Rolling Stones Host a Hurricane Party in Miami at Hard Rock Stadium for Tour Finale
The Stones “No Filter” tour has survived Mick Jagger having heart surgery, cancelling their Jazzfest performance and Tropical Storm Barry which postponed their show in New Orleans at the Superdome. for two days. They were not going to let a hurricane stop the last show!
The show scheduled for Saturday night was moved to Friday. A tough call to make, with any rescheduled date, there are going to be fans who can’t be there due to work or travel arrangements but, it was the safest change to get ahead of Hurricane Dorian.
The show was to start at 8:30 pm with no opening act due to the change. Latin rock singer Juanes was originally scheduled to open. Juanes joined the Stones on stage back in 2016 in his home country of Columbia, rockin’ on “Beast of Burden” and sharing vocals with Mick. Check it out on You Tube.
Due to intermittent rain prior to showtime, that kept the crew mopping the stage, the show got a late start of 9:30 p.m. Jagger and company took the stage with the lyrics “I was born in a crossfire hurricane and I howled at the morning driving rain” from the 1968 iconic “Jumpin’ Jack Flash”. The more than 60,000 fans were on their feet screamin’, not missing the irony of the lyrics. Jagger famously swaggered and danced from one end of the stage to the other. He thanked their crew for setting up so quickly to make the show happen and apologized to those who couldn’t make it due to the last-minute change. “It’s Only Rock & Roll (But I Like It)” and “Tumbling Dice” followed by the vote song which had been done for every show on the tour by going to their website and voting for your fav song to be played. “Under My Thumb” won for Miami. It’s hard to believe that Mick & Keith wrote it in 1966!! These songs are so timeless as evidenced by the age diverse audience in attendance.
Every song had such sentiment to it, whether it was because it was the last show of the tour or due to the impending storm, the audience was attached in a very emotional way. Very few people left their seats during the entire show. The acoustic set played on the “B” stage was “Sweet Virginia” and “Dead Flowers”. Having all four Stones walk down the ramp together is one of the best moments in the show. Keith performs lead vocals on two songs including “You Got the Silver” from the album “Let it Bleed”. The four giant LED walls and graphics add to the show without overkill and lighting is amazing. The Stones’ music is the stars of the show, no gimmicks necessary.
“Sympathy for the Devil” was a showstopper. “Honkey Tonk Women” was followed by banter by Mick talking about the Weather channel, iguanas and pythons in Miami along with band intros. “Miss You” was another big jam. Everyone was singing along with Jagger asking “What’s the Matter with You Boy”. Bassist Darryl Jones just owns the bassline of “Miss You”! “Start Me Up” and “Miss You” brought the audience frenzy up a couple of notches. The band left the stage with the encore to come.
Coming back to the stage, on cue, Mother nature added its own special effects to the “Gimme Shelter” opening line, “Oh a storm is threat’ning my very life today” with Mick and backup singer, Sasha Allen, trading lyrics in the pouring rain! It was a great moment for everyone! Closing with “Satisfaction” the rain poured down on Jagger and he kept going! At 76, Jagger is an anomaly in rock music as are Keith, Charlie and Ronnie! A band that started in 1962, The Rolling Stones are still the World’s Greatest Rock & Roll Band!
Photos by Vicky Sullivan / The Sarasota Post
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