Rolling Stones blow into town as storm blows out

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"This could be the last time - it may be the last time."
      Or maybe not.
      The Rolling Stones have been rumoured to be giving their "farewell appearance" for a quite remarkable number of years, all the way back to 1976 when they played in front of a quarter of a million people in Knebworth Park in England.
      Hence comments about the possibility that this might be the last chance to see Mick Jagger, Keith Richards, Charlie Watts, Ronnie Wood & friends strutting their stuff on stage should be taken with a small pinch of salt, even though the featured artists are now all on the other side of 60.
     
In any event, the Greatest Rock & Roll Band in the World are in town today for a concert in the Olympic Stadium, and many of those attending will possibly be doing so because it might be their final opportunity of seeing the legendary rock act in action.
      As usual, the artists themselves are dwarfed by a massive stage set, which was erected earlier this week under pretty awful conditions of high winds and heavy rain. The "Bigger Bang" tour features a stage 30 metres high and 100 metres wide, somewhat resembling the galleries of an old opera house. There is also a long catwalk leading to a small stage in the centre of the stadium, where the band will play a more intimate set of three or four numbers.
      The staging was brought here in a convoy of 77 trucks and the whole edifice was put up in three days by a crack team of builders led by Dale Skjerseth, who shrugged off the inclement weather, as in the course of the years he and his crew have had to contend with worse than this.
     
As for the weather forecast for this evening's show, it is much more accommodating - it should stay dry and even sunny, with temperatures just under the 20°C mark.
      Hence even if you do not have a ticket for the show (Lippupalvelu announced today that it is not quite sold out, but they are no longer accepting online bookings), it might even be worth heading towards the stadium to enjoy the sounds from outside on the rocks. As well as having state-of-the-art audio systems, the Stones also tend to climax their performance with a decent display of pyrotechnics.
      They were last here in July 2003, and gave a good account of themselves in front of 40,000 fans.
     
     
The Rolling Stones, Olympic Stadium, 1.8.2007. Gates open at 17:00. Support band Toots and The Maytals on stage c. 18:00. Some 2,000 tickets were still available late on Tuesday, and tickets will be sold outside. The public are advised to come early as there will be security checks on entry to the arena, and also to use public transport. If worried about getting wet, bring raingear - umbrellas will not be allowed, along with the usual prohibited items list of cameras, fireworks, weapons, bottles, etc.


Links:
  Rolling Stones Official Website
  Rolling Stones (Wikipedia)
  It´s Only Rock´n´Roll (fansite and forums)

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