It's nearly official – the "world's greatest rock band" is finally going to appear in Israel.
By DAVID BRINNMick Jagger 370(photo credit: REUTERS)
It’s nearly official, the “world’s greatest rock ‘n’ roll band” is finally going to appear in Israel.The Rolling Stones are set to perform on June 10 at Ramat Gan Stadium, according to a source close to the production.According to the source, the show will probably be promoted by Shuki Weiss, who has been involved with many of the top international performances of recent years including the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Madonna, Depeche Mode and Metallica and who represents all LiveNation concerts and events in Israel.Weiss’s office responded to a query by saying: “If there’s something to announce, we’ll announce it.”The entertainment trade magazine Pollstar reported last week that the Stones were going to expand their “14 On Fire” tour of Abu Dhabi and the Far East this month into a full-fledged European tour in the spring and summer.The “14 on Fire” tour begins on February 21 in Abu Dhabi and continues through April 5 in Auckland, New Zealand.Abu Dhabi newspaper The National reported last week that the Stones’ show there had sold out, with more than 30,000 fans expected to attend.John Lickrish, a representative of the show’s promoter, hailed the Stones’ concert as the country’s “biggest show” yet.The Stones, led by iconic front man Mick Jagger and prototypical guitar god Keith Richards, emerged alongside The Beatles in the early 1960s to become one of the most successful groups in rock & roll history, with hits ranging from “Satisfaction” in 1965 to “Honky Tonk Women” in 1969 and “Miss You” in 1978.Since their acclaimed 1981 album Tattoo You, the band has not been very impressive in the studio, but instead has relied on its potent live shows to fill stadiums and arenas around the world.
After a few years of inactivity, the band returned with a vengeance at the end of 2012, for their 50th anniversary, and toured extensively throughout 2013.In December, the Stones’ bass player Darryl Jones visited Israel and performed with the Australian- based hard rockers Dead Daisies at a sold-out show at the Barby Club in Tel Aviv.Seventy two-year-old drummer Charlie Watts told The Australian last week that he'd be "quite happy" if the band's "14 On Fire" tour was their last.He called the “14 On Fire” tour “short compared to what we’ve done before – but it needs to be, I think, at our tender age.”“The thought of doing 50 shows, which was normal at one time for us to sign off on, that’s quite daunting. Now we’re doing that in little bits. If we don’t do any more I’ll be quite happy with that.”Apparently, with the likelihood of the upcoming European tour including the Ramat Gan Stadium stop, Watts isn’t going to have his wish granted so quickly.
