Rolling Stones 2012?

[ericm]

I was thinking of taking my lifelong best friend, but if they pulled you aside, it might increase my chances if I have a lovely young lady with me instead.

I think there is probably a bit of truth to this.  There was definitely no shortage of ladies in the Pit (and my wife was looking pretty good last night!) I'm sure that increased our chances. 

The way it went down was that you got into a specific will call line that was set up only for folks who had the $85 tickets.  There was a table set up with about 5 or 6 people processing the tickets, with one person with a master list of all the names.  They would just check your ID, cross your name of the master list and hand you a blank envelope from the pile that had 2 random tickets in it.  I was being fun and interactive with the girl who checked my ID, and told her how excited we were to be seeing the stones tonight, and made a comment about how I was feeling really lucky...hoping for some amazing seats.  She checked my ID, crossed my name off the list and asked me to step to the side for a moment, she kept my ID, and then went on with processing others.  Other people got handed envelopes and went in the venue, while we just stood there.  At this point I was starting to get pretty excited because this was the process that I had read online that happened to others that got pits at the previous shows.  After about 5 minutes some other guy got my ID from the girl at the desk, called my name and pulled us aside and handed us 2 pit tickets.  Our two other groups of friends each came about 10 minutes after, I called them and told them to be as nice as possible and act happy, but no such luck for them.

Sounds like a great time,and had also heard similar things. Thanks for filling me in on the deetz as I wasn't sure if the way others said it went down was true, or just an isolated thing. 

Looks like my buddy is shit out of luck now.  Definitely going with  the pretty lady plan! 

[Shug]

I was at the 2nd Anaheim show 2 nights ago.  I'm no fan of Dave Grohl's own bands, but I love his energy and attitude, especially when he's playing with Tom Petty or Rush or The Stones or Page and Plant.  He's become a torchbearer for classic rock and I love that.  He was on fire last night and Bitch was a definite highlight of the night.


But the Stones by themselves are on fire, too.  The pay per view from Brooklyn and the show last night showed me a band that is playing better than they have at the shows I was at all through the 90s and one that is still living up to their reputation as one of the greatest rock bands of all time.  They are well-rehearsed and functioning as a pretty tight rock ensemble, playing the songs at the right tempos and staying true to the spirit and arrangements of the studio versions.  Keef and Ronnie ripped some real nice solos, but the interaction between the musicians was top notch.  Seems like they are really trying to play their best  and listening to one another.  For quite a few songs, both Ronnie and Keef were on Les Pauls and it really beefed up the guitar sound and made a nice contrast to the twangy, thin twin Telecasters sound that we usually got from those two for the last 30 years or so.  Grohl played a Gibson and Mick Taylor played a Les Paul on Midnight Rambler and Satisfaction and anytime there were three Gibsons being played at once, it made a fat fat beautiful guitar noise.  The three guitar blend on an extended Midnight Rambler was fantastic!  And goddamn but the choir on You Can't Always Get What You Want was majestic and flawless, as was the french horn player, just gorgeous music, doing that fine song justice.  Lisa Fischer belted her part in Gimme Shelter, too, goosebumps!  I was thrilled to hear Wild Horses, good country twang on that one.

The only disappointment was that Mick Taylor is only playing on two songs.  That is a fucking crime in my book. 



We had also heard about the pit tickets possibly going to the well dressed and good looking so LD and I put a little extra effort into dressing up. Three pairs of folks in line with us pulled pit tickets and two were a couple of ordinary dudes and then a-not-very-attractive or well-dressed pair of ladies.  It seemed pretty random, the pit tickets were in the same stacks of envelopes as the crappy seats.  I didn't see any lower level seats handed out. 

We ended up with what were arguably the shittiest seats in the house, bad luck in the $85 lottery.  Even though we were the last two seats of the very last row, almost behind the stage, we still had a great time! It was actually kinda cool to be able to see the entire arena react as one organism to Mick's rock 'n' roll posturing.  You could also see the whole stage in one view and look at the screens, so you got close ups if you wanted em and could see how the band was interacting.  People around us were cool, friendly and talkative before the show, didn't talk during the music, and stood up and rocked out for the entire concert, just perfect.


The Stones are amazingly playing as good as they have in the past 30 years.  I can't believe they can still do it at their ages.  Holy shit, the Stones still got it.  Go see 'em!

[walterfredo]

Interesting that the pits were in the stack of envelopes because that certainly wasn't the case for the first few shows, but it definitely seems more fair to make it completely random. 

[Shug]

I guess they figured they couldn't be that blatant about hand-picking who gets into the pit, so they decided to make it random after the first few shows.  Glad you guys got lucky, those are nice photos, walter.

Of course, one show later after the show I see, the Stones decide to add in two more Mick Taylor songs, Sway and Can't You Hear Me Knocking.  Also threw in All Down The Line and Far Away Eyes.   Now that is a setlist!  At least we got the only Wild Horses of the tour so far, that was my first from the Stones and poignant for me, as a Gram Parsons fan.



RS SETLIST LOS ANGELES #2 May 20, 2013

Get Off Of My Cloud
It's Only Rock 'N' Roll (But I Like It)
Paint It Black
Gimme Shelter
All Down The Line
Faraway Eyes
Sway (By Request – with Mick Taylor)
Doom And Gloom
One More Shot
Can't You Hear Me Knocking (with Mick Taylor)
Honky Tonk Women
You Got The Silver (with Keith on lead vox)
Before They Make Me Run (with Keith on lead vox)
Midnight Rambler (with Mick Taylor)
Miss You
Start Me Up
Tumbling Dice
Brown Sugar
Sympathy For The Devil

ENCORE

You Can't Always Get What You Want (with the University of  Southern California Thornton Chamber Singers)
Jumpin' Jack Flash
(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction

[oistheone]

Good lord, that's my dream setlist right there. No guests, more Mick Taylor, that's what I'm talking about! Glad they finally decided to blow the dust off Sway and Can't You Hear Me Knockin' -- right before the show I'm about to see, no less! Praying these nuggets find a way to stick around!

[walterfredo]

Great set! Would have loved to have heard sway as well as far away eyes.

Shug, FYI...they also played wild horses at the first show of the tour at staples.

[ericm]

Lovin that latest setlist, and MT on three tunes!!!    If they keep that up it's going to be enough for me to go to Philly 1 as well as Philly 2.

I signed up for the email alert for a release of more $85's for Philly 1, and definitely going to pull the trigger if I can score a pair of those,especially if MT will be playing more.

[MrWhippy]

Lovin that latest setlist, and MT on three tunes!!   If they keep that up it's going to be enough for me to go to Philly 1 as well as Philly 2.

I signed up for the email alert for a release of more $85's for Philly 1, and definitely going to pull the trigger if I can score a pair of those,especially if MT will be playing more.

Yes, with two of those tunes with Mick Taylor being Sway and Can't You Hear Me Knocking  .  I think that just pushed me over the edge of having to see this tour, either Philly or DC. 

I'm definitely going to be a bottom feeder on tix, though, and wait in hopes of picking up lower level seats after they slash the prices as they have done thus far at many shows.

[ericm]

Lovin that latest setlist, and MT on three tunes!!   If they keep that up it's going to be enough for me to go to Philly 1 as well as Philly 2.

I signed up for the email alert for a release of more $85's for Philly 1, and definitely going to pull the trigger if I can score a pair of those,especially if MT will be playing more.

Yes, with two of those tunes with Mick Taylor being Sway and Can't You Hear Me Knocking  .  I think that just pushed me over the edge of having to see this tour, either Philly or DC. 

I'm definitely going to be a bottom feeder on tix, though, and wait in hopes of picking up lower level seats after they slash the prices as they have done thus far at many shows.

I hear ya Jon. I'm also keeping an eye on a slashed priced ticket for Philly 1. I'm thinking there will be some with that show being on a Tuesday night, and still plenty of real nice seats (at current high $$$) available. Philly 2 is a Friday night, and if you decide to go, give me a shout. 

If you want to sign up for an email alert for a release of more $85 tix, here's a link. It seems those being notified is as random as the ticket seating as it seems not everyone gets notified. Still worth a shot if you're interested though.

http://www.rollingstones.com/85-dollar-tickets/

[ericm]

Can't You Hear Me Knocking:

http://m.youtube.com/#/watch?v=VWTZZfS1jhE&desktop_uri=%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DVWTZZfS1jhE


Sway:

http://m.youtube.com/#/watch?v=kkRhJDnudsc&desktop_uri=%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DkkRhJDnudsc

[oistheone]

Just a few hours 'till the Toronto show starts -- very excited!

Carrie Underwood is the special guest. Was hoping for something a little more special, but it could be a lot worse. At least she's got some pipes!

I'm praying for "Can't You Hear Me Knockin'" but not getting my hopes up. ericm, those vids are killer!

[ericm]

Just a few hours 'till the Toronto show starts -- very excited!

Carrie Underwood is the special guest. Was hoping for something a little more special, but it could be a lot worse. At least she's got some pipes!

I'm praying for "Can't You Hear Me Knockin'" but not getting my hopes up. ericm, those vids are killer!

I dug em too, especially CYHMK. I hope you get it tonight, and it stays in the setlist for the rest of the tour. 

I have a few friends going tonight, and hope all of you get a kick-ass Saturday night show.    

[ericm]

Any Stones fans in the Boston area looking to go tomorrow night? If so a release of more $85 seats is going on now. Go get em! 

http://www.rollingstones.com/tickets/

[Jpugdawg]

Hey Eric we got $85 tix to last nights Boston show one day before , didn't score 'tongue pit' but our seats were pretty great considering.I would suggest anyone on the fence to go for it! Gary Clark Jr joined for Going Down,Mick Taylor on Sway & Midnight Rambler. You got the silver with Keith on vocals was another highlight. Jagger brought out a Bruins game shirt with his name on it. Keith mentioned" Boston strong" in reference to the marathon bombing.
For me Midnight Rambler was the peak of the show....

[ericm]

Hey Eric we got $85 tix to last nights Boston show one day before , didn't score 'tongue pit' but our seats were pretty great considering.I would suggest anyone on the fence to go for it! Gary Clark Jr joined for Going Down,Mick Taylor on Sway & Midnight Rambler. You got the silver with Keith on vocals was another highlight. Jagger brought out a Bruins game shirt with his name on it. Keith mentioned" Boston strong" in reference to the marathon bombing.
For me Midnight Rambler was the peak of the show....

Nice one. Can't beat that. I heard a lot of peeps with the $85's last night got nice seats.   Glad you liked the show, and Midnight Rambler in Newark last December was a highlight for me too. That and Bruce joining them for Tumbling Dice.

I'll be going next Friday in Philly,and have the $85 tix. Fingers crossed for a lucky draw, but if not I'm still gonna have a blast. I'll be seeing the Rolling Stones again! How can that not be a great night?    Hoping to get Mick Taylor playing a few more tunes this time.

[Jpugdawg]

Bruce with the Stones? That must have been great!Our pals scored upper balcony very last row in the place but hung with us  and no one showed up to claim their seats.the $85 draw just adds to the excitement of the night.

[ericm]

Fantastic show last night in Philly!! Well done by all who voted for Can't You Hear Me Knocking! That song and Midnight Rambler were the highlights for me, and so glad to see Mick Taylor ripping it up, and getting on stage for more than just MR. Also really dug Gimme Shelter. The whole show really rocked, and personally thought Keef was the 3rd best guitarist on stage last night, at least until towards the end when he seemed to have really warmed up, and let loose a bit. Still great, but Mick Taylor, and Ronnie Wood were ripping all night,IMO.

I thought the set was a tad longer than a standard set,  but I could be wrong. It seemed they threw in a couple more In Tumbling Dice, and When The Whip Comes Down.

Not much luck in the $85 draw. Next to last row in an upper level corner, but we had a rocking section, great sight line, and crystal clear sound. Obviously would've loved being closer, but no complaints from me.

Fun time for sure, and although only for a quick couple of minutes, I got to see Mr. Whippy pre show for a little chat. Great to see you as always Jon, and sorry we couldn't get together longer. Next time for sure.

Here's hoping the return in the Fall rumors are true. Fingers crossed for an MSG run! 

[Shug]

Fantastic show last night in Philly!! Well done by all who voted for Can't You Hear Me Knocking! That song and Midnight Rambler were the highlights for me, and so glad to see Mick Taylor ripping it up, and getting on stage for more than just MR.

Here's hoping the return in the Fall rumors are true. Fingers crossed for an MSG run! 

I voted for Can't You Hear Me, so you're welcome! 

I did not hear those rumors, I hope they are true!  I'd go again in a heartbeat.  Dying to hear Can't You Hear Me Knockin' and Sway. 

[ericm]

Fantastic show last night in Philly!! Well done by all who voted for Can't You Hear Me Knocking! That song and Midnight Rambler were the highlights for me, and so glad to see Mick Taylor ripping it up, and getting on stage for more than just MR.

Here's hoping the return in the Fall rumors are true. Fingers crossed for an MSG run! 

I voted for Can't You Hear Me, so you're welcome! 

I did not hear those rumors, I hope they are true!  I'd go again in a heartbeat.  Dying to hear Can't You Hear Me Knockin' and Sway.

Thanks Shug!     I voted for it about 8 times. it was fantastic, and the highlight of the night for me, no question. Midnight Rambler was great too, but I saw that in December, so getting CYHMK last night too was really special.

I got to hang pre show  with a bunch of big time Stones fans at their forum tailgate, and holy shit was that a party! Had to be a couple hundred strong with people from all over the world, and walks of life. More than a few seemed to be " in the know" and felt real confident this won't be the last go round. They're expecting some fall dates, with an MSG run included. I'll keep you posted if I hear anything, and like you, I won't hesitate to go again.

[MrWhippy]

Great to see you last night Eric, if only briefly.

Cool that we talked about Can't You Hear Me Knocking before the show a bit and then it came to be!  Hands down the highlight of the night for me. 

Thanks Eric and Shug for voting for that song.  I didn't know anything about the request a song slot (Presented by Citi ) before the show, so that was a surprise.

Great show and I'm glad I got to see them again, but even with getting a ticket for less than half off the original face value for the seat, I can't say it was great value for the money.  They are all still playing really well and their production is absolutely top notch, but even at the discount my ticket was an order of magnitude more than what I paid to see Kylesa a couple nights earlier, and I can't say that the Stones rocked my world an order of magnitude more than Kylesa did. 

At some point, though, you have to sometimes put money aside to the degree possible and realize that we still have a chance to see the Rolling Stones more than 50 years into their career, which is insane.