The Stones delivered another astounding show at Levi Stadium. The critics and media are unanimous. If there are any cynical comments about the aging rockers they are quickly tempered with awe at The Stones performances.
The show was at the still relatively new Levi Stadium in Santa Clara. The home of the NFL’s Forty-Niners is about forty miles from San Francisco. This was the show rescheduled from May 18. That made it a long wait for my sister Joan. Mick’s heart valve problems seemed far in the past.
This was our first visit to Levi Stadium, so we weren’t familiar with the venue. We toyed with the idea of taking the train, but there just seemed to be too many things that could go wrong with that. If it was a Forty-Niners game we might experiment and take a chance. I was glad Joan decided to drive.
We left early. I had seen them in Chicago eight weeks ago, but I still had some pre-Stones nerves. There was no way around it. This could really, really, really be The Last Time. We both just wanted to get there.
It’s hard to get nostalgic for Candlestick Park, but the place did have its moments, and you didn’t have to drive to Santa Clara to get there. It’s only forty miles, but it seemed like a long drive. There was too much traffic for a Sunday. The plan was to get there early and tailgate in the parking lot.
We lucked out on Highway 101. There was a serious looking crash that we passed right after it happened. The Highway Patrol were still on their way there. We were lucky to get by it when we did.
We had pre-paid parking in “Blue Lot 1” and did a little tailgate thing. Pre-Stones excitement was in the air. Fans set up grills and blasted Stones music. We could see the roller coasters from Great America. This would be Show 44 for me. Joan said she went to “about half of that.” It sounds impressve or a bit crazy to some people, but I know that hard core fans have seen The Stones over a hundred times! We reminisced. The Stones have given us a lot of memories. The world is a different place than it was in 1972.
It was the day after the Fiftieth anniversary of Woodstock. I did see a couple of Woodstock tee shirts!
I tried to keep an open mind about Levi Stadium. It just looked too synthetic. Too Silicon Valley. Maybe it was because the venue is still very new. We had heard nightmare stories about the traffic around the stadium, especially when trying to leave the parking lot after Forty-Niner games.
The original show would have been on a Saturday night. Now it’s on a Sunday. Santa Clara and the Niners have been battling about late concerts. The local paper said the city wanted to enforce the Sunday night ten o’clock curfew. Other acts have ignored the curfew and paid a one thousand dollar fine.
It was time. We took the “twelve minute walk” to the stadium. We weren’t in a hurry, but it was certainly took longer than the advertised twelve minutes.
This was a larger crowd than a Niners game. With seats on the field and “The Pit” there would be 50,000 here tonight. It was hard to get to the seats. It was hard to get anywhere. There were human traffic jams around very long concession lines.
We were in Section 207. The seats were close to the middle of the stadium. We were farther back but it was still closer than the upper deck. We were in the middle of the row. Once I got to the seat I wasn’t moving. To be fair Levi Stadium does look like a great place to watch an NFL game. Once you get there.
Vista Kicks opened. They were a local band from Roseville. They were a “nice” band. They were in awe at opening for The Stones. Family and friends celebrated in a luxury box behind us. It was the usual story. It’s hard to open for the Stones. They were good, but there were just too many distractions. It was still a thrill for the local band.
A little before nine the lights went down, the huge screens lit up and the intro started. There’s nothing like those first few minutes. All the anticipation explodes in Keith’s first riffs of Jumping Jack Flash. Would this be the last time I hear it live?
Right into Let’s Spend the Night Together. A song from 1965. Unbelievable. I was in eighth grade when this was a hit.
Mick is over the top. The greatest front man ever. He was frisky and mischievous tonight. Nobody struts like Mick.
It’s true. The band has never sounded this great. The engine room is going full throttle.
The band was in a good mood. It was obvious that they enjoy what they do. Even Charly was smiling once in a while! There aren’t that many shows left. On this tour.
The sound was incredible. The Stones have always been the masters of the Rock spectacle. The lights and screens are perfectly synched. I got more of the full effect of the screens. I realized what a theater piece a Stones show is. There is a certain timing and pace to it.
There had been a few kinks on Opening Night in Chicago. I wasn’t sure if they were technical problems or just plain “misfires.” They have been ironed out by now.
Mick said it was their fortieth show in the Bay Area. “I still remember the smell in the Cow Palace!” He gave his usual local plugs to the Buena Vista Cafe’s Irish Coffee and “the ferry to Alcatraz.” He did the roll call of local towns: “Anyone here from Oakland? Stockton? Modesto? And last: San Francisco! Which did get the loudest cheer. Mick said something about Facebook, Apple and Google, but I couldn’t understand what he said. As the show went on he addressed the crowd as San Francisco. “C’mon San Francisco!”
I knew the crowd would not be as intense as Chicago, but it was still surprising when people started sitting down during the third song, Tumbling Dice. I have to admit that when those in front of me sat and I could see, I sat down. In Chicago the crowd stood for most of the show. Even in the upper deck! California crowds are usually more laid back. They seem to have a reserve. But they did sing and everyone still goes nuts for the last songs.
There were a few surprises. Out of Control always sounds great live.
Mick announced they would do the “call-in” song. As potential titles flew around the screen he said, “Wear some flowers in your hair? We don’t know that one.” A great version of Rocks Off followed. “The sunshine bores the daylights out of me.”
The core four walked out to the small stage near the fifty yard line. Mick said, “It’s like being in your auntie’s front room, but with more people.” That must be some front room. Stagehands scrambled to get the band set up.
They had to play Sweet Virginia. The line “Thank you, for your wine, California!” gets a big cheer. Does any song capture The Stones history better than Let It Bleed? Ronnie played great slide on a horizontal acoustic.
Red flares behind the stage cast an eerie smoke screen for Sympathy for the Devil.
We were near the airport and I’ll guess fifty jets flew close to the stadium during the show. The funny thing is, you couldn’t hear them! That’s how loud it was. What kind of a view did they have from the planes? “This is your pilot speaking. And on the left side you can see The Rolling Stones performing in Levi Stadium.” It must have been a sight.
Honky Tonk Woman. Long time keyboardist Chuck Leavell gets to stretch it out.
Keith was more with it. He seemed low key at the Chicago shows. He’s certainly more out in front tonight. Before his two songs he said, “This is fun. I woudn’t do it otherwise.” He looked like he was enjoying himself, but he still had his usual reptilian death warmed over look. His segment: You Got the Silver & Before They Make Me Run, was one of the best I’ve seen him do.
Ronnie Wood was a litte more in the background tonight. One of his highlights was the slide on Let It Bleed. And of course the weaving with Keith. His antics lighten things up.
During Midnight Rambler Mick sat on the drum riser and acted like he was taking a short break. After a few seconds he jumped up and sprinted out onto the main ramp. He was playful tonight. He leaned and then laid on backup singer Sasha’s back. They did a very spirited version of Miss You that featured a Daryl Jones bass solo.
Midnight Rambler was astounding. It’s become the center piece. The band really jams. It has to have some of the baddest, most menacing Blues riffs ever! Midnight Rambler is the ultimate hoodlum song. Mick sings a few lines from You Gotta Move.
It’s time for the old War Horses. Paint It Black. Start Me Up. Brown Sugar. The songs they must play. They left the stage for a short time and came back for Gimmie Shelter and Satisfaction.
I tried to avoid the whole This Could Be the Last Time thing, but during Satisfaction it started to hit me. This really could be the last song. I’ve thought that so many times in the past that I couldn’t get too maudlin, and the band was so rocking and upbeat that I didn’t think about the finality that much.
The show seemed to come to an abrupt end. They didn’t shoot off the fireworks! Which was all right with me. I wonder what their shows would be like without the spectacle and pyrotechnics. The good citizens of Santa Clara would not be woken by the final barrage.
It must have been a compromise with Santa Clara authorites. I hope The Stones can come up with the thousand dollars for breaking the curfew.
