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The Rolling Stones live at Mercedes-Benz Superdome, New Orleans, LA, USA, July 15, 2019 - Photo by Bjornulf Vik
Show start : 8:58pm Show end : 11:00pm
Pre-show info and live comments:
New Orleans show 15-July-2019 live updates
IMPORTANT! Reports and pictures are welcome, but please send them as soon as possible after the show. Updates of these reports pages will mainly be done within 2-4 days after the show has been performed. After that it is on to the next show of the tour, and there will normally not be time for any more updates of older reports pages.
Thanks to Philip Bajo for video links!
The centre of Storm Barry, thankfully, missed New Orleans by 100 miles, so whilst we got some strong winds and rain, the predicted flooding and damage was small and very localised. The airport did close for a day, and the city was eerily quiet on the main storm day with little or no traffic and only a few intrepid pedestrians. Stones fans struggled to get in until Sunday, and some only on show day on Monday. It also meant the heat and humidity was tempered a little – but back to normal at 11pm after the show itself. Doing an outdoor show would have been very tough on the band and fans alike. I suspect the tail-end humidity from Barry was even higher than normal.
Mick mentioned that he had had 4 days of room service meals, hunkered down in his suite. He, Ronnie and Charlie for sure were reported doing some sightseeing. Maybe Keith was catching up with some of the music and musicians from New Orleans that Mick paid credit-to during the show. I thought that this might lead to a guest appearance. Irma Thomas doing Time Is On My Side was my hope but it didn’t happen. Ivan Neville, with his funk band, as support did a great tribute to Dr. John.
With all the changes of timing, then a move from a Sunday to work-day Monday, the doom-and-gloomers predicted a half empty stadium. It certainly wasn’t full, and crowd guessing is not my speciality, but I suspect they had at least 50,000 – on par with Chicago and Boston. There were areas with no people, but then sightlines determine much of that. Louisiana is not as big nor as rich an area as those northern cities.
The atmosphere inside, as expected, had a bit of the “we made it through the storm to see the Stones” flavour. The band itself were very fired-up. I thought Charlie was hitting with more power and visible enthusiasm than normal (he normally keeps his enthusiasm well hidden). Keith was deep in concentration and moving around a lot (only one faux pas worth noting). Mick seemed almost possessed – well we were in voodoo land. He was so energised, and full of grins and asides to fellow musicians. That other atmosphere, the air itself, was wonderfully cool compared to outside. I would not like that stadium’s electricity bill!!
The setlist itself was slimmed down to 19 songs, not that I noticed. Others did at the time. The show length was, I think, normal. The “different” songs were Lets Spend The Night Together, Sad Sad Sad, Under My Thumb (vote), Slipping Away, Angie and Dead Flowers. No space for IORR and Street Fighting Man. This choice allowed more Keith backing vocals, including another “sharing the microphone with Mick” moment in Dead Flowers. He also does a great solo in Sad Sad Sad and, as I’ve now come to expect, Slipping Away was just magic.
The centre stage acoustic set continues to work well. Some lovely guitar work on both songs and especially slide work from Ronnie on Dead Flowers. Just a little reminder for Ronnie – when doing your next setlist painting, “acoustic” only has the letter c twice, not three times.
Darryl, and I think Tim, got slightly extended solos in Miss You. Both of them were the centre of band mates’ attention. Mick, Ronnie and Keith for Darryl and Darryl and Keith for Tim. On Rambler, where we has a slightly disjointed excerpt from You Gotta Move, I thought Keith’s concentration and playing matched Mick’s theatrical elements and harp playing. It is such a highlight of the show.
On the “needs improvement” list, the French horn at the start of YCAGWYW seemed a bit fragile (does Mick keep calling it a flugel horn?) and the start of Shelter was a bit of a mess to the amusement of all on stage and only came together when Mick provided a cue by starting the vocals. But overall another very, very strong performance – technically, emotionally, commitment-wise: all around.
I would not like the job of handling the sound in such a huge stadium, carefully designed to have such a great sound reflecting shape where the roof meets the seating. At the front there was some occasional echo, but only when there was an abrupt transition to a quiet moment. When at the side, halfway-up, I heard very clear sound. I’m not sure about the folks right opposite the stage. I’m told its one of the worst large places to get good sound for rock music in the US. Dave N, sound obermeister par excellence, did a very fine job indeed to my ears. Thank you sir!
I think the band is really settled into the Tour now. A well-oiled machine, retaining the enthusiasm and the energy to play despite over a week off. That mid-tour break, around halfway from rehearsal start to tour end, seems a permanent fixture and works well. Everyone on stage looks very fired-up and having fun. This helped the already eager audience to really get going. The crowd singing was very loud, and helped to drown-out the odd person (odd in two senses of the word) who think a Stones concert is a good place for an extended conversation…
So, despite the date changes, Tropical Storm/Hurricane Barry, and the associated travel disruption, New Orleans had a great show. The whole city got very Stones-oriented. The audience, whether from far or near, seemed to have a great time. And I think the band did as well. Listening to other people at the airport as I write this I’m hearing lots of great feedback on the show. I think people know it’s unlikely the Stones will play in New Orleans again (it was 16 years from starting before they played for the first time), and if that is indeed the case they closed the circle in great style and with great power.
I did not write any reports for a while, because after all, every shows is as great as the previous one, the weather and the crowds may vary, but the band is focused, powerful, emotional and honest at every show. I see the hard working crew, doing their best to make these great experiences for us, and I see the band members, working the best they can, from the intro to the final bow.
Still, there was something about the New Orleans show. Not just the preludium, with flooding on Wednesday, and the Hurrican Barry warnings later on, making the show running one day late. It was all about the crowd, and Mick. For this show in particular, I would say SuperMick! Normally Mick is loaded with energy, never standing still, like the cat playing with the mouse, and we - the crowd - are like the mouse - except we are never terminated, he is just playing us. In this show here in New Orleans, right from start, the crowd reactions were immediate. Hands up by Mick, hands up by the crowd. Yeah yeah from Mick, yeah yeah from the crowd. He played us for two hours. We gave him our energy and he gave feedback to us. And further on to the rest of the band.
Ronnie, Charlie, Keith, the rest of band - they were all rock solid. I did not miss anything. I noticed quite early we were on to a nineteen songs set list, when they did "You Can't Always Get What You Want" as song number six, meaning the acoustic set on the B-stage is next, but a great show is never about quantity, it is always about quality and power.
When "Miss You" finished, Mick walked over to drink, then he said, almost whisper "Miss You", into his microphone, then took a sip of the water bottle, one more time "Miss You", even softer, and again, and again, watching Mick up close I could see he was singing as much to himself as to us, the last ones of "Miss You" were not on the PA, mostly for the lip readers. I am sure Mick enjoyed this show as much as we did. And this was not just happening on Miss You, but also on other songs. It was like a club show in a superdome, Mick was in super form, and I was just enjoying every bit of it.
Keith and Mick were close many times, that is a joy to all of us, not just an old nostalgic dream, but that is how they do perform now, and I have many pictures of Mick and Keith close, not just the ones published, so it is not just a dream to me...
The shows are not to be compared, but still, I hope we get more crowds like the Superdome crowd in New Orleans, because after all, the crowd is making the show, the fans are the fuel of the band. A great show, and a great tour indeed.
Jumping Jack Flash - as bad as I wanted Street Fighting Man, how could they not open with this?
Let’s Spend The Night Together - don’t know why, had a lump in my throat during this one. Just sounded great and made me think about how many more times will I get to spend the night together with the Stones (Phoenix in August is the next one for me)
Tumbling Dice - solid warhorse
Sad Sad Sad - 30 years ago Steel Wheels came out and I saw them live for the first time. Am very happy they resurrected this song for this tour. Great song live! Keep it in the set list!
Under My Thumb - it’s funny, I stuffed the ballot box for Harlem Shuffle, as did a few others, but this song won the vote. No matter, always liked this great song, and think first time live for me since 1997.
You Can’t Always Get What You Want - like it mid set and without the choir
Angie - great! Really like the two song mid stage acoustic set up
Dead Flowers - this brings back memories. Not only have always loved this song, but also remember it from my very first time seeing them live at the LA Coliseum in October 1989. Really like Ronnie and Keith on acoustic for this
Sympathy For The Devil - I say this every review: I hate it when the Stones omit the 3rd verse, it just flat out sucks! I don’t think they’ve played the full song since the ‘94 Voodoo Lounge tour!
Honkey Tonk Woman - always a favorite warhorse, did not disappoint
Slipping Away - just great! 30th anniversary of Steel Wheels!
Before They Make Me Run - easily my all time favorite Keith song. Sounded great
Miss You - this is a warhorse I wish they would put to bed. Mick was fantastic on this though
Paint It Black - strange, always liked this live, but this one sounded very tired tonight
Midnight Rambler - always great! Very compact tonight: under 10 minutes. Snippet of You Gotta Move, which was a treat
Start Me Up - sounded great tonight
Brown Sugar - extra special since we are in New Orleans!
Encores: Gimme Shelter - boy, did Keith botch the opening! They recovered, sounded good. Strange to have this as an encore
Satisfaction - solid finale
If you’re on the fence about going to see them live, go! They still perform at an incredibly high level! See you in Phoenix next month!
Highlights were MR, sympathy (Keith was great and LOUD) brown sugar. Lowlights gimmie shelter, way too slow paint it black, and Keith’s set is just a huge fucking waste of time nobody wants to hear at this point.
Can’t say I was thrilled with the setlist, a surprise or two woulda been nice but that’s life.
Best seats I ever had for the stones so that didn’t hurt, maybe 7 rows back in the Pitt close to center. We all loved it super short crowd in the pit and perfectly civilized.
Crowd size was fine what do you expect it’s New Orleans. Certainly didn’t look empty.
Sound was great up front but terrible in the back when I went to take a piss, super echoey.
Went to maple leaf for some awesome music after (George porter) place was packed with hundreds of stones fans.
Another weird thing after GS Keith started the Satisfaction riff almost immediately cutting off Mick who was introducing/thanking Sasha for her help on gimmie shelter. By the end of the show Keith was kind of on his own planet.
The two GA pit wristbands both had the wrong dates which was hilarious (jazzfest date and Sunday)
I can’t imagine I’ll ever see the band again but I always say that. If not good show to go out on. I really hope they hang it up while it’s still respectable but you never know do ya.
Fun night, way more enjoyable than whining about a show you didn’t attend from your keyboard. Have fun everybody as this thing rolls on.
Next day it picked up a bit more, and then show day my hotel was packed. It was like Disneyland, the escalator was jammed top to bottom, full lobby, lines to park, etc.
Earlier that same day I ran into BV at a hotel restaurant. I had briefly met him during the Zip Code tour and thought I recognized him so asked his name.. We chatted briefly, and even though I thanked him personally I’ll say it again: Thank you for the information network you provide here BV.
Pre-show. Tried to buy a poster but was told because of the wrong date they were unavailable at the venue. waked around and spoke with people who had driven in from Texas, Baton Rouge, Mississippi, Pittsburgh, Memphis, Florida. Met a couple from Amsterdam who unfortunately could not change their travel plans to fly back to Europe that night and would no longer be able to attend the show. Really enjoyed talking with them and we traded some small Stones trinkets we each had.
Showtime. This was my first time in the Pit. I’ve been close before, but not in a Stones Pit. I didn’t opt for the front but did get near the catwalk rail about midway back. It was fun in a way I didn’t expect — From where I stood I could watch Charlie Watts clearly, and found myself matching his movements to the drum sounds I was hearing much of the show, fantastic for me because in the past I was always watching Mick, or Keith, or Bill, or Ronnie, or Brian.. Just kidding, I’ve never seen Brian live.
I won’t break down the rest of the show in much detail but will end with three takeaways:
Jumping Jack Flash: Keith stepping forward, the energy Mick came out with, his colorful jacket, the sound, all of it was fantastic. One of my personal favorite times hearing this song live.
The crowd and the locals: Quotes I heard around me that night were, The Stones are the greatest rock and roll band ever! This show is great! Oh my God! etc.. The next morning I got texts from friends reading, I’ve seen them before but that was special.. The show was amazing.. and, simply: I was thrilled! .. This was in stark contrast to some of the things I read online from people who weren’t even at the show. The truth is that the Stones haven’t played here in a long while and the locals were, as my friend put it, thrilled.
Chicago #2 of this tour had a set-list I loved, and the energy of the band that night was topnotch, but the Superdome was the venue I wanted to see them at the most, in the city I have loved for years, amongst the people who have always welcomed me. It WAS like a club show. It was simple, fun, and the band was as playful as I have ever seen them. I keep playing moments back and wish I could be there again to take it all in.
Important background on venue and this show- Mick said from the stage it was the 5th time playing this venue the four previous dates- 7/13/1978, 12/5/1981, 11/13/1989 and 10/10/1994. The 1981 Stones concert at the Superdome continues to hold the record for Superdome concert attendance (87,500) and held the record for the world’s largest indoor concert for over three decades. With the last show being in 1994 the Rolling Stones had not had a show in New Orleans for about 25 years!
The mid aged man sitting next to me said he had never seen the Rolling Stones before and told me how he played Rolling Stones songs in his high school band. Originally the Rolling Stones were to play the legendary New Orleans Jazz & Hertiage festival on 5/2/19. Standing tickets for the festival were priced at $185 each and sold out very fast. With the concert needing to be rescheduled it was moved to the Superdome with a rescheduled date of Sunday July 15. As the concert date approached weather forecasts grew dire as a possible hurricane might hit close to the city on Saturday. The airport in New Orleans was closed on Saturday July 14th as a precaution.
On Friday the decision was made to move the show from Sunday to Monday night. This enabled those worried about traveling to get a refund. It would have been very hard to move the date to say September as early July is the start of Hurricane season and September is peak hurricane season. Thankfully the storm weakened and made land about 160 miles west of New Orleans. Mick said from the stage we are the only band to get rained out in a dome - (indoor venue) on moving the date from Sunday to Monday. Monday was a warm humid day in New Orleans. The stadium is right downtown making it easy for people to arrive and leave. The concert was very well attended and full all around with the venue and date change.
The Stones are dignified seniors now but they still light up like a bunch of school kids when they play these songs. Their catalog is so legendary that it's a humbling experience for everyone, probably even The Stones, that they still sound this good. The hurricane appropriate Jumping Jack Flash kicks things off and we are on our way.
Mick was in especially rare form tonight and seemed sort of like a tiger out of his cage most of the evening. I witnessed this first hand from my vantage point next to the catwalk where he kept stopping by to flash his bare chest and blow me kisses, until I realized there were a large group of attractive young women right behind me (oh well). Mick had all the energy all night and we even got a little impromptu version of "You Gotta Move" during the breakdown of Midnight Rambler.
Ronnie must have forgotten to put Street Fighting Man back on the setlist which was a bummer, but it was great to hear Under My Thumb, still sounding like the version on Still Life that is so dear to my heart. It was funny to hear Mick talk about eating "Po' Boys and Jambalaya" during their stay since we also had been feasting on the same delicious New Orleans cuisine.
It was exciting to be in the Superdome for the first time which seemed intimate for its size, but it could have just been the warmth of the New Orleans audience that made it so cozy. Either way, this was my favorite band playing in one of my favorite cities under some pretty extreme circumstances and for my 20th Rolling Stones concert, it was one of the best I've seen.
Photo by Bjornulf Vik
Photo by Bjornulf Vik
Photo by Bjornulf Vik
Photo by Bjornulf Vik
Photo by Bjornulf Vik
Photo by Bjornulf Vik
Photo by Bjornulf Vik
Photo by Bjornulf Vik
Photo by Bjornulf Vik
Photo by Bjornulf Vik
Photo by Bjornulf Vik
Photo by Bjornulf Vik
Photo by Bjornulf Vik
Photo by Bjornulf Vik
Photo by Bjornulf Vik
Photo by Bjornulf Vik
Photo by Bjornulf Vik
Photo by Bjornulf Vik
Photo by Bjornulf Vik
Photo by Bjornulf Vik
Photo by Victor Woods
Photo by Victor Woods
Photo by Victor Woods
Photo by Victor Woods
Photo by Victor Woods
Photo by Victor Woods
Photo by Victor Woods
Photo by Victor Woods
Photo by Darren Rappa
Photo by Darren Rappa
This page will change over the next few days, as you and other fans send reviews, set lists and reports. Please send your e-mail to IORR. Thanks! For details and great photos from the Rolling Stones and their World Tour get the IORR magazines.