On LIve Licks I repeatedly play Street Fighting Man and When The Whip Comes Down not only because the pace is fast, but the songs sound really exciting, I know they are not the same as '75 or '78 but in some ways I prefer them. Having heard Jumping Jack Flash from Rio, I was very encouraged because they sounde loose and potentially dangerous, with nice little licks from everyone. If they play the 'boring' old setlist as well as the above I don't care, because their 'chemistry' is 'potentially' still so exciting and I believe it is in the slip between cup and lip or in the juxtaposition of moments that still defines the rolling stones as being of significant cultural resonance in the 21st century IE it is in the MOMENT alone, that this particular group so often can still generate intense excitement, even in their ultra professional mature years, and seem so capable of capturing, albeit ephemerally.

it seems the quickness is leaving the guys, understandably so. keith's fingers cant pull off lightening quick licks anymore (not that he ever did much that was too quick, he knows which notes to hit, and how to work them right, he doesn't need to be flashy). ronnie can still play some quick stuff, but that is where his solos go a little off the rail.
live with me is another example of quicker song that works well for the band even today.
it seems to me that midnight rambler is the main song where the band really captures the energy and 'oneness' with the crowd. it was the song that got me hooked on the stones after seeing them live in 2002.

Luckily The Stones are best when they do something else than the quick songs.

JumpingKentFlash

No they cant; agree with all ya guys.
RJ is the fastest they do appropriate now.
Therefore SMU - off ya go.
Sounds awful when played too slow.

JJF is great to have in the set list & can be exciting but,I wouldn't classify Miss You,You Got Me Rocking,Tumbling Dice,and IORR as exciting when they are being played for the 500th or 1000th time.

I never actually counted the beat, but I have a feeling they play a lot faster now than on especially the Voodoo Lounge tour.

Listen to VL performances of e.g. BTMMR, Shattered of even Brown Sugar.

Compared to that they are rather speedy now.

Sometimes this indeed leeds to excitement, like SFM on the FF Twickenham show. Also the overal tempo of the ABB tour, combined with the guitar predominance, seems to add a renewing spark to their upholding rock'n'roll status.

But on this latest tour they seem to overspeed themselves regularly. Listen for example to the versions of Rough Justice, Start Me Up and HTW on the Argentinian boot. Like they try to get away from the b-stage as fast as possible. Rough Justice on that show is (I know, judging by the boot) a complete disaster. Especially Mick, who seems to set that tempo himself, is unable to keep up and goes flat.

Undeniably Wood and Richards have a slightly smaller arsenal of licks/imagination than 12 years ago and the speed compensates this somehow. But they shouldn't sound too rushed imo.