The Rolling Stones
Valle Hovin, Oslo, Norway
Wednesday August 8, 2007

1. Start Me Up
2. You Got Me Rocking
3. Rough Justice
4. Bitch
5. Monkey Man
6. You Can't Always Get What You Want
7. Midnight Rambler
8. I'll Go Crazy
9. Tumbling Dice
   --- Introductions
10. You Got The Silver (Keith)
11. I Wanna Hold You (Keith)
12. Miss You (to B-stage)
13. It's Only Rock'n Roll (B-stage)
14. Satisfaction (B-stage)
15. Honky Tonk Women (to main stage)
16. Sympathy For The Devil
17. Paint It Black
18. Jumping Jack Flash
19. Brown Sugar (encore)

The Dandy Warhols   :  7:15pm -  7:55pm
The Rolling Stones  :  9:00pm - 10:55pm

This was the fourth and final show in the Nordic countries this summer, as the Stones kiss goodbye to the North and head down to Lausanne Switzerland. Like in Denmark the press in Norway give the Stones top ranking reports. Aftenposten, Dagbladet and Dagsavisen all give the Stones five out of six, while VG join the "Expressen" club and call the Stones show "garbage rock", ranking it three out of six. The Norwegian crowd was indeed one of the youngest of the tour. There were almost constantly some 40,000 pairs of hands in the air, singing loudly on "You Can't Always Get What You Want".

As most of the press seems to be a bit confused about the number of shows and visits by the Stones to Norway, this is the correct version: They did two shows at Messehallen Sj�lyst Oslo 1965, during the same night, June 24. The Stones graffiti memory is still inscripted into the flag of the sailboat on the wall they originally painted STONES all over back in 1965. Then they did two shows in 1990, Valle Hovin, one show in 1995 and one show in 1998, same venue. Last year they performed in rainy Bergen, western part of Norway, and the show this year was the fifth at Valle Hovin ice skating venue and the eight Stones show in Norway, as they have visited Norway six times for shows as per date.

It was a warm night with temperatures exceeding +25 C during the day, and as it was a bit cloudy, the evening stayed tropical with more than +20 C all through the show. The Dandy Warhols sounded great, but it seemed like the stage was too big for them. Reaching out to such a large crowd with not so many well known songs is hard for any band. It rained very light during the second half of the Dandy Warhols set, but nobody got wet. As they prepared the stage for the main act, they pulled back the plastic cover above the stage, which ment they went for a non-rain evening.

The large concrete field was completely full. Everybody wanted to be up front. With no front of stage pit this was just a packed crowd from front to back. Anybody who tried to move around would confirm this was the largest Valle Hovin crowd of any of the five shows they performed at the venue. A dozen or so people were carried out at the front of the stage - not because they had fainted or were ill, but because they had tried to approach the stage as it seems. Local security was excellent. At one occation a well fit guy was seen jumping over the front barrier, but a local security guy grabbed the guy as he was half-way over and "put him back", following him as he were asked to leave the front of the crowd. Firm but nice security. There were hundreds of non-paying spectators back stage, side stage, neighbours in nearby buildings, or simply outside enjoying a free show in the nice weather.

The show was performed in daylight until the last few songs. Luckily the cloudy weather made it a bit dark from "Sympathy For The Devil" and on, which made it possible to see the great visual part of the Stones show as well.

The sound was great, with no obstucting constructions anywhere near the venue, all flat area. Keith was just as strong and concentrated as in Copenhagen. Brown Sugar had an awkward start but that is nou unusual. Jumping Jack Flash was so strong that the press actually got hyptonized. It was all Keith, and the riff master worked the stage while he played one of his best versions of this great classic Stones song that seemed to last forever, still finished all too soon.

Midnight Rambler was 100% live and blues and improvisations like it use to be on this tour, a great crowd pleaser, and a proof of the fact that you don't need to know the Stones songs to enjoy them, as long as they are as powerful as Rambler.

Ronnie was given a viking helmet at the B-stage and was wearing it for a brief moment. So much to tell about this show. Details. Magic moments. Great guitar playing. Extended Charlie & Mick drums/vocals duel during the introductions. Charlie banging his drums so that they made an echo from Ekeberg�sen to Holmenkollen, probably still travelling out the Oslo Fjord. Feel free to send your reports. They will show up here soon.

Then comes one of many magic moments. Midnight Rambler. Mick is truly a great harmonica player and even if Charlie does not have a huge drum kit he bashes away like there is no tomorrow. Great version.

James Brown tune next. Great fun to listen to something new. Tumbling Dice is for me always great. One of my favorits and in my opnion well played.

You got the silver. This was for me the essence of the concert. Keith smiling, singing, without his guitar and not to forget a fantastic Ronnie on slide acoustic guitar. A highligt. I wanna hold you was probably the least memorable song of the night but who could blame Keith for wanting to try something else than Happy.

At the small stage it was hard for me to see them but they sounded great.

Sympathy and Paint it black really took it up a notch and the crowd was delirious. Then in for the kill. Jumpin was ecstatic. The best version I have ever heard. Totally insane. Keiths riffs was like knives cutting through the air.

When they finished with Brown Sugar we were all happy as ever. Great show. Great stage. Great band. Thanks guys.

The opening was great! Too bad it wasn't completly dark outside, but what can you expect when you live this far north in the summer... "You got me rocking" was a superb second song. It really set everyone in the right kind of mood and set the tempo for the rest of the show. I was really really hoping for "CYHMK" but since they played "Bitch" and "Monkey man" instead, I'll let that one slide! "YCAGWYW" was brilliant! Better than in Bergen last year. And I think they must have heard us all the way there, because absolutely everyone sang along on the chorus! "Midnight Rambler" was like last time, one of the highlights of the evening. My girlfriend (Lisa) was extatic when Lisa F came up front for a solo on "I'll go crazy". She has a very powerful voice!

Keith seemed as he was really enjoying himself, and delivered two great performanses. Again I was hoping for other songs (Little T and A), but I'll live.

The B stage disappointed me a bit. I was standing very near the front and center and didn't get to see much of that segment at all. It really bugged me that the didn't use the bigscreen to show us what went on on the B stage! Specially since they played "Satisfaction" out there. My younger brother in-law was very disapointed about that.

The rest of the show was absolutely killer! The highlight for me was the intro for "Paint it black". It was 100% completly right on the money! I think Keith must have played that one before, because he nailed it :) "Jumpin Jack Flash" was insane! And so was "Brown Sugar"! But I didn't think that it was the right song to play at the very end of the concert. They should have switched the order of Brown sugar and Satisfaction. But that's just one man's opinion.

All in all it was a great show! Even the press was satisfied. All thats left to do now is to wait for a new album and a new world tour :) ! Or at least hope for one!