Newbury Racecourse unveils its first stand alone concert

Rock legend Rod Stewart announced as first Newbury LIVE act

Newbury Racecourse has announced it will be launching itself as a stand-alone concert venue, Newbury LIVE and is delighted to welcome as the first Newbury LIVE act, Rock and Roll Hall of Famer and Grammy™ Living Legend Rod Stewart on Bank Holiday Sunday 29 May 2011. Tickets went on sale on Tuesday 8th February at 9am at www.newbury-racecourse.co.uk/Newburylive and are selling fast.

With an estimated 250 million in album, single and download sales, Stewart is one of the most successful performers of all time and Newbury LIVE is one of only four gigs he will be playing in the UK in 2011.

This will be the first time that Newbury Racecourse has staged a concert not connected to its horseracing fixtures. The Party in the Paddock events, which feature live music after racing have been hugely popular. Last summer Westlife played to a modern day record crowd of 30,000 and these events have highlighted what a fantastic concert venue the racecourse is. As part of a long term strategy, the racecourse is planning to introduce a series of premium music and comedy events on non racedays offering seated, standing and dining ticket options, branded Newbury LIVE.

Newbury LIVE concert goers will have a range of options to view and enjoy Stewart’s characteristically throaty, impressively expressive, and surprisingly versatile voice along with hits such as Maggie May, Baby Jane, I am Sailing, and Do Ya think I’m Sexy? Concert ticket and packages range from a delicious dinner before the concert in one of the fine dining restaurants offering excellent viewing, to seated and standing viewing. Conveniently located on Junction 13 of the M4 the racecourse venue is also easily accessible via major road networks as well as Newbury Racecourse train station providing direct links to the racecourse from London and the West Country.

Stewart came to prominence in the late 1960s and early 1970s, he launched his solo career in 1969 with his debut album An Old Raincoat Won't Ever Let You Down and is one of the best selling artists of all time. With his career in its fifth decade, he has garnered six consecutive number one albums in the UK, and his tally of 62 hit singles include 31 that reached the top 10, six of which gained the number one position. He was voted at 33 in Q Magazine's list of the top 100 Greatest Singers of all time. In 1994, Stewart was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and since then has enjoyed huge success with the "Great American Songbook" albums, which began in 2001 with It Had to Be You..., and is the biggest selling ongoing series of new music recordings in history, with over seventeen million copies sold worldwide.