Lynard Skynyrd, Rolling Stones and many more… Live In Knebworth 1976 DVD – Various Artists 

The Knebworth Festivals that took place between 1974 and 1979 were seen as some of the most exciting one day festival bills in the seventies. The Festivals were masterminded by promoter Freddie Bannister who was the man behind the famous Bath Festivals of 1969 and 1970 and also the Lincoln Folk Festival in 1971. The 1976 Knebworth Fayre was a particularly exciting affair as the headline band was to be The Rolling Stones. The event took place on the 21st of August 1976 at the height of an unusually hot summer in the UK. Negotiations had been taking place since the early part of the year and an approach was made to the Rolling Stones. The Stones had already announced a series of concerts during the summer of 1976 in Europe which included concerts at London’s Earls Court. An unprecedented demand for tickets saw more than a million applications for the tickets to these concerts. Knebworth allowed those who weren’t successful in acquiring tickets a chance to see the Stones in the delightful surroundings of Knebworth Park. Also on the Bill were The Don Harrison Band Hot Tuna Todd Rundgren’s Utopia Lynyrd Skynyrd and 10cc who played their final concert that day with the original line up. The DVD also includes rare footage from the festival featuring 10cc Lynyrd Skynyrd and of course the Rolling Stones who played one of the longest live sets of their career that hot August night in 1976. In this in depth interview promoter Freddie Bannister casts his eye over the performances and gives his critical review of the concert and the events leading up to the concerts which included providing tickets for the men’s singles tennis final at Wimbledon for Mick Jagger. You will also hear that Freddie Bannister did also consider another huge British Rock band for Knebworth 1976 before confirming the Rolling Stones as headliners.