[ultimateclassicrock.com]

Was Mick Jagger’s ‘Primitive Cool’ Tour Just a Ruse? |

Simon Phillips, who played drums on Mick Jagger’s 1987 solo album Primitive Cool and was a member of the band he took on tour the following year, suggested that the road trip was just a ruse to get the Rolling Stones into Japan.

Jagger booked shows in only Japan and Australia, seemingly as a result of the lukewarm response to the album. But in a new interview with Rolling Stone, Phillips said he wondered if there was another reason for the way things worked out on the 1988 road trip.



“When we started playing shows in Japan, half the set was Stones songs,” he said. “I felt, ‘What’s the point? Why do that? This is a chance for you to do something different, a solo project.' ... Unless, of course, this was part of a master plan to get the Stones into Japan. The problem was, the Stones could not enter Japan because of their drug convictions. … Mr. Udo of Udo Artists had to pull so many strings to get the government to allow Mick to come into the country. Maybe this was just a ploy to slowly get the Stones there.”

That’s exactly what happened two years later, Phillips noted. “Of course, that’s [Jagger’s] prerogative and totally up to him," he explained. "But from a purely musical and creative point of view, I found it strange. ‘Why are we playing all these Stones songs? This is your solo career.'”

Jeff Beck, who appeared on the album, had originally been part of the touring band, too, until he became unhappy with the direction things were taking. “We were trying to put a band together with Jeff, [bassist] Doug Wimbish, myself and Mick,” Phillips said. "But Mick didn’t want that. He wanted the dancing girls and the singers. It was a bit of a shame. And Jeff didn’t really want to do that, so they parted company.”


He recalled that they "did speak about this with Jeff way early, back in 1987. ‘Why are we doing this?’ And the band sounds great as a four-piece. Just add a keyboard player, and let’s play all the new material.’ I think it would have been more interesting, and historically it would have made a much bigger stamp.”

Phillips regretted he's no longer able to prove his point; his home burned down during the California wildfires of 2017. “I used to have a rehearsal tape of that band, but it unfortunately went in the fire,” he said. “It sounded amazing.”

What an echo chamber

Sounds like a prat.

“I used to have a rehearsal tape of that band, but it unfortunately went in the fire,” he said. “It sounded amazing.”

what a shame ....



ROCKMAN

After two days of successful live performances on March 15 and 16, Mick took the day off on March 17.
On this day, he visited an old temple deep in the mountains of Nara with the help of a famous Japanese artist.

The priest of the temple was an Englishman.
Mick, who has always had a high level of intellect and whose interest in Japanese culture has been heightened by his visit to Japan,
was very curious as to why his compatriot was working in such a position here.

What was supposed to be a short stay turned out to be a lot of fun with meditation and calligraphy.
He also had dinner together in the hall listening to Jazz. In the midst of all the excitement,
Mick suggested that he stays here for a night. It was a cold night in March.

If Simon had been the mountains of Nara with them at the time, his mind might have been different.

A sequel to this story:
the show in Osaka on March 19 was cancelled just before the start of the show,
probably due to the fact that he was staying at a mountain temple that didn't have proper heating equipment.
As Mick himself said in his apology to the fans, this was the first time in his life that he had to cancel a show due to his health condition.

Maybe it was the reason! Regardless, Simon got to tour with The Who the following year! Excellent drummer.

I think its a safe bet that most of the people who bought tickets for those shows did so in the anticipation of hearing songs like Jumpin' Jack Flash as opposed to the likes of Let's Work and that Mick knew this and tailored his setlist accordingly.

The Stones werent banned from Australia and yet he had no qualms about peppering his show with Stones classics.

Playing the solo shows in Japan certainly made things easier when the Stones played there two years later but I think its an over simplification to suggest it was 'just a ruse' to enable it to happen. I dont recall there being much optimism in 1987-1988 to suggest that there would be any more Stones tours.

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Gazza
I dont recall there being much optimism in 1987-1988 to suggest that there would be any more Stones tours.

On the other hand Jagger never said the Stones were over. Even though he referred to them as they. I do remember that he didn't like to talk about the Stones when interviewed during his solo years.
It must have frustrating for him: Here he is with his new albums and all the things journalists want to talk with him about is the Rolling Stones...

I know he didnt but Mick, by nature, is far more diplomatic than Keith.

Keith signing a solo deal after expressing his displeasure at Mick making records on his own really seemed like the end at the time. I remember Bill being interviewed on Breakfast TV in the UK in spring '87 and basically saying that in his opinion the band were finished.

Had Mick's solo career taken off in the way he and Walter Yetnikoff envisaged, I don't think the Stones would have had much of a future - although no doubt they could have put their issues behind them for some kind of extremely lucrative 'reunion' tour eventually.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2021-01-24 18:02 by Gazza.

They were not allowed to Japan because of Mick's drug conviction in the 1969. It was the first time the Stone could perform there. I bet it was Mick's plan and dream to do that. By that time, the only way to get there and to do some Stones stuff was through Mick's solo gig since the Stones were... just say, in disagreement. So I can see the reason behind it.

There are a lot of assumptions on this issue and so is mine.
Don't forget that Ron Wood was also touring Japan in that same year 1988. So almost half of the Rolling Stones was in Japan in 1988. The assumption of some kind of lobbying going on is certainly a possibility. Japanese bureaucracy is (even today) very, very rigid. So to break through the thick wall in order to change thoughts and rules is a very tough process. Even business people of multinational companies can tell you. In 1976 I spoke (while still in Japan) to top CIOs of both Shell Oil and Philips Electronics in Tokyo and I learned a lot from them on this. Knowing (or even so finding) the right people in Japan is possibly more important than in other countries. Once you find those people the rest is "piece of cake". No need to worry anymore about the bureaucracy system.
(Remember that a lot of "off track" lobbying was needed to get the Stones to perform in Cuba).
I was in Japan with my family in 1989 and blamed myself for not going there a year later. But then I had to tell myself that getting a concert ticket would have been much more than a miracle, knowing that "only" half a million tickets were sold on a request quantity that was about five times higher! 10 concerts within two weeks! I don't think it ever happened again in Japan after that.

By the way, I had a similar Temple staying experience in Nara as Mick had, but in 1975. Only that temple was run by Japanese priests. My Japanese speaking was still primitive, but it was an experience I never forget.

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Gazza
I think its a safe bet that most of the people who bought tickets for those shows did so in the anticipation of hearing songs like Jumpin' Jack Flash as opposed to the likes of Let's Work and that Mick knew this and tailored his setlist accordingly.

I attended all of the four shows in Osaka where the tour started. Actually I was surprised Mick and the band played that many songs from the Stones catalogue (almost two thirds of the entire songs performed) as I had predicted the majority of the setlist would comprise the solo material. And I don’t think that was just me.

Despite the prediction as such being largely shared among the general public (even among casual fans), the tickets went an almost instant sellout as soon as they were released for four nights at the Osaka-jo Hall arena (16,000 seats at max.). Whether Mick would play the Stones or solo material didn’t matter. I don’t think it affected the ticket sale one bit at that moment of time when the Stones as a band had yet to set foot in Japan. The people wanted to see the legend that was Mick Jagger in person. I vividly recollects, as I arrived at the venue every night, the stewards led a long and huge queue of people who bought standing-room tickets to the entrance. Hordes of watchers were seen standing all around the top level of the tiers like sardines.

I feel frustrated every time naysayers who weren’t there post a comment of criticism here — the show was every bit as fantastic as we hoped for, even surpassed our expectation. Mick gave everything, and then some, we were awestruck. I can say for sure that was one of the most exciting shows I have ever seen before or since. In fact — I posted this before — when The Rolling Stones finally set foot and played in Japan two years afterwards, not a small number of people confessed a sort of anticlimactic feeling after the show, claiming that they were more excited by Mick’s solo show to be honest. I tend to agree with this myself although I had seen the Steel Wheels show in America before Japan.

To give a fair point of view, I came across some Aussie or Kiwi fans on the IORR forum (these countries were non-Stones virgin back then) voicing some enthusiastic approval to Mick’s solo show.

And I can say without hesitation — ultimately, Mick’s choice of picking more Stones than solo songs ended up as a pleasant surprise for many of us who were there to witness the show, it worked, artistic integrity notwithstanding.

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Gazza
I remember Bill being interviewed on Breakfast TV in the UK in spring '87 and basically saying that in his opinion the band were finished.

I do understand Bill there. Before 1987 they had at least one album, Undercover, and one excuse of an album, Dirty Work (I don't know if Bill was even on that album) to fall back on.
So by 1987 Jagger releases yet another solo album. It was only natural to think they were over at that stage. And in fact they were - until 1989.

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RisingStone
And I can say without hesitation — ultimately, Mick’s choice of picking more Stones than solo songs ended up as a pleasant surprise for many of us who were there to witness the show, it worked, artistic integrity notwithstanding.

We have to also look at it from the point of view of the Japanese people. None of them had ever seen Stones songs performed live before. Having Mick perform them was probably very exciting for them so it makes a lot of sense why he decided to do them live.



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 2021-01-24 21:18 by JordyLicks96.

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RisingStone

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Gazza
I think its a safe bet that most of the people who bought tickets for those shows did so in the anticipation of hearing songs like Jumpin' Jack Flash as opposed to the likes of Let's Work and that Mick knew this and tailored his setlist accordingly.

I attended all of the four shows in Osaka where the tour started. Actually I was surprised Mick and the band played that many songs from the Stones catalogue (almost two thirds of the entire songs performed) as I had predicted the majority of the setlist would comprise the solo material. And I don’t think that was just me.

Despite the prediction as such being largely shared among the general public (even among casual fans), the tickets went an almost instant sellout as soon as they were released for four nights at the Osaka-jo Hall arena (16,000 seats at max.). Whether Mick would play the Stones or solo material didn’t matter. I don’t think it affected the ticket sale one bit at that moment of time when the Stones as a band had yet to set foot in Japan. The people wanted to see the legend that was Mick Jagger in person. I vividly recollects, as I arrived at the venue every night, the stewards led a long and huge queue of people who bought standing-room tickets to the entrance. Hordes of watchers were seen standing all around the top level of the tiers like sardines.

I feel frustrated every time naysayers who weren’t there post a comment of criticism here — the show was every bit as fantastic as we hoped for, even surpassed our expectation. Mick gave everything, and then some, we were awestruck. I can say for sure that was one of the most exciting shows I have ever seen before or since. In fact — I posted this before — when The Rolling Stones finally set foot and played in Japan two years afterwards, not a small number of people confessed a sort of anticlimactic feeling after the show, claiming that they were more excited by Mick’s solo show to be honest. I tend to agree with this myself although I had seen the Steel Wheels show in America before Japan.

To give a fair point of view, I came across some Aussie or Kiwi fans on the IORR forum (these countries were non-Stones virgin back then) voicing some enthusiastic approval to Mick’s solo show.

And I can say without hesitation — ultimately, Mick’s choice of picking more Stones than solo songs ended up as a pleasant surprise for many of us who were there to witness the show, it worked, artistic integrity notwithstanding.

Great post. thanks for giving a first hand account. Mick had two albums out by that stage so I dont think anyone would reasonably have expected a full length show of solo material. I guess it was a question of how many/how few Stones songs he would include. It sounds like from the audience perspective, he got the balance pretty much right.

I havent listened or watched these solo shows for a long time, but I remember at the time enjoying the video footage that I saw. And the crowds were notably VERY enthusiastic.

Mick probably could have just done two hours of some spoken word poetry or some standup comedy on stage alone,
and many of the Stones hungry fans in attendance might have still showered him with frenzied adoration.

_____________________________________________________________
Rip this joint, gonna save your soul, round and round and round we go......

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Hairball
Mick probably could have just done two hours of some spoken word poetry or some standup comedy on stage alone,
and many of the Stones hungry fans in attendance might have still showered him with frenzied adoration.

You could be very right there, Hairball.
Japanese people have a very strong tendency to follow hypes. For some reason decades ago bowling became very popular and the country was flooded (!) with bowling halls. Then golf became popular and 90% or so of all bowling halls went bankrupt in a very short time. Even today you can still find those decades old empty bowling halls. In the music scene you see similar behaviour. I think that both Mick and Ron's 1988 tours were the key to that explosieve response on the Stones arriving in 1990.
I've always been surprised that the Beatles are quoted, their music filling backgrounds in TV programs, but that Paul had a hard time attracting audience, for sure in comparison with the Beatles immense TV popularity. They are still a real hype, but you don't see it back in "real life".
The Stones hardly appeared on TV in whatever way on TV, but at the same time they were very popular as a live band.

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Rockman
“I used to have a rehearsal tape of that band, but it unfortunately went in the fire,” he said. “It sounded amazing.”

what a shame ....

Yeah...what a pain!

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Gazza
Mick had two albums out by that stage so I dont think anyone would reasonably have expected a full length show of solo material. I guess it was a question of how many/how few Stones songs he would include.

Exactly.

It is a common preconception or misunderstanding that Mick could not have sold 50,000 tickets for an arena tour if he had not played as many Stones classics as possible, especially in a realm like Japan where the group had never toured, a hypothesis widely observed and shared among the hardcore.
The fact is, we didn’t have a clue or what to expect as far as the setlist was concerned. As I wrote above, the tickets were almost sold out on the day of release, two-three months before the shows. The fans didn’t know what would be on offer before the first show. It is safe to assume that many who snatched up the tickets — diehard and casual fans alike — predicted the majority of the setlist would be from the two solo albums, interspersed with a few Stones hits here and there, say two thirds of the former and the rest the latter (at most). It turned out to be the opposite, which was a surprise for many who filled the venue, even for the most casual type who enjoyed the video clips of Just Another Night, Let’s Work, Throwaway et al on the MTV program.

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Hairball
Mick probably could have just done two hours of some spoken word poetry or some standup comedy on stage alone, and many of the Stones hungry fans in attendance might have still showered him with frenzied adoration.

Can you say that to our friends in OZ/NZ, the countries where the tour seemingly caused as equal or even bigger a sensation as in Japan?

"You played with Bob Dylan in 1991 at the Guitar Greats festival. How was that experience?
[Laughs] Oh, boy. I actually played with Keith Richards there, too. It was the first time I met Keith, and after the Jagger thing, I was a bit nervous to meet him. I thought, “Oh, shit, he doesn’t like us very much.” And Pierre de Beauport, his roadie, said to me, “Come meet him. You’ll love him.” And Keith was a sweetheart. He was totally different than what I thought. I was like, “Wow!” So it was all just hype, just rubbish in the press".

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Stoneage

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Gazza
I dont recall there being much optimism in 1987-1988 to suggest that there would be any more Stones tours.

On the other hand Jagger never said the Stones were over. Even though he referred to them as they. I do remember that he didn't like to talk about the Stones when interviewed during his solo years.
It must have frustrating for him: Here he is with his new albums and all the things journalists want to talk with him about is the Rolling Stones...

He sure didn't. Watch him shut down the interview from backstage at Live Aid when the Stones are brought up. (below). The interviewer sounds dismissive at the end, justifiably so IMO. When they go back to the host he shakes his says "Geeez" in reaction to how it ended.

[www.youtube.com]



Edited 4 time(s). Last edit at 2021-01-25 23:24 by ryanpow.

Yep, Ryanpow. Jagger, formula 1A. When he gets a question he doesn't like he just shuts down the interview. Seen it over and over.
He is always, seemingly, very friendly to start with. Then, snap, the interview is over...

I still think that some if not a lot of the war between Mick/Keith in the mid to late 80s was to cover up the fact that Charlie was addicted to heroin and that they wouldn't have been able to tour to support Dirty Work regardless.
I don't think anyone knew, at the time, of his condition. I first heard about it in 94 when there was the interview on 60 Minutes. Shocked the hell out of me. Back then, all of my Stones news came from reading music magazines as well as being a subscriber to Beggars Banquet newsletter, which I joined in 83 when there was the insert in the Undercover album to join.

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DGA35
I still think that some if not a lot of the war between Mick/Keith in the mid to late 80s was to cover up the fact that Charlie was addicted to heroin and that they wouldn't have been able to tour to support Dirty Work regardless.
I don't think anyone knew, at the time, of his condition. I first heard about it in 94 when there was the interview on 60 Minutes. Shocked the hell out of me. Back then, all of my Stones news came from reading music magazines as well as being a subscriber to Beggars Banquet newsletter, which I joined in 83 when there was the insert in the Undercover album to join.

Could be, but being addicted to Heroin doesn't necessarily mean he couldn't have toured. Didn't Keith tour while addicted to heroin?

Still the feud was, to me, a good thing. The Stones were already starting down the path of recording less albums as a 'band' so at least we got some cool solo albums out of them!

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RisingStone

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Hairball
Mick probably could have just done two hours of some spoken word poetry or some standup comedy on stage alone, and many of the Stones hungry fans in attendance might have still showered him with frenzied adoration.

Can you say that to our friends in OZ/NZ, the countries where the tour seemingly caused as equal or even bigger a sensation as in Japan?

Yeah sure, why not - I bet many Stones fans anywhere in the world would have gone berserk had they been that hungry for anything Stones related.
Mick has that certain charisma about him, although seeing him do standup comedy or poetry for two hours might be a challenge for some in attendance.

_____________________________________________________________
Rip this joint, gonna save your soul, round and round and round we go......

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Stoneage
Yep, Ryanpow. Jagger, formula 1A. When he gets a question he doesn't like he just shuts down the interview. Seen it over and over.
He is always, seemingly, very friendly to start with. Then, snap, the interview is over...

I mean, I love the guy, but he was being a total pr*ck! Good on Alan Hunter for not being intimidated.



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 2021-01-26 00:57 by ryanpow.

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Hairball

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RisingStone

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Hairball
Mick probably could have just done two hours of some spoken word poetry or some standup comedy on stage alone, and many of the Stones hungry fans in attendance might have still showered him with frenzied adoration.

Can you say that to our friends in OZ/NZ, the countries where the tour seemingly caused as equal or even bigger a sensation as in Japan?

Yeah sure, why not - I bet many Stones fans anywhere in the world would have gone berserk had they been that hungry for anything Stones related.
Mick has that certain charisma about him, although seeing him do standup comedy or poetry for two hours might be a challenge for some in attendance.

In all honesty, for an average Japanese fan of The Rolling Stones, “seeing him do standup comedy or poetry for two hours” would be an incomparably harder challenge than those whose native tongue is English. I bet Mick can barely keep the crowd’s attention for two minutes

From the start Mick didnt look like
he wanted to do Alan Hunter interview ...
chewin shades .. lookin away .. even
mentioning Phil Collins ...
Probably been answerin' the same boring questions all day ...zzzzzzz



ROCKMAN

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RisingStone

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Hairball

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RisingStone

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Hairball
Mick probably could have just done two hours of some spoken word poetry or some standup comedy on stage alone, and many of the Stones hungry fans in attendance might have still showered him with frenzied adoration.

Can you say that to our friends in OZ/NZ, the countries where the tour seemingly caused as equal or even bigger a sensation as in Japan?

Yeah sure, why not - I bet many Stones fans anywhere in the world would have gone berserk had they been that hungry for anything Stones related.
Mick has that certain charisma about him, although seeing him do standup comedy or poetry for two hours might be a challenge for some in attendance.

In all honesty, for an average Japanese fan of The Rolling Stones, “seeing him do standup comedy or poetry for two hours” would be an incomparably harder challenge than those whose native tongue is English. I bet Mick can barely keep the crowd’s attention for two minutes

No doubt it would be more captivating for many of the Japanese fans if he did the entire performance speaking Japanese .

_____________________________________________________________
Rip this joint, gonna save your soul, round and round and round we go......

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ryanpow

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Stoneage
Yep, Ryanpow. Jagger, formula 1A. When he gets a question he doesn't like he just shuts down the interview. Seen it over and over.
He is always, seemingly, very friendly to start with. Then, snap, the interview is over...

I mean, I love the guy, but he was being a total pr*ck! Good on Alan Hunter for not being intimidated.

He does have that snotty holier than thou attitude in that interview, but there's been other interviews where he can be somewhat respectful, polite and courteous - the old Ed Bradley and Larry King interviews come to mind.

_____________________________________________________________
Rip this joint, gonna save your soul, round and round and round we go......