Blur's Olympic Closing Concert Released Digitally

Blur's headlining Hyde Park gig this weekend, which helped close the 2012 London Olympics, has been released digitally on iTunes. A CD and DVD release is set for the coming months as well.

According to a statement, the famed Britpop group teamed up with Abbey Road's Live Here Now service to make the show – cheekily titled ParkLive – available online within 24 hours of the sold-out performance.

Next week, a limited edition CD of the show will be available to purchase on Blur's website. The two-disc set will also include unreleased live tracks from recent warm-up shows.

To top it all off, a five-disc deluxe set will be released in November that includes three CDs of show audio, plus a DVD of the show and a CD comprised of tracks from a recent show at the 100 Club in London. The box set will also come with a hardcover book with 60 pages of photographs from both concerts.

According to Gigwise, Blur frontman Damon Albarn revealed in a recent chat with Absolute Radio that the group was paid just £300 (about $470) for the Hyde Park concert. "When you divide that between four and add publishing, management and tax, it’s down to about a quid," said Albarn. "But that’s not why you agree to do it."

The frontman added, "It gives us a chance to play to a lot of people in London. In the sense of the Olympics, it’s nice to get involved and celebrate this amazing city. Everyone’s feeling pretty good about London, and I’m there with that because I love this city."