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micawber
1982 at the age of 13, my godfather had two tix for the stones in Munich, Olympiastadion at 10th of June. He wanted to attend with his wife.
At that time I was a big big Beatles fan and didn't know anything about the Stones, didn't know any songs except Satisfaction. No internet, no informations then...
I wanted to see the "friends of the Beatles" - and started annoying him for weeks and weeks, until he gave up and took me with him. The weather was as fine as it can be, clear blue sky, no clouds, lots of sun, I remember thousands of colorful balloons, happy smiling masses of people and a great J. Geils Band. Peter Maffay took it down, but just for a short set, then he got booed off the stage
My godfather got me the black tee with the read tongue in front and the world map on the back.
I remember that the stage floor got painted before the Stones entered the stage. Found that really snobby then
Then the Stones started and they just BLEW me away. The first time I felt Keiths 5-string-riffs in the stomach - nothing comes close 'til today. From that day on my life never was like before. I wore the Stones tee until it fell apart. My ma had to wash it in the evening so I could wear it the next day without interruption.
37 years, 55 Stones gigs and many many Euros later, I'm really happy that they still carry on. Who could have counted on that? Why the bitter comments f.ex. on the "new album 2019?"-site? Fans from nearly all other big rock bands in the world would be happy, if only something like a new album would be discussed and the favourite band would be touring every year. Saw them last year in Stuttgart, they were on fire. Unbelievable. Another great evening!
The only pity was, that soon after 1982 World War III started and I had to wait until 1990 to see them live again. The record releases took more time from then on as ever before... So I had to learn, that the excitement of a new Stones record with brand-new songs is a very rare one. And I just was to see Bill live just one more time and only on 3 new records.
Never will forget the excitement, when "Undercover" was released. I had to go by train from the country to Munich, as there was the "WOM", a big record store in the centre of the city. No way to get the album in my hometown at the release day. I remember going early and waiting in front of the still closed shop to get in as one of the first. Wasn't alone there.
Was slightly disappointed of the new songs, missed a new "Brown" Sugar" or especially "Start Me Up". But it grew on me. Still don't like the thin guitar sound and the drum sounds that much.
So, that's my Stones story.
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grzegorz67
My story began in 1976, aged 9 in my hometown of Hamilton, Lanarkshire, Scotland.
My parents were then in their mid 30s and used to have people round for drinks a lot and my dad played all his records. He’d recently bought the Stones Compilation Rolled Gold but only ever used to play the same 4 songs - It’s all over now, The Last Time, Satisfaction and Cloud. I was already quite into the Beatles - their red and blue best of albums both being played to death. But I knew they’d split up and I felt a bit sad about that.
I knew the Stones were from the same era from the Rolled Gold sleeve notes. I asked my dad when the Stones split up and he said they’re still going. This increased my fascination with them. This was long pre internet and mass ownership of video players and at that time the Stones really didn’t get that much media exposure and were largely seen as hasbeens.
Fast forward to 1981 and out comes Start Me Up and some exposure on the Top of the Pops TV Show. I thought - wow, they’re nearly 40 and they’ve still got it. I moved South to Swindon later that year with family for economic reasons. Scotland took a pasting in the early 80s recession. My original Lanarkshire accent has barely budged an inch and I’m 52 next month
Some guys in my year at school saw them at Wembley in 1982 but I wasn’t yet going to gigs by then. At school, someone played Rolled Gold from start to finish over and over in art classes and I became familiar with their 60s singles. My interest in the band continued to increase, though with little to cheer about for most of the 80s apart from the Undercover single and of course WW3 between the Glimmers. The US Tour and Steel Wheels album gave me hope of a follow up U.K. tour and my interest shot up. The 25 x 5 documentary was shown in U.K. around Christmas 1989 and I gained a strong sense of the band’s history, problems with Brian etc. I started buying up all the old albums, mostly on vinyl. Finally, finally a U.K. tour was anounced and A friend scored sone tickets and I was going to see the band I loved at the ripe old age of 23 for probably the only time ( ).
After a false start ( the gig was postponed by 6 weeks due to Keith cutting his finger at Hampden), I finally got to see them from a decent spot on the floor with the Steel Wheels Stage. When they burst on to the stage with SMU I just lost it - Jumping about like a total looney and everything fell out my pockets. When they played the opening bars of Ruby Tuesday I let out a huge loud squawk of joy to the bemusement of those nearby. I was savouring every last second of the occasion, “knowing” it would be my only ever show and I felt both happy and sad at the end.
For the next 3 or 4 years, I slowly bought up their entire back catalogue on a mixture of formats, completing it around 1994 when the Voodoo Lounge Tour began. 2 more shows on that tour which I thought was a late late career bonus.
Then BtB followed just 2 years after VL ended. That’s mad I thought. Still, happy for it to be happening. I booked to see them at Wembley in August 1998 only for all U.K. shows to be cancelled due to tax issues, just before I left for the 1998 World Cup to follow Scotland. While in Paris I got a phone number for the Stones’ Stade de France show tickets and returned the next month for my 1st show abroad. This fortuitously kicked off a love of travelling abroad to see them, which has cost me a pound or 10,000 I saw them in Poland and the Netherlands the same Summer. I was now a pretty huge fan, though not quite at Bjornulf and some others’ levels!
I’ve now seen them 18 times in the U.K. and 19 times abroad, in 10 different countries and travel to the US to see 3 shows in June, which will take me to a lifetime total of 40.
Strangely I don’t listen to the band that much at home nowadays but still love the thrill of seeing them live - as long as they can perform to a decent standard, that will never go away. I don’t buy any of these endless compilations and in fact the only output I’ve bought since the 2012 revival has been Blue and Lonesome. I never buy merchandise either.
Looking forward to Boston and New York. Tickets to follow nearer the time
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SomeGuy
My older brother had a few Stones albums, circa 1981, '82. At first I didnt like Tattoo You but repeated listens changed that altogether. Nowadays I almost regret that I came in that late, at what I consider the last time they were at the top of their game (after that they never quite managed to make records that good, I think, although I enjoy most of the later albums to various degrees).
In the summer of 1982 me and a friend shirked school and stealthily went to see the Stones at Feyenoord stadium, against the explicit will of our parents. We could hardly see the tiny figures moving on the stage in the distance and the sound was not that good either, but the experience -and that summer- is forever etched in my memory. It seemed that everybody liked the Stones at the time, their records were played in the streets and shopping malls, it really felt like they were the greatest band around alright.
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rcfoxy
It was the start of the New Zealand summer of 1984.
My best friend Malcolm owned a light blue Toyota Corolla Station wagon, and we would spend hours each days as 17 years old driving the streets of our small NZ town - Rotorua, listening to his cassette collection - lots of Genesis and some Phil Collins springs to mind, probably with some Van Halen thrown in too...
One particular sunny weekend day we were driving north up Fenton Street (the main street in Rotorua) and he flipped a cassette over to side 2...and on came BITCH!! That was the moment my life changed forever. I was hooked!!
At around the same time I bought She's the Boss on cassette and they were giving away copies of Undercover on Vinyl with it (Obviously not a big seller in NZ at that point) - and that was my first Stones record. Whenever my parents were out I would put it on, & turn it up to 10! Pretty Beat Up, Too Tough etc were just great tracks for a 17 year old boy...
I would then borrow the odd LP from the library and tape it, or pick up the odd 2nd hand LP and slowly over time I had a Beer crate full of records and before you know it...25 years later I have the madness which is my Voodoo Lounge....
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EddieByword
The place was an army camp called Cwrt-y-gollen near Crickhowell in Wales - Aug 1973 when I heard and recorded Angie on TOTP on my portable cassette recorder with the mic propped up in front of the TV speaker - 2 weeks later I heard GHS and esp Heartbreaker - that was it - Eddie done and dusted.
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TonstoneQuote
grzegorz67
My story began in 1976, aged 9 in my hometown of Hamilton, Lanarkshire, Scotland.
My parents were then in their mid 30s and used to have people round for drinks a lot and my dad played all his records. He’d recently bought the Stones Compilation Rolled Gold but only ever used to play the same 4 songs - It’s all over now, The Last Time, Satisfaction and Cloud. I was already quite into the Beatles - their red and blue best of albums both being played to death. But I knew they’d split up and I felt a bit sad about that.
I knew the Stones were from the same era from the Rolled Gold sleeve notes. I asked my dad when the Stones split up and he said they’re still going. This increased my fascination with them. This was long pre internet and mass ownership of video players and at that time the Stones really didn’t get that much media exposure and were largely seen as hasbeens.
Fast forward to 1981 and out comes Start Me Up and some exposure on the Top of the Pops TV Show. I thought - wow, they’re nearly 40 and they’ve still got it. I moved South to Swindon later that year with family for economic reasons. Scotland took a pasting in the early 80s recession. My original Lanarkshire accent has barely budged an inch and I’m 52 next month
Some guys in my year at school saw them at Wembley in 1982 but I wasn’t yet going to gigs by then. At school, someone played Rolled Gold from start to finish over and over in art classes and I became familiar with their 60s singles. My interest in the band continued to increase, though with little to cheer about for most of the 80s apart from the Undercover single and of course WW3 between the Glimmers. The US Tour and Steel Wheels album gave me hope of a follow up U.K. tour and my interest shot up. The 25 x 5 documentary was shown in U.K. around Christmas 1989 and I gained a strong sense of the band’s history, problems with Brian etc. I started buying up all the old albums, mostly on vinyl. Finally, finally a U.K. tour was anounced and A friend scored sone tickets and I was going to see the band I loved at the ripe old age of 23 for probably the only time ( ).
After a false start ( the gig was postponed by 6 weeks due to Keith cutting his finger at Hampden), I finally got to see them from a decent spot on the floor with the Steel Wheels Stage. When they burst on to the stage with SMU I just lost it - Jumping about like a total looney and everything fell out my pockets. When they played the opening bars of Ruby Tuesday I let out a huge loud squawk of joy to the bemusement of those nearby. I was savouring every last second of the occasion, “knowing” it would be my only ever show and I felt both happy and sad at the end.
For the next 3 or 4 years, I slowly bought up their entire back catalogue on a mixture of formats, completing it around 1994 when the Voodoo Lounge Tour began. 2 more shows on that tour which I thought was a late late career bonus.
Then BtB followed just 2 years after VL ended. That’s mad I thought. Still, happy for it to be happening. I booked to see them at Wembley in August 1998 only for all U.K. shows to be cancelled due to tax issues, just before I left for the 1998 World Cup to follow Scotland. While in Paris I got a phone number for the Stones’ Stade de France show tickets and returned the next month for my 1st show abroad. This fortuitously kicked off a love of travelling abroad to see them, which has cost me a pound or 10,000 I saw them in Poland and the Netherlands the same Summer. I was now a pretty huge fan, though not quite at Bjornulf and some others’ levels!
I’ve now seen them 18 times in the U.K. and 19 times abroad, in 10 different countries and travel to the US to see 3 shows in June, which will take me to a lifetime total of 40.
Strangely I don’t listen to the band that much at home nowadays but still love the thrill of seeing them live - as long as they can perform to a decent standard, that will never go away. I don’t buy any of these endless compilations and in fact the only output I’ve bought since the 2012 revival has been Blue and Lonesome. I never buy merchandise either.
Looking forward to Boston and New York. Tickets to follow nearer the time
Great memories Gregorz , being a fellow Scot right there with you.