Pictures tomorrow - it's a new camera so I have software to sort out too, and I've also got to do a few trivial things like going to work before I get onto the important stuff.

The b-stage wasn't there until Sunday - the arena area is closed overnight to be cleared of rubbish etc. The crew were there working on it until very shortly before the Stones came on. They were handing out cups of water to people like me who'd been sitting there in the sun for hours and getting hot & sticky. Most of the crowd by me were under 30 (lots under 20) and really psyched up to see the Stones. They hadn't much idea what the b-stage was for or what was going to happen.

The Fratellis at 6 p.m. were fun - on the big screen they showed us the Stones tattoo on the drummer's shoulder - and the 3 picks proudly displayed on the singer's mike stand - and his Who The F*ck Is Mick Jagger T-shirt! A cheerful rowdy energetic band and the crowd really enjoyed them. So did I.

By 8.30 you literally couldn't move anywhere near the B-stage (can't imagine what FOS must have been like). Lots of boys with girls sitting up on their shoulders (shades of the old Station Hotel, but the road crew kept yelling at them to Get Down!) Looking back the crowd just went on for ever, and I know there was a big unofficial crowd just offsite over on the other bank of the river, too. Then the Stones were 20 mins late starting (waiting for it to get nice & dark I expect) so the tension & anticipation were unbelievable, and when the opening of Start Me Up released that tension the whole crowd exploded into yelling and clapping and leaping up and down...

I couldn't see anything of the main stage except for the relay screens (I'm only little) but I could see and hear enough to realise that the sound was great and the band were really into it and enjoying themselves. After all the buildup it would have been a disaster if Keith had had another Werchter day, but although he looked as old as the hills he was fine. The crowd didn't know You Got Me Rocking or Rough Justice, but they were dancing all through and cheering at the end.

Love In Vain! Lovely surprise. Mick made his usual silly joke about Paolo Nutini being halfway back to Glasgow by now, and then of course there he was on stage singing. I really enjoyed Paolo Nutini's own set earlier on, he's not full of noise and aggro like some of the new bands, but he definitely rocks - just nice and gently. I don't know if the song was his choice or Mick's, but it was great to hear it. I was standing there thinking that this was the first proper blues played at the IOW all weekend... and then we got CYHMK as well! Crowd went quiet and I did wonder if something so unfamiliar to them was a step too far, but it got a big cheer at the end.

Amy Winehouse's own set on Saturday was great - she has a proper little soul showband and a magnificent voice. The word had been that she wasn't staying till Sunday, so she was more of a surprise than Paolo Nutini. I think the Stones' choice of duet-partners was spot on - both had gone down really well with the crowd earlier.

Band intros - big cheer for Ronnie. Bigger one for Charlie. No Char-lie! Char-lie! from the crowd, but everyone chanting Keef! Keef! Keef! He nailed the words of Wanna Hold you (first time I've heard this live) and then a beautiful version of Slipping Away. First the sun and then the moon... wonderful.

Then the crowd found out what the B-stage was for. Stones sailing along above the heads of the crowd on a tidal wave of yelling and cheering and hands waving and flashes going off - and when they arrived and Keith hit the riff of Satisfaction everyone just went completely nuts. No warhorse-haters on the IOW last night! Shouldn't think the band could hear anything, but you could see how much they were loving being there in the middle of all of it. Wish they'd done a bit more down there, but all too soon back to the main stage for Brown Sugar & Sympathy (with all the usual crowd effects performed with great enthusiasm). People afterwards were going WOO WOO! all over the festival site.

Mick says goodnight & thanks. General groan of disappointment and chanting of We Want MORE until we get JJF. The Stones' set was about the longest of any band but it seemed to fly by and I'm sure the crowd would happily have listened to another hour's worth. Everyone just blown away by the Stones - amazing, never heard anything like it. The only negative (sort of) comment I heard was from a teenage lad saying that well, they're just like a pub band really, aren't they. So they are. At the heart of all that showbiz is still the Greatest Pub Band In The World.

Local radio reports that the Stones chartered one of WightLink's ferries specially to take all their trucks & stage gear off the Island. Unfortunately Wightlink failed to lay on extra staff/ferries to replace the chartered one, so a whole bunch of people turned up and found that the 12.35 a.m. Yarmouth to Lymington ferry had been - er - hijacked by the Rolling Stones. Pirates indeed. Nobody seems to blame the Stones for this ("They're entitled" said one interviewee) just Wightlink for not realising that there would be hordes of festival-goers, as well as the Stones, trying to get off the Island at 12.35 a.m.

Everyone this morning talking about the Stones - the owner of my caravan site, the teenage waitress at the cafe, even a couple of blokes I overheard on the golf course when I was out for a walk. I think they've made a lot of new friends, and if they do it again I'll be the first in line for tickets.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2007-06-12 06:16 by Green Lady.

Lovely review Green Lady. Thanks

Nice words Greenlady...Sounds like you had a real time...Thanks



ROCKMAN

...yes indeed lady of green....nice words indeed....

lovely review Green Lady; beautiful stuff; sweet & cool observations; wondeful to hear; thank you for such a gracious report...

thank you for the beautiful write-ups, Beast & Green Lady!
reading those has me sitting here glowin like a fool -
i'm so glad you got to be there, and that you had a blast!

I can't figure why CYHMK isn't better known -- isn't STICKY FINGERS one of their most popular albums?

Lorenz Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Before we all get too happy about the Stones
> performance, here a thread from the official Isle
> of Wight festival forum...:
>
> [community.isleofwightfestival.com]
> 62565/ShowThread.aspx


Thats funny!!! Not enough war horses...ha..ha!!

I see there are torrents of the videos of SMU and SFTD up on mininova just now.....

Nice to see Keith's eyes open and lucid. Don't drink and drive.

Must admit to not being a huge fan of the current day Stones but I am looking forward to hearing & seeing their IOW performance. It's one of the great music events and there seems to be quite a buzz about the boy's performance.

rooster Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Lorenz Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > Before we all get too happy about the Stones
> > performance, here a thread from the official
> Isle
> > of Wight festival forum...:
> >
> >
> [community.isleofwightfestival.com]
>
> > 62565/ShowThread.aspx
>
>
> Thats funny!!! Not enough war horses...ha..ha!!

yes! that's telling
the moaning of no-stones-fans is not much about performance (and keith is criticized because "he cannot sing"....) than about not having played the "songs that everybody wants to hear" as REM did. That's almost incredible to look at from here, from this forum or rocks off. Someone tells it flat "the first hour was a bore"....
Imagine what the majority of people there would have thought if they'd played the setlist of our dreams (with winter, dance little sister, slave, let it loose etc...)

great reviews and memories Beast and GreenLady- thanks for sharing

- so pleased, you both had such a wonderful weekend.

The NME rate them top band of the weekend:

[www.nme.com]

Great reviews from the Hippy Chicks, Beast and Green Lady, sounds like a wonderful atmosphere and quite unlike a normal Stones show.......'A Different Bang' perhaps?!

Huh, I cant handle any torrent files, please someone put the SMU and SFTD clip onto youtube.

The NME says that Amy Winehouse refused to rehearse with the Stones, which kind of makes sense as there were points when it looked/sounded like she was singing a different song.

Paulo Nutini was much better, but obviously very nervous. The way he kept looking at Mick for approval and Mick would kind of smile and nod, as if to say 'Don't worry - you're doing fine' was very endearing.

Ronnie, however, takes home the man of the match award. He was on fire all night.

It did not look like it, but sure the Stones brought their own stage. I mean not the main stage, but lots of the other stuff, including the B-stage. Also it looked like their real PA system but I would not guarantee it. And the screen etc.

Bjornulf

yeh these reviews are really touching; make me very happy...how cool is that...
'greatest pub band in the world' indeed...beast's story of keith's daughters goin' for broke on jjf at stage-side, surrounded by tens of thousands of THEIR contemporaries on the cutting edge of new rock circa Two Thousand OH Seven...what a tremendous thrill and wondrous kick...she described in such a way that i could really 'see' it visually and what a smashing smashing wonderful story....a dang triumph actually...whoooo!

this one mattered; this one had it's own little wrinkle (and 'normal' stage and it's own vibe)...something a tad outside of their own 'regular' extravaganza...this one was a sell out party even if they never showed...this one was already IN the culture, and playing to people a PART of it; not it's own narrow demographied economic, (or other) 'niche'....and look at the glow!

get each and every one of these kids a free download of 'banquet' immediately and change the nature and evolution of pop and rock yet again...haha at least a few in that crowd will now stumble across aftermath or banquet and they'll get a real trippy wide view of heart/soul magnificence beyond their expectations or wanderings...great!!! they did LIV...

people would just be listening, even past the hype of their incredible history...
there was no way the stones were not showing up for this one...needn't be a savant to make the prediction about this one...
...glad to hear the mix was guitar heavy...duh...like yesss!!!
history, i would guess, is abstract and mostly dosen't matter a hair to them (the festival kids there), thank goodness...
but showing up and putting out does...this is just spectacular to hear about...
so proud of the band, so personally happy to think of keith's girls goin' for broke as the boys blew minds with their encore and tens of thousands whooped it up felt the thunder...these people spent an hour or so with charlie watts...now they can leave the faith if they choose, but a baptism by watts is not an easy thing to shake out of your heart or nervous system...what a trip iow '07 headliners pulled through in a big way...happy happy joy joy.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2007-06-12 12:07 by Beelyboy.

Why would she refuse to rehearse?
Any thoughts?

Cheers,
Wuudy

Wuudy Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Why would she refuse to rehearse?
> Any thoughts?


the loss of quality time at the bar

Adrian-L Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Wuudy Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > Why would she refuse to rehearse?
> > Any thoughts?
>
>
> the loss of quality time at the bar


She's not called Winehouse for nothing!

Damn shame the band aren't playing Glasto. Imagine the coverage then!

ablett Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Damn shame the band aren't playing Glasto. Imagine
> the coverage then!


now they've got a taste for the festival-experience and they've had glowing reviews, i strongly suspect Glasto 2008, will be pencilled in.

Just read the comments on the Isle of Wight festival website...and the general opinion seems to be that the Stones were "disappointing" although all the press reports and reports on here are saying the opposite.

I saw the Stones on Sunday, the second gig i'd seen of them and i was suprised and extremly pleased with thier choice of songs to play. I was aware however that although every one sung along with Start Me Up, no-one near me did on the second song You Got Me Rocking (felt like i was the ONLY one! LOL!) and this trend carryied on until Tumbling Dice just before Keef's set. So i can understand people's dissapointment if they were expecting a live rendition of
40 Licks disk 1 but I would have been dissapointed if this had happened.

If i had seen this gig 3 years ago when i first really got into the band after buying the aforementioned album i don't know if I would have been as pleased with the Stone's set on Sunday. I would have been pleased however with my
position on Sunday, about 15 "rows" back from the stage on Keef's side. Keefs set was fantastic, Love in Vain and Ain't too proud to beg brilliant.

...and Mick Jagger's comment "Two quid for water...four quid hamburger and a dog ate all my dope!!!"

A English Stones Fan (age: 18)

Erik_Snow Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> >>What makes anyone think it would be released
> officially? This show gets televised every year
> and there isnt a DVD release of it.<<
>
> Well I do have a Isle Of Wight 1970 DVD...!
> Not too familiar with the recent IOW festivals
> though, or releases from them


Different era, different event, different location, different promoter

The IOW festival in its current format has been only going since 2002, after an absence of 31 years.

The music industry has changed so much since 1970. You can barely begin to imagine the legal and contractual bunfight there would be to get clearance to release the performances of about 25 acts on a DVD release. Especially from you-know-who

Lorenz Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Before we all get too happy about the Stones
> performance, here a thread from the official Isle
> of Wight festival forum...:
>
> [community.isleofwightfestival.com]
> 62565/ShowThread.aspx


Oh God, thats hilarious

Setlist whining, complaints that they are basically an R&B band, moaning about "old" Stones fans not being excited by other acts ('yawning at Muse' how dare they!) that they played a lot of new stuff to help sell copies of their new album (!!!!!!), a long list of hits that they didnt play and - my favourite of all - that they played a lot of their 'solo' stuff instead.

Good to see our own sjs12 nailin' it to the little infidels....



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2007-06-12 14:03 by Gazza.

EnglishStoneFan Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> ...and Mick Jagger's comment "Two quid for
> water...four quid hamburger and a dog ate all my
> dope!!!"
>

From the NME:

<Funniest of all was Mick Jagger pretending to be down with the kids. "It's so expensive here! Two quid for a water, four quid for a burger..." We'll happily offer a prize of one million pounds to the first person to send in a photograph of Mick queueing at any of the burger stands onsite to prove that he definitely wasn't in the Bahamas until five minutes before the set, and definitely didn't dine out on the glorious catering the Stones had flown in especially for the gig.>

After reading all the negative comments about Werchter and Nijmegen and all the positive comments about the Isle Of Wight we can now unofficialy announce the bootleg title of the IOW gig:


"WE NEVER REALLY GOT IT ON TILL ISLE OF WIGHT"





Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2007-06-12 14:18 by Mack Jigger.