Not bad for the Stones at 33 for their little, so little tour.

Pop and rock music legends bested their younger chart-topping competition on the concert trail in 2012, according to data released on Friday by trade publication Pollstar.

Pop matriarch Madonna, 54, led all competition, grossing some $296.1 million in ticket sales in her 88-show world tour. She topped Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band ($210.2 million) and Pink Floyd founder Roger Waters ($186.4 million).

The elder statesmen of the music world, while no longer topping the charts or scoring radio hits, are doing well because their older audiences can afford to pay higher ticket prices, Gary Bongiovanni, Pollstar editor, told Reuters.

"Certainly the older acts charge more because they can get away with it," he said.

The Rolling Stones were able to command an eye-popping $529.51 average ticket price. Their five-show tour in November and December grossed $35.5 million, good enough for No. 33 on the list.

British rockers Coldplay were No. 4 on the list, taking in $171.3 million. Lady Gaga placed fifth grossing $161.4 million while at No. 6 Cirque Du Soleil's tribute to late King of Pop Michael Jackson grossed $140.2 million during a 172-show tour.

Teen sensation Justin Bieber, who played a 35-show tour, failed to crack the top 20, taking in $40.2 million, at No. 23.

Acts that cemented their reputations decades ago dominated the top-grossing tours even while playing fewer shows.

Country stars Kenny Chesney and Tim McGraw placed seventh grossing $96.5 million in 23 shows, while heavy metal pioneers Metallica were one spot lower at $86.1 million over 30 shows.

Some artists have been enticed to jack-up their own ticket prices after seeing how much more re-sellers were able to command, Bongiovanni explained.

"Now it's a matter of how much money can I make," he said. "Some artists like Springsteen are very popular but if you look at their average ticket price it's nowhere near Roger Waters, Madonna and Lady Gaga."

The average face-value ticket price for a Springsteen concert was $91.95, which was well below the $140.38 average for Madonna and $110.96 for Roger Waters.

Eight separate Cirque Du Soleil shows appeared in the top 50, which did not include the circus company's non-traveling shows in Las Vegas and elsewhere. All told, the Canadian company may have earned close to $1 billion in gross ticket sales, Bongiovanni said.

Elton John ($69.9 million) and Red Hot Chili Peppers ($57.8 million) rounded out the top 10.

(Reporting by Eric Kelsey, editing by Jill Serjeant)

If Madonna had charged Stones prices...she would have grossed 625 Million.
Inversely ( or is it conversely?) If the Stones had charged Madonna prices, they would have grossed 17 Million.

Had the Stones played 5 more shows, they would have jumped up to the number 6 spot

steel driving hammer wrote on Jan 9^th, 2013 at 4:30pm:

Not bad for the Stones at 33 for their little, so little tour.

Its not something to be proud of!

Gazza wrote on Jan 9^th, 2013 at 7:09pm:

steel driving hammer wrote on Jan 9th, 2013 at 4:30pm: Not bad for the Stones at 33 for their little, so little tour. Its not something to be proud of!

Yes I know but the tour was so rinky dinky small.

You know Gazza Keith can't hold out for a major world tour ever again...

They maybe can w/ Blondie but Keith will have hard time continuing on and on...

That's why their doing small tours so Keith can rest, and more rest...

Sorry but Keith cannot do another major World Tour again...well maybe I don't know...

Keiths memory is getting old and so are his fingers.

But I know it's easy to play open G w/ five strings, but Keith my brother is getting slow and old.

Sorry to say but that's the truth...

When keith fell out of a tree in Fiji, his loosing his touch and loosing his balance...

Please trust me in saying I wish the Stones would do a massive world tour but I don't think Keith can hold out.

Only maybe w/ Blondie at his side, but that would still be hard on Keith.

Paranoid Android wrote on Jan 9^th, 2013 at 5:47pm:

Had the Stones played 5 more shows, they would have jumped up to the number 6 spot

And if they played just 15 more shows they would be at #1, where they should be.

Trust me, Stones are the best.

this ain't bringing JB back.........

Steelie,you gotta stop smoking bath salts. :wtf2

sweetcharmedlife wrote on Jan 9^th, 2013 at 9:58pm:

Steelie,you gotta stop smoking bath salts. :wtf2

All I smoke is hydro buds every now and then, mostly sip on a good red wine.

Heard bath salts are bad for you btw...

The Stones could be #1 again if they wanted...if Keith can hold out...

steel driving hammer wrote on Jan 9^th, 2013 at 7:24pm:

Gazza wrote on Jan 9th, 2013 at 7:09pm: steel driving hammer wrote on Jan 9th, 2013 at 4:30pm: Not bad for the Stones at 33 for their little, so little tour. Its not something to be proud of! Yes I know but the tour was so rinky dinky small. You know Gazza Keith can't hold out for a major world tour ever again... They maybe can w/ Blondie but Keith will have hard time continuing on and on... That's why their doing small tours so Keith can rest, and more rest... Sorry but Keith cannot do another major World Tour again...well maybe I don't know... Keiths memory is getting old and so are his fingers. But I know it's easy to play open G w/ five strings, but Keith my brother is getting slow and old. Sorry to say but that's the truth... When keith fell out of a tree in Fiji, his loosing his touch and loosing his balance... Please trust me in saying I wish the Stones would do a massive world tour but I don't think Keith can hold out. Only maybe w/ Blondie at his side, but that would still be hard on Keith.

Blondie is out of the loop. Dont think he'll be coming back. Mick Jagger didnt want him to be in the band at the recent shows.  Read into that what you wish about what that says about Mick's confidence that Keith could cope without him (and also his insistence that they weren't going to play any shows unless Keith was functional)

Keith managed to hold up very well when I saw him. As Chuck Leavell said, he had to 'build his way back'.

I dont think any of us can claim to have an insight into Keith's personal health, but he was playing considerably better than he was in 2007.

They wont do a 'massive world tour' again because - as a band, not just individually - they're too old and the desire isn't there.

There'll be plenty of shows in 2013 - but in far fewer cities.