Rolling With the Stones

The Rolling Stones have amazingly been one of the most prolific rock & roll bands in the world. They seem to have a death wish of sorts, what with their relentless tours and constant performing in support of almost every album they put out. Every time you think they’re gonna retire, they’re back with a new album and tour. I recently acquired the four DVD set of their Bigger Bang tour and was amazed at the energy that these four 60-plus gentlemen brought onto the stage. The highlight of this DVD set is the legendary concert in Brazil at the Copacabana beach where the Stones played to a mind-boggling record attendance of 1.3 million people! The tour started in August 2005 and ended in August 2007, two whole years of touring that saw them play a total of 147 shows across the world. And the results are there to see in all digital glory. From the massive stage sets, to the flamboyant pyrotechnics to the gyrating Mick Jagger and the working-class guitar playing of Keith Richards, the magic is relentless. It’s gonna be a tough one to follow this up.

So in my infinite wisdom I decided to put together a tribute of my own. The last Wednesday of May saw me and my band of astounding musicians play a 18-song setlist that included some of the hits and some relative obscurities from the Stones. The kind people at the Blue Frog were intrigued enough at the suggestion (having done a similar tribute to The Doors last year), to allow me to pull this off. So there we were, Jai Row Kavi on drums, Niranjan Dhar on guitars and Johan Pais on bass with Rhys D’souza featuring on sax on a couple of songs. I took a cue from Mick and started with ”˜Start Me Up’ and broke the whole setlist into four parts: the early years (”˜Get Off My Cloud,’ ”˜It’s All Over Now’), the thoughtful years (”˜Paint It Black,’ ”˜As Tears Go By’), the erratic years (”˜Mixed Emotions,’ ”˜Slipping away’) and the greatest hits years (”˜Jumping Jack Flash,’ ”˜Sympathy for the Devil,’ ”˜Satisfaction’), among other songs. I had a blast performing those songs as did my band and the audience that was there had no cause to complain. And as I end this I am putting together my next tribute with my band of astounding musicians, so I look forward to seeing you at the show.