniel Frehley
Lou Reed's real name: Louis Firbank
Joe Strummer's real name: John Graham Mellor
Marc Bolan's real name: Mark Feld
The Edge's real name: David Howell Evans
Meat Loaf's real name: Marvin Lee Aday
Steven Tyler's real name: Steven Victor Tallarico
Ozzy Osbourne's real name: John Michael Osbourne
Jon Bon Jovi's real name: John Francis Bongiovi
Joey Belladonna’s real name: Joseph Bellardini
Jack White's real name: John Anthony Gillis
Bono's real name: Paul David Hewson
Sting's real name: Gordon Sumner
Billy Idol’s real name: William Michael Albert Broad
Geezer Butler’s real name: Terence Butler
Pat Benatar’s real name: Patricia Mae Giraldo
Bo Diddley’s real name: Ellas McDaniel
Muddy Waters’ real name: McKinley Morganfield
Stevie Nicks’ real name: Stephanie Lynn Nicks
Doro’s real name: Dorothee Pesch
Sebastian Bach’s real name: Sebastian Philip Bierk
Joe Perry’s real name: Joseph Pereira
Jimi Hendrix’s real name: James Marshall Hendrix (born Johnny Allen Hendrix)
Zakk Wylde’s real name: Jeffrey Phillip Wielandt
Maynard James Keenan’s real name: James Herbert Keenan
Blaze Bayley’s real name: Bayley Alexander Cooke
Biff Byford's real name: Peter Rodney Byford
M. Shadows' real name: Matthew Charles Sanders
Syd Barrett's real name: Roger Keith Barrett
Chris Jericho's real name: Christopher Keith Irvine
Ginger Wildheart's real name: David Leslie Walls
Paul Di'Anno's real name: Paul Andrews
Phil X’s real name: Theofilos Xenidis
Peter Green’s real name: Peter Allen Greenbaum
Nicko McBrain’s real name: Michael Henry McBrain
Noddy Holder’s real name: Neville John Holder
Steel Panther’s real names
Michael Starr: Ralph Michael Saenz, Satchel: Russell John Parrish, Stix Zadinia: Darren Leader, Spyder: Joe Lester.