When they took the stage at Glastonbury in 1999,
Travis were a relatively popular band. Their first album, 1997's
Good Feeling, had sold fairly well and they had recently released a new record,
The Man Who, that featured a more mature, thoughtful sound. It also contained their first great song, "Why Does It Always Rain on Me?" The band's set turned them from hopefuls into an instant success when, after a solid start, the skies suddenly opened as the band began playing "Why Does It Always Rain on Me?," drenching the crowd and making for a legendary moment. Their performance and the press coverage of it helped propel the "Rain" single and album to the top spot on the charts and turned the band's fortunes around. The next year they were big enough to headline Glastonbury. The show was recorded and finally saw official release 20 years later in 2019. It's a fun time capsule; the band sound like they're having a blast playing to a big crowd and the songs have a rough-edged charm that is quite different from the smooth sound of their albums. They have a wiry looseness and
Fran Healy pushes his vocals to the edge of his range, especially on fiery takes of "All I Wanna Do Is Rock" and the giddy rocker "Yeah Yeah Yeah." Thanks to the BBC, the sound quality of the recording is top-notch and
Live at Glastonbury '99 is a lovely belated gift for fans. ~ Tim Sendra