It was upon seeing this in 1995 that I knew the Stones were back, and the Steel Wheels tour was permanently in my rearview mirror (and theirs too).

video: [www.youtube.com]

Too clean. And some arrangements were horrible. Streetfighting man...help! But Atlantic City is cool.

mixed emotions about this tour.

first tour after i became a fan so was excited, and got to see them at hampden in glasgow.

ok gig, but cold evening, even for july in scotland.

steel wheels hasnt dated well. but since the begining of that album, stones have made and officially released nearly 140 songs, a fact often ignored by many fans.

so they have done better since this tour, also listening to recordings there does seem to be a lot of piano tinkling and less guitar. its my least favourite tour now and poor compared to the 2018 gigs.

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buttons67
mixed emotions about this tour.

first tour after i became a fan so was excited, and got to see them at hampden in glasgow.

ok gig, but cold evening, even for july in scotland.

steel wheels hasnt dated well. but since the begining of that album, stones have made and officially released nearly 140 songs, a fact often ignored by many fans.

so they have done better since this tour, also listening to recordings there does seem to be a lot of piano tinkling and less guitar. its my least favourite tour now and poor compared to the 2018 gigs.

140?

At the Ende of the 80‘s I used to live in South America. No chance to see them there, and in those days I haven‘t had the money to travel for a couple of shows to the US. But fortunately my life changed for some reason in 90, and so I decided to go back to Germany. And it was exactly the time the Stones announced their Frankfurt gigs. So I bought the tickets for both shows, and the first show was mind blowing! The interaction between Mick and Keith was unbeliveable.
2000 Light Years and Harlem Shuffle were really nice surprises. The only thing I’ve really hate in those days was that guitars were low in the mix. But however: It was the era of the synthesizer and so we‘ve got Matt Clifford as a member of the touring band.

Keep on rollin'
Gangster

Well,i dont want Matt with the band. So whats the issue.

palace revolution.

just less than 140, think 137, officially released new stuff according to timeisonourside.

that figure includes, the deluxe versions of some girls and exile, the previously unreleased stuff, it includes the 5 studio albums, singles and b-sides, it includes the singles released seperatly includes live stuff previously not released, and other songs released at various points.

so its slightly more than one third of the entire official output which stands at 400.

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rockdoc8885
Great tour even if the shows were a bit too polished and predictable. I was fortunate to see opening night in Philly and got to hear the abbreviated version of Shattered.
Great set list and good long show with reasonable ticket prices. It was about the music not the spectacle that the band seems more concerned with now.

Voodoo Lounge was better, better mixing with guitars higher in the mix, better album to tour behind and a more diverse set list.
Steel wheels got the ball rolling again at least.

I saw that Philly show too. It was so weird when the power went out and you had no idea what had happened or how long it would be or IF it would come back. I think they dropped Shattered after that, fearing it was bad luck.

T@3

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TeaAtThree


I saw that Philly show too. It was so weird when the power went out and you had no idea what had happened or how long it would be or IF it would come back. I think they dropped Shattered after that, fearing it was bad luck.

T@3

When the power went out it was VERY interesting.

We'd got to the stadium fairly early and (with a bit of trouble because they were so badly marked up) found where we were sitting.

About 30 mins before show time the tickets and seats were carefully checked by a small army of 'ushers' and some people had to move away. Hugely most likely because of human error, rather than any naughtiness.

The the Stones' immediate family came and sat in front of me in the block.

When the power went in 'Shattered' we were VERY quickly inside a cordon of heavies there to protect the families (and I guess extract them) if things got out of control.

Very very interesting to experience.

--
Captain Corella
60 Years a Fan

I'd agree with most said here. We saw them several times that year, the best probably Alpine Valley. A very slippery slope.

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keefriff99
Am I the only one who doesn't like Live at the Max?

I've never actually seen it on an IMAX screen, but watching it on a TV is painful. Everything about it feels artificial. There are some cool moments, but overall, it comes off like a digital simulation of a Stones concert.

twas great on imax.

A not do good record but a magnificet concert tour.

STEEL WHEELS might get a pass from various critics because at the time it was the biggest shot in the arm (or whatever lame term one might want to use) for their career.

It was new, it sounded new, the shows were tight and fresh, the songs streamlined... a fantastic return.

It just didn't age well.

Any of it.

Although I still love Start Me Up from that time - the best version of it ever. By Atlantic City, it had found some great silent moments, some great chunking moments, Ronnie had finally nailed the solo and his fills were awesome, Charlie's timing, rolls and fills were perfect, Keith clanged the shit out of it, Bill lunged and thumped perfectly - and Mick was fantastic.

It's absurdly excellent.

[www.youtube.com]

It was easily the weakest tour of the Wyman era. Charlie and Bill didn't quite have the fire under them as before. Also Bill's Steinberger bass didn't have a lot of bottom end, so some of the heaviness was gone. He did play some very nice lines on it though.

Not many 60's bands escaped the 80's without having their sound neutered a little. Having a synth player to modernize was a mistake, but I guess Keith lost that one.

“Slick production”, “Too polished”, “So Eighties”, “The end of the real Stones”, “The beginning of the Vegas era” etc, etc. — you could say anything that pops up in mind...in hindsight. No such words were heard back then, in real-time. Memories are constantly modified, altered and overwritten through time and experiences thereafter. To be there and then is one thing. To look back is another.

I attended the Steel Wheels Tour at the Three Rivers Stadium in Pittsburgh, September 6, 1989, the first time I saw The Rolling Stones live. The gigantic stage set — more like a building, to be exact — was genuinely jaw-dropping. To say it was spectacular would be an understatement. I was stunned by what I saw and couldn’t believe my eyes. And the Stones...Keith’s thunderous solo in SFTD was undoubtedly the highlight of the evening. In those days, he was yet to be the shadow of his past that he sadly is now. A week after, I caught them one more time at the Riverfront Stadium in Cincinnati. Fond memories both times.

In February the following year, I attended five out of their ten Tokyo Dome shows, the Japanese leg of the Steel Wheels Tour and the group’s first ever appearances in the country. Tight as ever the performance was, I felt slightly disappointed by the twenty-three song set as compared to the twenty-seven that I was fortunate to be treated to at those early US shows. But that’s another story.



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 2020-04-18 05:32 by RisingStone.

I don't mind how we consider the Steel Wheel tour nowadays, some thirty years after. At the time, it blowed my mind away and got me very excited with the two Shea SAtafium shows I attended! The band was very very focused and what they played and the show was fantastic, especially if compared with the ones of 1982.
The audience was very hot and everybody had a great time thanks to Keith Richards' improved stage acting and to fantastic music. Juke-box/Las Vegas? Yes, but you didi not feel it that way, at the venue: you had their longest and most perfect set-list full of great moments: lot of spots for Keith Richards, Ruby Tuesday, a memorable Sympathy For The Devil, the final row of songs, Miss You in New YorK City, Play With Fire, Bill WYman, and many, many things that won't happen anymore.
When back home, I listened to the Atlantic City show for so many times...
Today, some of that music still stands as 'special' to me. Thanks the RS for the Steel Wheels Tour!

The 89/90 tour had many great performances, and, unlike some others here, I believe that Ronnie Wood played well then.

I saw them twice on that tour. I had seen them twice before in 1982. To compare both tours I would say that "89" was more professional. Mick seemed very focused and in charge of that massive production. It also seemed that the band was trying to recreate the original sound of the classic songs from passed decades which was different from the more raw and "as it comes" from the sound of 1982. "89" was less rock and roll but the disciplinarian musical approach was impressive.
Rockandroll,
Mops

While I get many people's sentiment here that Steel Wheels was the first step into the Vegas, synthesized, and over -production era, for me it was a welcomed change to actually hear Jagger focused and singing the lyrics instead of barking, and screaming out the lyrics (take 1975 for example), what I remembered about the concerts that I saw in 89, overall, the musicality/playing, and tightness was quite noticeable and enjoyable from past tours. I felt these guys were "working it" and giving us our money's worth. While the set-list did not offer much variation, I thought i read somewhere at the time via some music trade magazine that given how highly choreographed and produced the show was, that throwing in an audible was just not in the cards.

Hey Tomcasagranda, I was at Wembley in '95 (although I can barely remember it due to a mispent life), and at Twickenham last year with my young family - which was just brilliant.

I would love to know why you feel that the Twickers gig was the best of the ones you mentioned?

this was the right tour at the right time, taking a band on life support and settig the stage for the next 30 years.

i loved the album then and though barely listen to it these days, still like most everything about it, but for the glossy production.

dawn of the age of mick. i saw 2 shows & they were entertaining with some cool choices on the set list. living colour were very good as an opening act.

Like someone else posted...at the time it was a great, great show. The Stones were generally regarded as Geezers who were way past their prime. The 80’s for a large part had a lot of recording artists that couldn’t play live to safe their life...plus the sound at most large venues was muddy and overloaded...If memory serves The Stones used the same system or company that Michael Jackson used on his & The Jackson’s Victory and Bad Tours. Those particular concert tours were noted for their incredible sound. The music was clear, the instruments had space to breathe and you could the vocals and artist banter to the crowds.

The band sounded great onstage, the stage was incredible...the “Geezers”
Came out and showed every other artist that they were not quite dead yet (wink Phil Collins...p.s. Nobody Cares, not only did they show they could still play, they blew the doors off of every other tour at the time.

...as the saying goes “that was then...this is now”

In Hindsight the album hasn’t aged well, neither has Flashpoint. M(& I kinda like Continental Drift, Terrifying and Break the Spell).

The polished production was stiff and set of a formulaic style that became a ca$h cow for them.

the shoot 'em dead, brainbell jangler!

They got it right on that comeback tour. They nailed it. I suppose it depends on perspective - but I preferred the preciseness of the 89 tour vs. the slop of 81. I saw them both. I was blown away by the Steel Wheel's tour. Easily my favorite stage and presentation.

Loved it. My first show at Shea Stadium

Fortunately the Stones have never had a "comeback" tour. They never broke up so... STEEL WHEELS/URBAN JUNGLE, even with hindsight, were awsome.

The Steel Wheels tour was when I saw the Stones live for the first time. I will always have a soft spot for it. It was certainly a slick and professional show, not sloppy at all. At The Max and Flashpoint capture the feeling well.

I remember the giant balloon of the lady being not so ladylike during Honky Tonk Women. I recall at the time being interested in hearing about all the changes they made to transform the tour into Urban Jungle. It's hard to believe it was so long ago!

The Steel Wheels tour was fantastic-one of the best the band has ever done.

Now if I can sift through some of the nonsense in this thread,I’ll just make a list.

1.It wasn’t “slick” it was tight as a ducks ass and perfectly played.the band were really on and nailed pretty much every show.
2.This myth that the Stones are this “sloppy “ loose bunch of half wits playing like a bar band that spent too much time having cocktails before the show is in a word- bullshit.
They’ve always rehearsed for days and weeks before a tour and do their best to sound like it.in 72 they did rehearsals before and again midway through the tour.it wasn’t to sound “sloppy”
3.Matt Clifford wasn’t there to make The Rolling Stones sound like a synth pop 80s band and he sure as hell didn’t,as some of this drivel I’m reading would have you believe.his keyboards helped them play songs like 2000 light years,ruby Tuesday etc that the core band could have never done alone.
4.the huge production -the thing I noticed in 81 was their sound got lost in the cavernous stadiums if you sat too far away. If I was close up at a show it was fine but back further the sound got lost.
The Stones subtle blues based rock and roll didn’t carry like Zep or The Who in the big places. I remember telling any who would listen,they need to bring a big horn section,backup singers etc.next tour there it was.
5.the idea that Keith is this dumbed down sort of cartoon character that just wants to play rawk dude and wants them to be a bar band in front of 70,000 people is just stupid.hes not a member of Motley Crue,as basically a musical genius im sure the need for a horn section,backing singers and extra keyboards to carry some of the more intricate songs wasn’t beyond his comprehension,If Keith Richards didn’t want these people on a Stones stage,trust me they wouldn’t be.
I don’t know why anyone couldn’t hear The guitars in 89,they sounded loud and clear to me.

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GasLightStreet
Fortunately the Stones have never had a "comeback" tour. They never broke up so... STEEL WHEELS/URBAN JUNGLE, even with hindsight, were awsome.

Not officially, but having not toured in 6 years and coming off a very dire album and WWIII, it was the closest thing to a comeback tour I believe we ever got.

I recall feeling a bit relieved they we're cranking it up again.

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Bjorn
Too clean. And some arrangements were horrible. Streetfighting man...help! But Atlantic City is cool.

Exactly...It was Vegas...all lights and a stage that was way too big. In retrospect it is my least favourite tour. Nothing memorable....except those blow-up dolls during HTW.