Jasmine and Yolanda, right before we went into the show (how fucking CUTE are they? They
both have on my vintage Stones shirts)
I blinded Mick with my cheesy camera, sooooo sorry Sir Jagger! ^
On July 21 the Rolling Stones sold out the Olympia Stadium (in Berlin) yet again. I
don’t even want to know how much the tickets went for, but I am guessing it
was around 100 euro a pop, or more. This nonsense is the main reason I started
trading massage for entrance into concerts in the first place years ago. I
don’t trade anymore, I charge, but I still have the luxury of getting to see
my favorite bands for free.
I had been massaging them all week at the Ritz Carlton Hotel at Potsdamer
platz and was pleased to get my hands on my favorite Stone again, Charlie
Watts. He is by far, the coolest Stone. He may look much older than the rest,
but that’s just because he doesn’t dye his hair to look younger, he isn’t vain
at all, he is just real. Charlie was my first paying customer by the way. Like
I said, up until 1994, I just bartered, entrance/back stage passes, for
massage. Charlie convinced me to take what was just a hobby and start charging…………… 
……as he said it was "the best massage he had ever had".
Charlie made sure I had 3 tickets and 3 passes for the show on Friday for me, Jasmine and
her friend Yolanda (well, she is OUR friend ). It was
a gorgeous evening, the sun was still shining and every one was ecstatic that
the Stones were breathing the same air as them, you could smell the lads, you got
goosebumps just being in the stadium. Anticipation, beer, sun, music and lots of skin. Oh what
a feeling.
Me and my little cuties were waved backstage, thanks to our passes.
Each tour the Stones have a different theme for their VIP section backstage.
This year it was called The Rattle Snake Inn. There were fake snakes all over the place,
fake cobwebs, spiders, etc, it almost had a Pirates of the Caribbean feel to it. Another
thing that has changed over the years is that there aren’t any sex bombs strutting
around.
Yolanda, Jasmine and her two school buddies, who were already back stage thanks to their rock star dad) ^
As in, no more groupies. The family atmosphere has replaced what used to be a
large hand full of the most gorgeous, willing women around. It is safe to say, they have grown up now,
well, Mick is still working on it.
One thing that remains the same though is the AMAZING catering. The words
"will work for food" wouldn’t sound shocking if you said it around the Stones because their caterers are the best.
You get to eat and drink anything you want and it’s ALL top quality grub.
All of the Stones, except Mick, pass through the VIP room and say hello and
snack a bit. Sometimes Mick does make an appearance, but not this time. Keith’s lovely wife, Patti was
there, being as sweet and friendly as ever.
Keiths LOVELY wife, Patti ^
I had amazing seats but chose to sit at the Mixer instead (sound board). Micks
girl friend, Lawren sat at the mixer most of the show as well. They sold tickets that were
actually on the stage, well, part of the stage’s frame (see picture) for 500 euro each.
The view from these seats were rubbish, the thrill of being ON stage with the Stones is
what lured those rich suckers into buying them.
THOSE fans spent over $600 for those seats!
Now THAT is dedicated (random Stones fan in crowd ^)
The band was as tight as ever, Mick has loads of energy and charisma, but I
personally hate seeing bands play the Olympia Stadium. The sound just seems to float away
and no matter how big the screens are, you rarely get a good view and it feels very
impersonal.
If a band plays that venue, they have literally gotten too big for their
britches. But some love it, they think, the bigger, the better. To be around
thousands of Stones fans and watch them play live together is very
intoxicating.
The had lots of fireworks, the best light show, video screens and when they
played Ray Charles’s "Night time is the Right time" they showed videos of
Ray playing. Lisa Fisher, the Stones back up singer, really let it rip during
her solo. She gives Patti LaBelle a run for her money.
Keith did two solo numbers, Before the Make me run and Slipping Away.
When Keith started to sing, many people in the crowd held up inflatable Palm Trees,
poking fun at Keith’s recent tree fall in New Zealand. Keith cracks me up when he sings.
He is so into playing his guitar, that he misses his ques, he just chimes in when he feels like it,
the back up singers all cover him, it’s just adorable.
The "Bigger Bang" tour includes a "B-stage" which is a tiny stage they have in the middle of the
crowd where they play 4 numbers, this gives everyone a close up look, and is in my eyes,
the best part of the show. Most people can’t take their eyes off of Mick, he is so on fire, but
I tend to watch everyone else just as much, so I don’t miss anything. I thought it was cute
how there was a tiny glass wall next to Charlies drum set that had the set list hand written on it.
Ronnie played perfectly all night, smiling and having a blast, some say he is the better guitarist, but
only some. The audience was made up of people from every age group and with a set list
like the one they whipped out, they satisfied everyone.
There was loads of audience participation and also tears. Tears of joy and perhaps
some tears of fear and sadness, that this very well could be the last time they see the Rolling
Stones in concert again.
In case you wanted to know, this is their current line up (which shows they now have more Americans in the Stones
line up than English)
Mick Jagger – Vocals, Guitar (Streets Of Love)
Keith Richards – Guitar, 12-String Acoustic Guitar, Vocals
Ronnie Wood – Guitar
Charlie Watts – Drums
Darryl Jones – Bass, Background Vocals
Chuck Leavell – Keyboards, Background Vocals
Lisa Fischer – Background Vocals, Percussion
Bernard Fowler – Background Vocals, Percussion
Blondie Chaplin – Background Vocals, Guitar, Percussion
Bobby Keys – Tenor-Saxophone
Tim Ries – Saxophone, Keyboards
Michael Davis – Trombone
Kent Smith – Trumpet
