The Rolling Stones performed at Super Bowl 40 February 5, 2006.

Viewed at times over the years I thought they were sloppy. Beyond naturally.

Watching it tonight, and listening - they were charged.













Edited 3 time(s). Last edit at 2026-02-09 15:34 by bv.

I was very dissapointed in their performance.And did not like their choice of songs.The guitar playing was subpar.And most people did not want to hear rough Justice

It was fantastic!
The last of the great halftime shows.

Agreed on rough justice… other than that I thought a decent performance considering it was a halftime show


Let’s Go SEAHAWKS!!!!!!!

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Taylor1
I was very dissapointed in their performance.And did not like their choice of songs.The guitar playing was subpar.And most people did not want to hear rough Justice

I loved to hear Rough Justice in Copacabana when I saw them less than two weeks after their Super Bowl performance.

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Taylor1
I was very dissapointed in their performance.And did not like their choice of songs.The guitar playing was subpar.And most people did not want to hear rough Justice

Of course you were - it wasn't 1973 live Stones. No Mick Taylor.

You define "most people didn't want to hear Rough Justice"?

I find that to be 99.9% fake news.

Anything else?

By all means, continue finding ways not to evolve being a Stones fan beyond 1974.

Very strange that the perception of playing is very different over time. I notice this as well.

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PaintMonkeyManBlack
Very strange that the perception of playing is very different over time. I notice this as well.

It's not great. Far from it. But it's not awful, like other performances during that tour.

Ronnie was not so much of a mess for Start Me Up, he was decent during Rough Justice. Keith... it was Mick that was probably too amped up.

Certainly heard a lot worse from the Stones. "Don't step on the cracks".

They were very clearly not the best but also very clearly not the worst of the legacy rock acts doing the super bowl. They just... were, and that's fine to me. I don't think anyone should be too critical. They showed up, did their stones thing, and that's it. Yeah, Rough Justice is dumb to include (and I like the song), but they had a new album so of course they'd play it. They were not U2, they were not Prince, but they weren't an embarrassment. IMO they still looked like The Stones, whereas the Who, god bless em, looked a little too old to be there. I don't think anyone minded hearing a couple classic Stones tracks and seeing Mick do his thing. They aren't talked about but I don't think that's cause it was bad, which is not meant to defend them. I just can't imagine anything else they could have done that was better. Kinda like Tom Petty. You're hired to show up and play music and that's what they did. Its a bigger deal for the young ins now than it was for the old guys just providing 12 minutes of nostalgia. Expectations were very different and tempered 20 years ago.

I read some forums about audio production, and one of them detailed what happened with their sound the morning after. Something like all the mic signals but one failed for most of the first song, and they had to make due.

The Stones were the last band ever to actually play fully live. Even U2 prerecorded their performance. Drums and bass broadcast the recorded sound, guitar and vocals were live, but had a backup recording ready to go if something went wrong with the mic signals.

I remember the show vividly, they came across very raw, but I loved it. My brother-in-law isn't a Stones fan, but asked for a mix CD with Rough Justice on it after the show.

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GasLightStreet
The Rolling Stones performed at Super Bowl 40 February 5, 2006.

Viewed at times over the years I thought they were sloppy. ….

Love that press conference! Jagger, along with his charisma is a master at promotion. And the little bits of Keith were hysterical. He and Jagger are sharp, witty, and engaging.



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 2026-02-09 15:37 by bv.

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RollingFreak
They were very clearly not the best but also very clearly not the worst of the legacy rock acts doing the super bowl. They just... were, and that's fine to me. I don't think anyone should be too critical. They showed up, did their stones thing, and that's it. Yeah, Rough Justice is dumb to include (and I like the song), but they had a new album so of course they'd play it. They were not U2, they were not Prince, but they weren't an embarrassment. IMO they still looked like The Stones, whereas the Who, god bless em, looked a little too old to be there. I don't think anyone minded hearing a couple classic Stones tracks and seeing Mick do his thing. They aren't talked about but I don't think that's cause it was bad, which is not meant to defend them. I just can't imagine anything else they could have done that was better. Kinda like Tom Petty. You're hired to show up and play music and that's what they did. Its a bigger deal for the young ins now than it was for the old guys just providing 12 minutes of nostalgia. Expectations were very different and tempered 20 years ago.

I was wondering if they were really live.

I think I saw this performance twice only and it was not bad but they were just ok.

2006 was also the end of my love affair with them performing live.
I remember listening to Sapporo and for the first time I got the "it is just another one more show" feeling.
And when I'll Go Crazy was broadcasted from Werchter 2007 I found it "really not good" and I pointed Jagger that seemed to be lacking the required energy.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2026-02-08 19:38 by ds1984.

That's actually how I became a fan of the Stones. I saw them during the Superbowl live show and thought: damn, these oldies really put on a good show. I was 19 and thought the Stones were my father's music, but after the Superbowl I started downloading everything (oops) and I thought: oh yes, I know this one too, oh yes, this is also a banger. Saw them live a year later on the Bigger Bang tour and still loved it!

The first thing I remember was that the sound was gone for half of SMU. Personally, I really liked Rough Justice. A contemporate band should always try new material. The day they don't they are history.
I kind of zimmered out during Satisfaction. It's a dead song in 2006. Even for those kids inside the tongue although they have, probably, never heard it.

I liked the tongue stage decor. Really effective. And they did a good performance. It's not their fault that they were considered an oldies act already then.

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GasLightStreet

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Taylor1
I was very dissapointed in their performance.And did not like their choice of songs.The guitar playing was subpar.And most people did not want to hear rough Justice

Of course you were - it wasn't 1973 live Stones. No Mick Taylor.

You define "most people didn't want to hear Rough Justice"?

I find that to be 99.9% fake news.

Anything else?

By all means, continue finding ways not to evolve being a Stones fan beyond 1974.

I can evolve anyway I want.And actually I will say my opinion like you say yours.I also like the1989-1990, 1975 tours very much.I thought they were great.Also liked the 1994 -1995 and the 50 and Counting shows.But they were not good at the Superbowl.And here in the States everyone who I know who saw the performance agreed.And not that the majority is always right , but show me one music poll or critics review that puts theirSuper Bowl performance in the listof great ones.

I watched a ranking of best Super Bowl performances on YT weeks ago. The Stones were No.4 behind Prince, Bruce, and other act I don't remember now. So, it seems they did great according to that poll at least.

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Taylor1

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GasLightStreet

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Taylor1
I was very dissapointed in their performance.And did not like their choice of songs.The guitar playing was subpar.And most people did not want to hear rough Justice

Of course you were - it wasn't 1973 live Stones. No Mick Taylor.

You define "most people didn't want to hear Rough Justice"?

I find that to be 99.9% fake news.

Anything else?

By all means, continue finding ways not to evolve being a Stones fan beyond 1974.

I can evolve anyway I want.And actually I will say my opinion like you say yours.I also like the1989-1990, 1975 tours very much.I thought they were great.Also liked the 1994 -1995 and the 50 and Counting shows.But they were not good at the Superbowl.And here in the States everyone who I know who saw the performance agreed.And not that the majority is always right , but show me one music poll or critics review that puts theirSuper Bowl performance in the listof great ones.

Any other song from ABB would've been a disaster. Rough Justice was the best choice.

Alas, the Stones SB show finishes around the top ten in most rankings. Here are two.

[www.rollingstone.com]

[www.billboard.com]

They were in the middle of a tour and promoting the album so Mick decided to play it. Should have done HTW or Tumbling in that slot or Wild Horses.
At least it was rock and roll vs. the crap that has been at the last 5-6 halftime shows

The half time show is really just a spectacle to pass time before the real event. As a marketing tool it's unbeatable though. Look what companies are paying for adverts.

Surprised nobody has mentioned Stones were the only band to actually play live with no backing track at the super bowl.

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Hound Dog
Surprised nobody has mentioned Stones were the only band to actually play live with no backing track at the super bowl.

They did. See above (Posted by: thomponj ()
Date: February 8, 2026 14:34)

The boys set the gold standard, 100% live, real, wanting to entertain. Unlike other performances that wasn’t live, total fake bs agenda, not wanting to entertain, but promote other agendas instead. Proud to be a Rolling Stones fan as they entertained and did something real, with courage… well done boys!!

Blimey! Was this really 20 years ago? The Stones in their 60’s - well, all accept Ronnie. Who’d have imagined that two decades on, there’d be talk of shows and another album on its way?

I remember their being a little doc on this performance on the Bigger Bang DVD Boxset, good enough reason to rewatch it and see if my memory is right.

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Paddy
I remember their being a little doc on this performance on the Bigger Bang DVD Boxset, good enough reason to rewatch it and see if my memory is right.

Yes there is. I watched it on YouTube and, flooded with remembering why I didn't like it when I watched it originally, chose not to post it because the press conference itself is much better - and doesn't have a horrible song for a soundtrack unlike the DVD does.

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MichaelLassen
The boys set the gold standard, 100% live, real, wanting to entertain. Unlike other performances that wasn’t live, total fake bs agenda, not wanting to entertain, but promote other agendas instead. Proud to be a Rolling Stones fan as they entertained and did something real, with courage… well done boys!!

U2 performed live.

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Kurt
It was fantastic!
The last of the great halftime shows.

Nah, Prince did way better the next year.

At the time, I remember being a little underwhelmed by the whole thing. The Super Bowl doesn't mean anything to me, and the 'half-time entertainment' concept is baffling to this Englishman. However, it is what it is; and in retrospect, it is a good performance. One thing that leaps out, is how relatively sprightly they are. Time does march on.

I thought they did very good. Satisfaction fell slightly apart towards the end, but it's only rock'n'roll

Can't remember any sound issues with SMU, other than muting of the word "cum"?

Rough Justice gelled nicely into that short set, imo.

Mick and Keith were very happy with their performance, as seen in the documentary, when they were heading back stage. They should be.



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 2026-02-11 10:48 by DandelionPowderman.

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GasLightStreet

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MichaelLassen
The boys set the gold standard, 100% live, real, wanting to entertain. Unlike other performances that wasn’t live, total fake bs agenda, not wanting to entertain, but promote other agendas instead. Proud to be a Rolling Stones fan as they entertained and did something real, with courage… well done boys!!

U2 performed live.

Really? When I have seen U2 live, there have been lots of pre-sampled parts in their shows.

Bjornulf