Olympics Hyde Park concert will be just a Blur

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Eric Garcia

Washington Bureau Chief

Those with tickets to the 100m final will not be the only ones whose Olympic memories will be a decided Blur. Damon Albarn's London band have been confirmed as headliners for a concert in Hyde Park at which the closing ceremony will be shown on big screens.

"We're rowing in, going for gold, grabbing the baton, for the high jump," the band announced on their Facebook page. "No, hang on, is that right? Fact is, Blur have accepted the invite to headline the Olympics' Closing Ceremony Celebration Concert in Hyde Park on 12th August."

New Order and the Specials complete the line-up for the concert, which organisers have dubbed "The Best of British." Tickets go on sale from 9am on Friday, and are expected to cost around £50.

It will be the first time that the celebrated Britpop act, who sang Parklife and Country House in the mid-nineties, have performed as a foursome since their famed reunion gigs in 2009, one of which was also at Hyde Park.

Lead singer Albarn told NME magazine: "Hopefully it won't take quite as long to learn all the songs again this time. For me personally, it's a very sober regime. I have to clean my act up completely. I can't perform with the right intensity unless I do."

British acts will be at a premium this summer, with the concerts coming weeks after Gary Barlow's concert for the Diamond Jubilee, at which Sir Paul McCartney, Dame Shirley Bassey and Sir Elton John will all perform.

The line-up for the Olympics opening ceremony concert will be announced in the next two to three weeks. Then there is the matter of the ceremonies themselves. Director Danny Boyle has said that "a lot" of acts were interested in being involved, but he has remained tight lipped on precsiely whom.

The Rolling Stones guitarist Ronnie Wood said the band had been asked, but a representative for the band has since stated they will not be performing at any concerts connected to the Olympics.

Blur were also scheduled to perform last night at the Brit Awards 2012, where they collected the award for 'Outstanding Contribution to Music'.