Just got home from the Rolling Stones show in Bucharest.
Guess this is going to be a pretty long post,depending on how much I'll get carried away…LOL
Being the fact that the concert pics I'm going to post are crappy (cell phone shots),I'll try to replace images with words…
Yeah…I'm Stones in love!(pun definitely intended).More in love than I was before,because it was better than anything I've expected.
This was a real concert,with real rockstars – something that I am sure doesn't happen too often these days.They simply gave all they got and then some.
Journey popped into my mind a few times – 1)the 4 Stones came to the venue in a helicopter.I had a ROR Journey documentary flashback…
2)There were 70.000 people on the stadium on Tuesday night.Watching the venue from up above at the end of the show reminded me of that Journey '83 Philly show caught in Frontiers & Beyond.The energy must have been the same.
3)Show opened with "Start Me Up",Jagger made a mindblowing appearance wearing a red coat with tails.
4)The word "legacy" has now an even clearer meaning to me:the Rolling Stones preserved their legacy to a T.
No compromise,no bullshit.Just pure rock'n'roll that stood the test of time brilliantly.
In one phrase…I had the feeling I was on board of a high-tech spaceship cruising with the speed of light while sipping on smooth old wine.
Unbelievable mix of feelings,just beautiful.
Now the whole story.
The guys arrived in Romania on Monday ,went straight to the Hilton and the next morning there was already a sea of fans outside,hoping to see them come out.
They didn't,had everything they wanted brought up to their suites,including lunch and and a total of 7 bottles of wiskey…
However,on Monday night,Ron Wood went to this special restaurant in Bucharest because he wanted to listen to gipsy music.
The owners closed shop and treated him like royalty.He partied until 4 in the morning and went back to the hotel absolutely happy,LOL...
None of the other guys came out of their rooms.Can't blame them,the temps on Tuesday were deadly – 113 F (45 Celsius).
Despite the heat,lots of fans kept waiting for a sign and finally,Keith made a cameo appearance at his room's window,wearing a fluffy white robe,waving like Marylin Monroe!God,I love that man!
Around 2 PM,the whole staff (100 people!) left to the stadium and the 4 Stones all embarked in 2 limos around 5 PM,only to be seen a few hours later landing at the venue ready to rock the shit outta everyone.
The stadium.Totally packed.The place was filled with Security,no cameras and bottles were allowed.
I had a couple of places where I could have hidden my digital camera,but it's a good thing I changed my mind…They did body search.Oh,well,at least the security guy was good looking.
I got through with my phone,so that was my "camera".
The show started around 9.The famous intro of "Start Me Up" set the stadium on fire.The sound was humiliating.Loud,clear,crisp.I could hear Mick Jagger sigh…LOL.
The whole stage lit up in the most amazing imagery ever imagined...I thought to myself that Herbie Herbert may have started the huge screens-on-stage industry,but the Rolling Stones took it to another level.That stage setting was a show itself.
Mick was in an amazing shape.Not only he worked that stage like a 20 year old,but he worked the crowd like a madman.
The shocking part was that he learned quite a number of Romanian words,actually,he spoke a few Romanian phrases so correctly, my jaw dropped!
Singing voice wise he was flawless.He didn’t miss a note,didn’t lose his breath,sang his ass off for almost 2 hours.A real pro.
Totally loved the James Brown tribute they've done ("I'll Go Crazy"),Mick sounded really,really good on that one.
After "It's Only Rock'n'Roll",magic happened…Lights went down and from the big stage a smaller stage started gliding towards the middle of the stadium,with the four Stones on them,Charlie Watts behind the drum kit and all.It was surreal.The first notes of "Satisfaction" filled the air and the place went totally wild!!
At the end of the song,Jagger poured water on the people at his feet and said in Romanian that he's heated up and wants some action,LOL!
"Honky Tonk Women" followed,with the entire stadium singing along – it was mindblowing!The little stage slid backwards to "meet" the main stage,lights went down again,the big stage turned red and after one minute Jagger came out in a glittery red coat singing "Sympathy For The Devil".THAT was his peak as a one man show,just couldn't take my eyes off of him,the entire crown just followed him like hypnotized.
However…My big love that night was Keith.LOL,he was devilishly sweet the entire show.He may not be the greatest guitarist ever,but he is COOL as a cucumber and his solo moment made me want to take him home!
He started his part with "You Got The Silver"…Man,he was SO fine!Ronnie was all over this song too,actually they completed eachother really nice.
In between his songs Keith smiled all the time,talked just a few words,pure rockstar attitude…
On "Wanna Hold You" he messed up and all he had to say was "Oops."…haha
I'm officially in love with Keith.
The grand finale was Mick's,tho.Dressed in an amazing glittery chocolate color shirt,he sang "Brown Sugar" while running ALL over that huge stage,not missing a single note and doing that special dance of his.He really was mesmerizing.
By the end of it all,I had no voice left,my feet were hurting from dancing,my palms were hot read and I was in luv with Keith,LOL!
Gotta mention the backing vox team – 3 women with breath taking voices.One of them actually sang by herself a bit during "I'll Go Crazy" and she hit a few unbelievable stratospheric notes!Her name is Lisa…Mick went to her and took a deep bow,then he said in Romanian while watching her leaving:"Nice dress….hmmm…cheap shoes." Ever heard 70.000 people laughing at the same time?
A big A+ for the backup band – excellent keyboardist,one great sax player,oh and Darryl Jones (bass) was remarkable! They all worked together with the Stones like a Swiss clock.
The only minus?They didn't do the songs I personally wanted to hear from the "A Bigger Bang" album..."Rain Fall Down" and "Streets Of Love".
Looks like the reason why they have chosen to do the goldies was because it was their first time here and wanted to make sure that people can sing along and have a good time recognizing the songs.Made sense.
All in all,it was unforgettable.I can say now what AngieK said after she saw The Police: I could’ve got out of the venue and be hit by a bus and I wouldn’t have felt a thing,I was SO damn high!
The pics....
Arriving at the Hilton
Then live...(damn cell phone)
Me at the end overlooking the venue from the highest point = "high"
Setlist:
Start Me Up
You Got Me Rockin' – smokin' long version,Keith was on fire on this one!
You Can’t Always Get What You Want
Rough Justice
All Down The Line
Heartbreaker
Midnight Rambler
I'll Go Crazy (duet with Lisa)
Tumbling Dice
You Got The Silver
Wanna Hold You
Miss You
It's Only Rock 'n' Roll
Satisfaction
Honky Tonk Women
Sympathy For The Devil
Paint It Black
Jumping Jack Flash
Brown Sugar
I'm wearing my beloved Rolling Stone t-shirt today,still a bit high and happy to share all this here.
(For those of you who want to see/hear the James Brown song and hear Lisa singing her heart out,here's a boot recorded a few days back (July 12) in Barcelona,at a private show held by a bank.Only700 people.
http://youtube.com/watch?v=odFkeziYkHo)
Available @ 
