The Stones Keep On Rockin’
Father takes 9-year Son to his first Rolling Stones Concert.
By Eric G. Stark
PHILADELPHIA — The man next to me in Section 218 nodded and said, “Is that your son?”
Relieved that he didn’t ask if it was my grandchild, I smiled and said, yes, adding that it was his first Rolling Stones concert.
“Good,” he said, motioning with with his left hand to two adults standing behind him. “I’m here with my two children. Maybe in 20 years you can come back with your son like I’m doing today. Of course, they (The Rolling Stones) will be about 100.”
My son, Jesse, turned 9 July 16. He’ll be 29 in 20 years. Mick Jagger will be 96. At the rate Jagger is moving, it’s possible he’ll still be touring.
But I played the odds that this might be it, the final tour by the Stones.
It fact, when I bought the tickets Nov. 22, 2018 I held my breath that all four members of the greatest Rock-n-Roll band would make it to concert, that health would not be an issue. There was, in fact, a scare, as the concert was postponed more than a month from its June date when Jagger had heart surgery.
I wondered if the surgery would slow Jagger down, that he wouldn’t have his energy, his zest to run around the stage.
I wanted Jesse and my wife, Cindy, to see the full swagger of Jagger and his band mates. There are a few more wrinkles and receding hairlines (Keith Richard was missing and needed his trademark bandanna), but Charlie Watts, 78, Richards, 75 and Ronnie Wood 72, didn’t miss a beat.
The Rolling Stones still deliver a great show.
They can still pick their guitars and look cool doing it.
Watts, ever the Jazz man, wastes no extra energy while keeping things tight. They threw picks and drum sticks into the crowd. Though they stuck relatively close to Watts on drums, they played off each other – Wood talking to Richards and then smiling like the two were part of an inside joke. Richards and longtime bassist Darryl Jones (he replaced original member Bill Wyman, who left band in 1993) also played off each other and shared looks on the stage.
At age 9, I believe Jesse will remember concert when he is older. I did not see anyone younger than him, but I’m sure there was someone. People seemed surprised I took him.
But why not take him? I wanted he and Cindy to see what I’ve seen twice before, to experience two hours of rock-n-roll bliss. The sound, though a bit loud at first, was amazing. The staging, second to none.
As I said, this is the third time I saw The Rolling Stones. The first time was 1997 in Philadelphia’s Veterans Stadium. The seats were in straight away center field in the 700 level. The sound was great.
I also saw them circa 2008 at HersheyPark Stadium in Hershey. I convinced my editor, Marvin Adams, that the Sunday News, then part of Lancaster Newspapers (now called LNP) had to cover this concert, that more than 50,000 local people attend the show.
My seats were in the 13th row. Each time the staging was more elaborate.
In 2019 at Lincoln Financial Field the stage featured four 3-story hi-definition screens to capture the band performing. There were large speakers scattered throughout the stadium and fireworks during “Satisfaction.”
The music was heightened with rainy conditions that started during the opening act, Des Rocs, a Blues Rock guitarist. His 3-piece band was impressive in their nine-song, 45-minute set. As Rocs played, the rain looked majestic behind him on the big screens.
When Rocs finished, Jesse started getting restless. The Stones were supposed to take the stage shortly after 9 p.m., but they were running late. I assured him that they’d be out soon, that they were drying the stage; I feared Jagger – ever the showman – slipping while doing his roster dance and breaking a hip. I also told Jesse that the band was just making the crowd wait to build excitement and anticipation.
He wasn’t buying it. He was getting grumpy from the wait. At 9:20 p.m. Cindy announced, “They’re here,” after she saw the headlights for at least three golf carts pulling up to the right side of the stage.
At 9:28 p.m. The Rolling Stones took the stage and the Linc went crazy It was bright. It was loud (Jesse thought it was too loud, but either his ears got used to or the sound man pulled the sound back a bit – I believe it was the latter).
There was the same energy from the stage July 23 that I saw in 2008 and 1997.
My seats were not cheap; I paid about $150 a ticket and with all the service charges, totaled $597 for three seats, but you get your money’s worth. The songs and presentation are equally impressive.
The song quality was great and our view was equally impressive. Here is their third song, “Tumbling Dice.”
Here is a video from the concert of their second song, “You Got Me Rocking.”
I’d would have been surprised if I did not get a quality show and hear all their top songs, though they have so many to pick from in their vast library that spans 57 years. I do wish they would have played “Under My Thumb,” “Get Off My Cloud,” “Ruby Tuesday” and “Waiting On A Friend,” but I’m just getting picky. Cindy’s favorite Stones’ song is “Waiting On A Friend” so I did selfishly wish they played it so she’d enjoy the concert even more.
I liked that Jagger knew his current events. As the four original Stones walked on a runway a third the of way through in the infield crowd to play two acoustic songs – “Angie” and “Dead Flowers” – Jagger said to the crowd, “We must be on the 50-yard line or something. …Is this where Jake Elliott hit the field goal?” This was a reference to Philadelphia Eagles’ kicker hitting a long field goal about two years ago against the New York Giants.
He also said the Stones just played at the Jaguar Stadium in Jacksonville, Florida. The crowd booed. He quickly added, “Nick Foles sends his best wishes” and the place erupted in cheers.
My favorite, though, was when Jagger shared his knowledge of convenience stores, saying, “But really, having a wonderful time, Philadelphia. I was on my way to Wawa to get my hoagie but then I hit a pot hole. …Charlie was okay because he gets his hoagies from Sheetz.”
The crowd boos.
My favorite song was “Sympathy For The Devil” with Jagger wearing a long red coat and fedora, making him look like the ring master at a circus. The sound and staging with the lights and screen was impressive and memorable. Jesse knows the opening lyrics better than me and I caught him signing along on a small video I taped.
As the Stones played, two things raced through my mind. I wondered how this would compare to future concerts Jesse would see. We took him to see Imagine Dragons in 2018 in Hershey and they were good, but this experience with four Rock legends was top shelf.
I also thought how many times have these guys played these songs and how much history and current events changed in the World since they began playing in 1962.
Hopefully, if time is on our side, Jesse, Cindy and I will be here listening to the Stones in 20 years.