When you run a tour which consists of 147 shows and enormous and complex stage production there must be a point when unexpected and sudden glitch appears, no matter how professional you are.

What kind of technical problems did Stones have to face during their ABB tour. And I mean only technical problems, nothing to do with their music, Keith's condition, Mick's voice problems etc.!!!

One problem is mentioned on The Biggest Bang DVD when in Argentina they got stuck while moving towards the b-stage (BTW: how did it end? Did they finally got to the stage or did they finished they b-stage set halfway through and then moved back to the main stage? DVD doesn't explain it).

Any other examples? Maybe problems with lights, fireworks etc.?

There was a stage collapse, I think in Spain.
Crew member was killed.

You're right but that was after the show when they were dismantling it.

And there was another stage collapse in Rio.
It is shown on the DVD.

..



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2008-02-23 23:43 by rs1806.

>> Did they finally got to the stage or did they finished they b-stage set halfway through
and then moved back to the main stage? DVD doesn't explain it <<

yeah, the dvd kinda makes it sound like they did that BA b-stage set in midstream, as it were,
and then retreated to the main stage. but iorrians who were there said the glitch wasn't too noticeable,
so i guess they made it to the b-stage after a minor delay.

in Berlin 06 (thanks Too Tough!) the b-stage got stuck on something just as it was leaving the b-stage
and jerked to a stop - Ronnie almost fell off but the crew got it unstuck real quick and they carried on



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 2008-02-24 12:26 by with sssoul.

oh and there was that one show where the inflatable tongue wouldn't deflate -
it was wiggling around quite ludicrously through most of Sympathy - that was funny.
i think that one of the early 06 European shows - Milano or Vienna or Berlin

Those inflatables, so out of control.

nijmegen stage got stuck
nijmegen stage lights on 'on stage' part went bit crazy something due thunder
nijmegen there was a little bit of the screen that didn't work

almost every show i saw: after the flames on song 16,17 or 18 (mostly brown sugar or jumping jack flash), the screen images were a bit slow, like 20 fps or something

when the Stones played at the Super Bowl, there was a "stage malfunction" of sorts...
An area near the top section of the stage fell off, and exposed Janet Jackson's breast.

In Berlin in 2006, when the b-stage started to move, there was some kind
of rope still connecting a- and b-stage. When it was removed the b-stage
made a kind of jolt and the boys were looking amused at each other.

London 3 in 2007. A small part of the screen didn't work.

JumpingKentFlash

Not exactly a technical hitch, but because the first encore was cut from the first Twickenham show at the last minute, the closing fireworks suddenly went off 5-10 minutes after the show had finished, when everyone was offstage and the crowd was leaving.

Along the front edge of the ABB stadium stage, a series of steel pipes were lined up, to be used for a pyro effect towards the end of the show. In Helsinki last Summer, one of these pipes had fallen over and was pointing straight out into the crowd. Fortunately, it was corrected before the flames went off in the intro to JJF.

At Hampden Park, Glasgow on the 'B' stage Keith's guitar cut out (I think on Start Me Up). If memory serves correctly the Tech eventually resorted to plugging a lead in. Keith in true Keith fashion vented his anger on his amp!

"I'll be in my basement room with a needle and a spoon."

I'm @#$%& sure there was a stage there somewhere ....
where I thought if I don't get more GUITAR I'm gonna have a malfuction....



ROCKMAN

>> in Berlin in 2006, when the b-stage started to move <<

ahh right, that was Berlin not Vienna. thanks Too Tough. i'll correct my post.

Paris 07 - inflatable tongue wouldn't inflate, and was draped limply over the stage.

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john lomax
Paris 07 - inflatable tongue wouldn't inflate, and was draped limply over the stage.

Hmmmm. I know that feeling only too well!

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john lomax
Paris 07 - inflatable tongue wouldn't inflate, and was draped limply over the stage.

err, what was wrong with the tongue in Paris?

Cool picture!

i freakin love the Rolling Stones - ahem, i mean: yeah cool picture :E

Oh, well maybe it was the Slane Castle gig. Anyway, at one of the 2007 shows the tongue didn't inflate. Am sure it was Paris 07, but I could be mistaken.

I'm afraid you're wrong. It was in fact the Slane show. We were treated to the sight of a flacid tongue bobbing around behind the band. Also if memory serves me correctly the finale fireworks didn't go off as planned.

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iamthedj
I'm afraid you're wrong. It was in fact the Slane show. We were treated to the sight of a flacid tongue bobbing around behind the band. Also if memory serves me correctly the finale fireworks didn't go off as planned.

It was very windy, so the tongue had to be taken down.
The fireworks at Slane went off about 10 minutes after the band had left the stage, and it kept going for another 10 minutes.

Yes, I was walking through Slane village towards the buses when the fireworks went off, though a decision was made to leave FOS as JJF and BS played to avoid the worst of the crowds leaving.

In Milan 2006, opening night of the European leg, we couldn't hear anything for the first 45 minutes of the show, only monitors and some vocals.

When there was heavy rain during the show they had some problems getting out to the B-stage, simply because it is more or less like an old car transportation, and lots of water means low friction. But they workede hard and they got there every time, eventually, even if it was at the end of the song.

If you compare the complexity of the show and the stage to the weather and local challenges across the world then it is even more impressing that it went through all these shows without any single cancellations due to technical issues.

PS. Even down under it did work under our feet of mother earth, but as we all know gravitation did a trick on Keith, unfortunately.

Bjornulf