Allison O'Donoghue. Editor. Journalist. Travel Writer. Blogger. ABN: 49 619 105 040: THE ROLLING STONES

THE ROLLING STONES

ON FIRE TOUR

ADELAIDE OVAL

26^th October 2014

Review by Allison O'Donoghue

I haven’t been this excited to see a band since I was a teenager. Unlike everyone else I know I’ve never seen The Rolling Stones before. My excitement turned to shocking disappointment when they cancelled due to the untimely death of Mick Jagger’s girlfriend, L’Wren Scott. Thankfully, the tour was rescheduled for a later date and luckily I held onto my ticket, secure in the belief (or wishful thinking) that they would return. The Rolling Stones are the first band to play at the newly refurbished Adelaide Oval so it was a test on all levels -crowd control, sound levels, noise compliance, seating and crowd manageability, and I’m pleased to report, all went swimmingly well.

I disembark the bus and merge with the throng all marching with animated excitement in one direction - to the Adelaide oval. The atmosphere was electric, not a term I often use when describing Adelaide, but the air was full of kismet energy. Happy, joyful, excited, animated and energised. It lifted us up and carried us along in a seamless flow. There was good will in the air too. I know, and I haven’t even reached the gig yet.

Adelaide Oval. Torrens River.

As I get closer, I can hear the not so dulcet tones of Jimmy Barnes belting out a tune, enveloping the surrounds of the Torrens River, already lined with punters with picnic baskets settling in for a night of free music. I would have done the same if I hadn’t got a ticket, and it was dodgy, it sold out fast. I meandered my way through the swelling crowd to the front gate, breezed through easily then set about searching for my seat, I’m not too disappointed when I find it, any further to the left and I wouldn’t have a very good view, from up here I can survey the scene from a great height.

Barnsey is still going hard. Not bad for a guy who was recently discharged from hospital from a suspected heart attack. The crowd may have been slightly distracted finding their seats, getting drinks, meeting up with mates and chatting excitedly, but they paid Jimmy respect and applauded loudly at the end of every song and erupted when he launched into Flame Trees and the Last Train To Sydney had people up on their feet. He should be pleased with his performance, the band played tight and he sounded great. Good on you Barnsey. You’re our institution.

Jimmy Barnes in action.

Jimmy Barnes.

The anticipation is building. I know, a cliché’ but its true. I can feel the tension rise as the clock ticks down, and right on time The Rolling Stones launch into Jumpin Jack Flash to the deafening roar of 54,000 people. You hear them before you see them, as smoke billows from the stage, a good devise to build more tension. No need, we're all willing and determined to enjoy every second. They emerge through the smoke to rapturous applause, and deploy another clever devise, play one song after another, no small talk, no endless words of wisdom or pontificating, just straight into Lets Spend The Night Together then they smash us with Its Only Rock n Roll before Mick finally addresses the captive audience to apologise for the postponement. “So sorry Adelaide for the delay. Thank you so much for being patient. It’s great to be here and to be the first band to play the new Adelaide oval. At least we gave the concrete time to set” You’re forgiven. They then play Tumbling Dice. I hope that’s not a prediction. This is a test remember to see if the new stands can withstand a crowd of this size. So far so good.

The Rolling Stones in action.

Orderly Adelaide crowd.

At this point I switch off my camera and put down my phone, stop observing and start absorbing the music. Besides, I’ve got a mediocre camera and I’m too far away for my phone to capture a decent shot.

Thank god for the big screens.

As the moving camera roves around each iconic band member, and their images flashed up on the two massive screens flanked either side of the stage, a strange familiar feeling washes over me. Its like I know them, but of course I don’t. They’re like wayward uncles you haven’t seen for years, but proudly strutting their stuff on a massive stage that render them the size of midgets. Thank god for the big screens otherwise it’d be like watching colourful ants. My seat was further than I would have liked. No matter, I’m here. I may never see them again and they may never tour our shores again, for a while.

We all sing along to Wild Horses, which is warmly received, then Mick introduces a song I wasn’t familiar with Doom & Gloom. On their official FB page they asked punters to vote for a song they’d like to hear and apparently Adelaide voted for Like A Rolling Stone written by Bob Dylan, who is “ok when you get to know him,” says Mick. It’s a surprising choice when you consider their huge repertoire.

Colourful ants.

They sing another unfamiliar tune, Out Of Control featuring the full throttle vocals of backup singer Lisa Fisher and Bernard Fowler. This song also brought in the saxophone players, Bobby Keys (RIP sadly Bobby passed away on the 2/12/14 during the European tour), Tim Reece and tenor sax player Karl Tensor. So far Mick has done most of the running around, up and down the runway, the same runway used at the UK Hyde Park gig they did recently. Ronnie, Keef and Bill were seen on the big screen every now and then, but now Ronnie and Keef merge out into a joyous crowd, greeted with a huge applause. They are so loved, no doubt about it.

I’m surprised I know the lyrics to almost all their songs and Honky Tonk Woman is no exception. The Stones music is so deeply ingrained in my subconscious it only takes a few bars to bring up the lyrics. They’ve permeated my sense memory by osmosis, hearing these tunes over and over again in film, TV, on jukeboxes and from my own CD collection.

Mick looks like he’s flagging a little, I don’t blame him, he’s been going at it for over an hour, so he takes a break by introducing the whole aforementioned band as well as Daniel Jones on bass and Chuck Leavell on keyboards. He disappears off stage for another costume change, while Keith gives us a few tunes, Happy and I Can’t Be Seen With You. He doesn’t have a great voice, it’s raspy and slightly off key. So what, he’s a goddamn living legend and he’s right here in person belting out songs he’s penned himself and both of them poignant. He’s a happy man who has been through a lot and survived. Just read his book Life and you’ll get the picture. And of course, he can’t be seen with other women, he’s a married man with several kids living in Connecticut, NY. The beauty of music is it’s subjective. Its whatever you want it to be or what you project onto it. The place, time or situation you heard the song will flavour the sentiment, regardless of the intention of the song.

Bill Wyman on drums.

Mick Jagger strutting his stuff.

The interlude is over and Mick is back in a different glitter shirt, a silver jacket with his harmonica accompanied by Mick Taylor on guitar to give us a blueys track Everybody’s Got To Go. Another song depicting the party’s over, everyone’s warn-out there welcome, they’ve drunk all your liquor, smoked all your pot and trashed the joint – so get the hell out. We’ve all been there. But I hope its not a prelude to a countdown - they haven’t played the classics yet.

54,000 fill the Adelaide Oval.

Purple haze.

Mick tells us another story, and I’m taken aback by his strong British accent. You’d think after living in the US for over 30 years he’d at least roll his r’s but he doesn’t. He tells us they’ve been rehearsing in a refurbished mental institution for 10 days and remarks, “its an appropriate venue for us.” He’s talking about Glenside, which is still a psychiatric institution but is also the shared home of the South Australian Film Corp, where they’ve been rehearsing on one of the large sound stages. I’m surprised they need to rehearse at all surely they’d know these songs backwards, but it’s fantastic they haven’t rested on their laurels, which they could. Mick tells us “we’ve had a great time in Adelaide, we really have. I really mean that. We’ve tasted loads of different foods crocodile and frog cake (whatever that is) and enjoyed every minute of it.” Well, you’d never know, they’re all so skinny they look like they need a good feed.

Daniel Jones on bass.

Sympathy For The Devil.

Bathed in Red.

And just as I’m beginning to wonder when they’ll play the songs I really want to hear they blast-off with Miss You and have us singing the chorus. And I’ve got to say, with no bias, we sounded great, we sung in tune, and I think Mick was pleased. He said as much. And then its one hit after another with Gimme Shelter featuring Lisa Fisher, who ran up the runway singing the classic middle eight with Mick in tow. Brilliant. I recorded it but the bass was so loud it just reverberated. Then another classic Start Me Up, which was just fantastic. The stage was drenched blood red which signified the start of Sympathy for the Devil, and saw Mick don a blood red, full length fluffy 70’s coat, just one of 12 costume changes he made throughout the gig. And again we sang the chorus perfectly before they finished the medley with Brown Sugar. Very satisfying.

Ronnie Wood.

It looks like the end of the gig but the crowd has no intention of letting them off lightly. We call for more and get it. We don’t have to wait long. The Adelaide girls choir enter the stage dressed in long black flowing gowns unable to wipe the smile off their faces as they give us a beautiful rendition of You Can’t Always Get what You Want. Sublime. The choir mistress was so into it she does a little jig at the end, not wasting this moment of glory. It really was an opportunity of a lifetime. They can dine out on this experience for the rest of their lives.

The Rolling Stones gig cost the SA govt $450,000 - money well spent - the night earned Adelaide $10 million. They got it right with public transport, put on extra buses, taxis, and extended table times for the trams and trains. You couldn’t get a hotel room for love nor money. I put up the father-in-law of head of security for The Stones for the night, and no matter how many hints I dropped about back stage passes or the After Party, it fell on deaf ears. Although, I still want to find out what happened when the dude dressed in a yellow workmen’s fluoro shirt stormed the stage. Was he a backstage worker pushing his luck or a punk who managed to slip pass security to get to Mick? And just what was he going to do when he got there? Or maybe he was only going to stage dive. Who knows? He did get a little too close for comfort. Hmmmm. Mick laughed it off, said it was “all apart of the act”, as they dragged dude off. Drama over. Crisis averted.

The memorable riff of Satisfaction kicks in and everyone who sat for most of the concert were now up on their feet, and dancing. It’s the last song. The gig is over.

A short flurry of fire works finishes off the night at 2250, ten minutes before curfew, 10 minutes shy of a 3-hour gig. The whole band plus supporting players take a bow. Then the Fab 4 line-up for what feels like an historic bow. It’s a great moment not lost on the Adelaide audience. Here they are, still together 50 odd years later, as solid as ever, a band of brothers who’ve been through many highs and lows, a testament to commitment to music and each other, true respect and brotherly love.

The gig is over.

What can I say about The Stones that hasn’t already been said over and over, suffice to say they gave a great performance, Mick’s voice is in top form. They were terrific, it was a spectacular light show, we got our money’s worth and I’d see them again in a heartbeat. They’ve still got it. A very satisfying gig indeed.

The Rolling Stones Set list

Jumpin' Jack Flash

Lets Spend The Night Together

Its Only Rock n Roll

Tumbling Dice

Wild Horses

Doom & Gloom

Like a Rolling Stone

Out of Control

Honky Tonk Woman

Everybody’s Got To Go with Mick Taylor on guitar

Miss You