I agree with you Steel Wheels. And yet, and yet...I absolutely loved every show I got over the years and still whenever I left the club/arena/stadium after a show there's always the thoughts: they could've done Jig-Saw Puzzle, wouldn't it be cool if they'd play Country Honk instead of HTW, wish Mick Taylor was around...so with MT around I think it's Obvious thad people want to hear more of him. I did, yet I'm not complaining...I had a blast last thursday...my review (also posted on G3, sorry if that bothers anyone).

I got to see my second show in Dusseldorf last thursday.  A friend that managed to get the tickets got us in the Pit, which was fabulous. It was my 16th and likely final Stones show so it's great to have a neat spot.

Much to our surprise the Stones brought an opening act called The Temperance Movement. Now I'm always willing to give a warm-up band a shot, but these guys were pretty ridiculous: this band was pretending to be the Black Crowes who in turn imitating the Stones in sound and performance style, so this lead singer was imitating Mick Jagger while opening for the Stones. 

This band made sure they didn't miss a single cliché while performing. They wanted 'yeah's' from the crowd during the riffs and made sure they wore hats during the ballads (and yes: the singer got on his knees for a bit). These guys knew how to play, but we were watching Spinal Tap and they were dead serious. As a result we were rolling on the floor..I swear I didn't laugh that hard in ages.

So once we had that laugh it was time to count down. When the intro vid with the Sympathy sample finally sounded, a roar went through the stadium. JJF was once again the opener and the crowd went nuts like they always do. After that I expected to get YGMR once again, but instead they went for Let's Spend The Night Together. Great to hear that song, with some great backing vocals from Keith and shots from the 60s on the enormous video wall.

The Stones were tearing up the place from the start, but when Mick's keyboard arrived and they started playing Worried About You the roof went off.  The response to this often overlooked gem was amazing, and even though it's a bit late in the game, the way the crowd responded to a less well known song should motivate the band to mix it up more often (don't worry: I know they won't).  I'd say it was Mick's peak performance of a great evening.

The Fan Vote I tried to rig by asking everyone around me to vote for Dead Flowers went the other way: Street Fighting Man!  The boys made damn sure I didn't feel bummed about the contest going the other way:  SFM is not played every evening any more, but it has more power than quite a few of the war horses that are kept around.

Keith's two songs were like a difference between night and day. You Got The Silver was perfect, but Can't Be Seen wasn't. He hit the opening riff spot on, but apparently he felt so alarmed by this that he forgot his lines. The band carried him towards the end. It was all good, but if he has trouble playing the guitar while singing that one: there's a pretty good guitar player waiting backstage...I'm sure no one would mind.

But that guitar player came around for the song after Keith's set: while the rest of the Stones already tore the place apart with a great show, Mick Taylor made sure the stadium was set on fire with his amazing guitar work.

The War Horses that followed after this peak of the evening were all ear candy. The band was having so much fun even Miss You sounded great.

By the time they reached You Can't Always Get What You Want, I suddenly realized again that I was probably looking at my favorite band for the very last time.  The Stones didn't give me the opportunity for any sadness though, as the rollercoaster ride was getting to the end with Satisfaction. 

What a show... alongside 50.000 Germans we walked out of the stadium into the outskirts of Dusseldorf. Two hours passed before we could look back at the gig in a pub with a pint of Alt Beer, surrounded by folks who were looking back on yet another great Stones gig.

Great indeed!!!

"By the time they reached You Can't Always Get What You Want, I suddenly realized again that I was probably looking at my favorite band for the very last time."

Just when I think I'm okay with last year's shows being the end, I read a comment like this and am reduced to a blubbering idiot.

This Band has given me so much joy and friends from all over the world. The friendships will last long after the Tours end.

I'm just not ready to say goodbye. Perhaps I'll never be.