George Ezra gives some pointless instructions as he performs as the main act at the Latitude Festival.
He explains to the audience, "Halfway through this song, I'm going to introduce you to some words and we're going to sing them together. ".
There is no need to ask the audience. They already know how to operate. They have spent the entire day singing loudly.
Whether by chance or design, the festival's planners have scheduled a full day of singalongs. A selection of timeless classics and contemporary hits from Radio 2.
The headline act is Ezra, who is performing the final performance of his 18-month world tour.
However, Manchester indie band James, who were celebrating their 40th anniversary by reworking their back catalog with an orchestra and a gospel choir, performed on the main stage in Suffolk 12 hours earlier.
They get off to a strong start with a quiet rendition of Sit Down that clears the audience's minds of any campfire cobwebs.
According to frontman Tim Booth, "We came on at this time, where there wouldn't be any noise pollution, so we could do some of our more quiet songs.".
Unfortunately, they almost waste the goodwill by playing an obscure b-side, The Lake, and the track Dust Motes from their 2010 album as the closing songs. Even Booth acknowledges that these tracks will require "concentration and patience" from the audience, which begs the question of why they bothered.
However, everything comes to life when they play the hits, such as Tomorrow, Born of Frustration, and Laid. When a spectator yells, "Play Say Something!" the band, to his surprise, agrees.
Booth requests, "Don't tell anyone we took a request. "It would be awful if this became popular. ".
The standout song is Sometimes, which has a protracted chorus that alternates between the choir and the audience at the end. The band gathers in front of the stage to observe it as they are obviously moved by the response.
The stage manager agrees and gives them an additional 10 minutes to maintain the magic.
Following some high-energy pop kicks from Ireland's Picture This, The Bootleg Beatles take the stage with the somewhat unfair luxury of drawing from the best song catalog in the world to create their setlist.
Thankfully, they steer clear of Maxwell's Silver Hammer and start the album with mop top standards like Can't Buy Me Love, Twist and Shout, and Help before veering into the post-Pepper era with songs like I've Got A Feeling, Get Back, and Come Together.
With period-appropriate costume changes, they switch from being neatly dressed kids to shaggy-haired iconoclasts, illuminating the two halves.
The Bootleg John Lennon makes a joke about how LSD can change the way your hair looks.
Hey Jude, which (what else?) closes the set, generates more na-nas than Fyffes.
Sophie Ellis-Bextor performs a cover of Madonna's Like A Prayer, but she actually resembles a Ray of Light as she shimmies and high kicks around the stage, introducing herself to each audience member as streamers flutter from her epaulettes.
She completely disregards her new album in order to play a Kitchen Disco set that alternated her hits with covers of Moloko's Sing It Back and Mojo's Lady (Hear Me Tonight). This is in keeping with proper festival protocol.
But the moment she introduces her mother, former Blue Peter presenter Janet Ellis, who was sitting on the side of the stage, is when the audience's emotions reach their peak.
Sophie says, "This is her first festival ever.". It took me 25 years to persuade her to visit a field; seeing her is comparable to seeing the Queen. ".
The camera pans to Ellis wiping her eyes as she performs Young Blood, a song about the enduring love between her mother and stepfather John Leach, who passed away in 2020.
After a short break, Scottish rockers The Proclaimers take the stage, drawing a huge audience that is only there to sing along to (I'm Gonna Be) 500 Miles.
A smaller, younger, but no less enthusiastic crowd is cheering for newcomer Mimi Webb as they sing along to Red Flags and House on Fire while perched on their parents' shoulders.
The stage is invaded by Webb's parents, who give her a cake for her 23rd birthday and start an impromptu chorus of "Happy Birthday" from the audience.
The singer later acknowledged that her 2022 birthday wish had been to perform Latitude.
"I am so, so stoked to be here. That was my goal for this year. ".
With the youngest audience of the entire weekend, Ezra draws the biggest crowd. They dance around to his effortlessly upbeat pop songs while carrying glow sticks, bubble guns, and Pokemon hats.
Anyone For You, Budapest, and Paradise all hold the alluring promise of escape, a dream that everyone is desperately trying to hold onto as the festival comes to an end and they face the muck of the parking lot. It would take a hard heart to not feel warm to these songs.
A pin drops when he switches to Hold My Girl's sultry beauty, and the party spills outside the Obelisk arena as kids and adults dance around the food booths when he plays the upbeat Green Green Grass, which he describes as "a celebration of life.".
Although Ezra's job appears straightforward, creating upbeat pop songs is much more difficult than whining about being edgy. The audience cheers him on because we're all dreaming of a mountain top, not because they think he's cool.
at least the majority of us.
The BBC Sounds tent offers a noisy, jolting set from Black Midi and a rare opportunity to see Siouxsie Sioux, who is performing only her second UK show in ten years, to the audience who prefer something more visceral.
She moves beguilingly across the stage while pounding out the beats of goth-punk classics like Spellbound, Happy House, and Hong Kong Garden while wearing a silver jumpsuit.
She has to reprimand her devoted followers who are still trying to get close to her.
She says, "You're all packed in like sardines," and then starts singing Kiss Them For Me. You require space to dance.
Ezra is about to finish his speech back on the main stage.
This is our final performance after 18 months of touring with these songs, he declares. .
"Sharing it with you has been an absolute pleasure. ".
Then he starts singing Shotgun, one of his biggest and most popular songs, which is accompanied by explosions of fireworks and confetti as well as raised fists.
But Latitude didn't let their headliner have the final say, as if to make a point.
Break My Stride, a strange 1980s song by Matthew Wilder, begins to play as the audience leaves.
And for no apparent reason, that becomes Singalong Sunday's final chorus.
