July 6, 2009 15:56

Pete Doherty aborts onstage Michael Jackson tribute - video

'It's not working, is it?' the singer admits

Photo Gallery: Pete Doherty
Photo: Jacob Perlmutter

Pete Doherty paid tribute to Michael Jackson, who died last month, by attempting to cover the self-styled king of pop's 1983 hit 'Billie Jean'.

The Babyshambles frontman, playing a solo show at Roskilde Festival (July 5) in Denmark, managed roughly 15 seconds of the track before stopping and admitting to the crowd: "It's not working, is it?"

Watch fan-recorded video of Doherty's tribute by scrolling down now.

The declaration caused sections of the crowd to laugh, although a good-natured Doherty took it in his stride. "Well, good bless Michael Jackson anyway," he continued, before raising his hat to the singer.

Ironically, Doherty had managed to play a fairly straight version of 'Billie Jean' at Festival Beauregard in France on July 3 – although he again abandoned the track after roughly a minute, saying "sorry" to the crowd.

Later in his Festival Beauregard set, Doherty covered Neil Young's 'The Needle and The Damage Done', mixing the track with his own 'Merry-Go-Round'.

Watch Doherty's Michael Jackson tribute's below.