 Glendale
Arena, Glendale, AZ
on Sunday, November 27th. 2005. Jason Mraz did the warm-up for last
time at the Glendale Arena near Phoenix.
Set list:
Start Me Up - You Got Me Rocking - She's So Cold - Tumbling Dice - Oh No, Not
You Again - Rain Fall Down - Angie - Rocks Off - Night Time - Intros - Slipping
Away - Infamy - Miss You - Rough Justice - Get Off Of My Cloud - Honky Tonk
Women - Sympathy For The Devil - Brown Sugar - Jumpin' Jack Flash - You Can't
Always Get What You Want (encore) - Satisfaction (encore)
Reviews:
Stones roll on with classics, new songs in Glendale
by Larry Rodgers, Arizona Republic
OK, we surrender.
After watching the latest installment of the Rolling Stones Rock and Roll
Machine on Sunday night at Glendale Arena -- along with 17,000-plus fans who
didnt sit down for nearly two hours -- were ready to concede that Mick Jagger
and his 60-something bandmates will probably still be doing this in 10 years.
Two years after they played a near-flawless show at Phoenixs America West Arena,
the Stones amazingly continue to show no signs of slowing down.
Yes, front man Jagger at age 62 has even a few more wrinkles in his chiseled
face, and guitarist Keith Richards, 61, is a medical marvel, considering what
hes put his body through. But when that pair starts it up, with the help of
cancer survivor Charlie Watts on drums and Ron Wood on guitar, the result is the
purest form of rock that musicians in their 20s and 30s can only dream of one
day attaining.
The Stones are among a tiny group of elite veteran acts Paul McCartney and U2
lead the rest of the pack whose mere appearance (as well as bulletproof catalogs
of hits) puts ear-to-ear grins on concertgoers from age 15 to 65.
Thats exactly what happened Sunday when the unmistakable opening chords of Start
Me Up rang through the arena on a sound system that was well-tuned for the
cavernous venue.
Jagger bounded out in a sparkling burgundy jacket, matching shirt and black
slacks, still the ultimate in-the-flesh representation of rock star. The
always-smiling Richards, dressed in black, with his frizzy dark hair corralled
by a headband, shuffled about the stage, the perfect illustration of survivor.
And although most concertgoers had heard Start Me Up countless times on the
radio and at sporting events, the song still drew whoops, hollers and raised
fists.
With their images flashing on a massive video screen (the Stones pride
themselves in always having the most high-tech imagery in the rock industry),
the band moved into a 1994 tune, You Got Me Rocking, thats vying to join its
lists of classics.
Jagger, who still appears to have zero percent body fat and could pass for 50,
worked the stage, spinning and dancing with an assortment of arm and hand
motions that only he could create. He kept that up throughout the 20-song set,
with only a short break while Richards took the spotlight for two songs.
Its great to be here in Phoenix, Glendale, Scottsdale too many Dales, Jagger
told the audience with a laugh.
In contrast to his contemporary, former Beatle Paul McCartney who delivered some
mini-history lessons when he played Glendale on Wednesday Jagger kept the
between-song banter brief.
He and his bandmates seemed to know that most fans were there to hear such rock
classics as Tumbling Dice, Angie, Miss You, Sympathy For the Devil and
Honky-Tonk Woman, and the Stones were more than happy to oblige.
The magic with the Stones is that they play these war horses night after night
and appear to love it.
They, like McCartney, seem addicted to the adrenaline of performing and the
adoration of their fans.
Fighting off the nostalgia band label, with at least a small measure of success,
the Stones played four songs from their strong new album, A Bigger Bang.
The best of the lot were Oh No, Not You Again, a tongue-in-cheek rocker in which
Jagger laments the return of a particularly feisty lover, and Infamy, in which
Richards also hits a rough spot with the opposite sex.
Richards remains a tighter link to the Stones 60s roots in concert, addressing
the crowd as brothers and sisters. With a cigarette hanging from his mouth, he
took a nice turn on 1989s Slipping Away, picking some understated leads on a
vintage blond Telecaster.
Ever ready to trot out another gimmick, the Stones this time unveiled a system
that moved part of the main stage across the floor to the far end of the arena
as they played 1978s Miss You, one of the few songs during which they appeared
to be going through the motions.
The move brought them closer to a fresh group of fans as they tore through the
new Rough Justice and the classics Get Off of My Cloud and Honky-Tonk Woman, but
it kept them elevated too high to press any flesh with the eager fans.
But it provided a chance for a closer look at the guitar interplay between Wood
and Richards. Neither is the flashiest player, but the sound of the two weaving
their finger work in a song like Rough Justice, or earlier in Shes So Cold, is
rewarding.
Clad in a red T-shirt, the gray-haired Watts (the groups senior member at 64),
threatened to steal the spotlight on a rollicking version of 1972s Rocks Off and
a lusty take on 1971s Brown Sugar.
Like on their last tour, the Stones brought along three backup vocalists,
including the powerful Lisa Fischer, four horn players, including the infamous
Bobby Keys, and venerable keyboardist Chuck Leavell.
Bassist Darryl Jones, who has been with the band since 1994, finally is getting
more animated and is acting like part of the core group. He deserves to be
granted full membership (read: be paid much, much more than he is as a sideman).
But the Stones remain most impressive when taken as the sum of their parts. And
judging from Sundays performance, music lovers will get more chances to check
out this rock-and-roll wonder for years to come.
The Stones showed their shrewd marketing touch by signing up young acoustic
rocker Jason Mraz as their opener in Glendale.
A talented guitarist and singer, Mraz rose to the challenge of keeping impatient
Stones fans entertained with hits like The Remedy (I Wont Worry) and You and I
Both and the newer Did You Get My Message and Please Dont Tell Her.
© Tom
Tingle/The Arizona Republic
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