Concert review: The Rolling Stones at Soldier Field, Chicago, 6/30/24

Mick Jagger is in this picture somewhere.

 One thing I’ve noticed over the years with regards to going to shows is that my anticipation level for them now is next to nothing. I think the last time I was truly giddy for a concert was Paul McCartney in 2013. (Smashing Pumpkins in 2018 in Madison, Wis. would be a small-ish club would be a close second) So it was weird heading to a sold-out Soldier Field in Chicago to see The Rolling Stones – a bucket-list band for me – with no vibes to speak of, or if you insist, no expectations. 

The Stones are a cultural institution as evidenced by all of the demographics present just in my section and those around me – grandparents smoking joints that didn’t look like hippies, grandparents that did look like hippies but weren’t smoking joints, parents with small children, college bros, leathery old bags, a latino man so drunk and/or high that he couldn’t stand without the help of his friends, and even sad-sacks like me. Quite the motley crew of folks came out to see these guys, is what I’m saying. 

But can they still play?

You can’t possibly go into a Rolling Stones show, at least as a first-timer, without thinking about whether or not a band fronted by two octogenarians can still perform competently. To put it simply, they absolutely can. Yes, Keith Richards and Ronnie Wood definitely look their ages – and ol’ Keef seemed like he didn’t know which city he was in for the first half hour – but their playing was fine. Mick Jagger apparently has the Fountain of Youth on tap wherever he is because he sprinted and danced and pranced his way across the stage with the energy of someone 50 years his junior. Jagger’s voice was, like the rest of him, in good shape. It was pretty much a best-case scenario as far as that goes. 

I’m not sure if it was the sound mix, or the stadium itself, or my seats, but in general the set was very echo-y. Steve Jones’s drums in particular clattered off the back end of the stadium (where I was) to the point of distraction, and Mick Jagger’s vocals were occasionally unintelligible. I will now take this opportunity to say – lukewarm take incoming – that the stadium rock experience mostly sucks. Whether in a cathedral like Lambeau or a dump like Soldier, the seats are so far away that there’s no connection to the artist or show at all (unless you really want to pony up the cash), the sightlines aren’t good, the beer is overpriced, and it’s a pain in the ass to get home. 

The Stones overcame this inherent poor experience by delivering a mostly hit-heavy set. Perhaps the tempos were a couple of steps slower than you remember, but they mostly sounded like the studio versions you know and love. Exceptions included a jammed-out “Miss You”, complete with bass and horn solos and set-closer “Satisfaction” that seemed like it never wanted to end. The “surprises” were hit or miss; “Rocks Off” was excellent, fan-voted “Shattered” was “blah” at best. Jagger’s vocals on the latter were off-kilter and kind of a mess. In fact, his vocal phrasing on a lot of songs wasn’t quite what it was on the albums – making it kind of hard to sing along. The Rolling Stones have approximately one million live albums, but I haven’t listened to a single one closely, so that might just be how he has always sung live. 

Keith Richards took the reins for a few songs in the middle of the set. “Tell Me Straight” sent people straight to the bathrooms. “Little T&A” fared better, though it was more than a little discomforting to hear an old grandpa (roughly) sing the lines “She’s my little rock n’ roll / My tits and ass with soul.” 

Backup singer Chanel Haynes stole the show for a brief moment on her solo vocal run on “Gimme Shelter.” She strutted to the mic looking like she knew she was about to own the place and did just that. Her voice was so overpowering it threatened to swallow the song whole, and the only thing missing was the surprised “Woo!” from Mick Jagger in response to Merry Clayton’s take on the album cut.

The latter third of the set nearly matched the aforementioned McCartney in 2013 for its epic run of stone cold classics. “Sympathy for the Devil” and “Honky Tonk Women” showed why they are two of the Stones’ all-time best tunes. The intro to “Paint It Black” was as menacing as it was the first time I heard it; the dual-guitar buzzsaw attack of “Jumping Jack Flash” made it the hardest rocking song of the night. It was foundational rock n’ roll live and in the flesh, and it was excellent.

I was more exhausted than hyped up after the show, but that is more the fault of me being an old man in a slightly less older man’s clothing. The Rolling Stones were up to the task – as they mostly have been night in and night out across stadiums worldwide for 50 goddamn years – of entertaining a wide-reaching group of people for two hours. I may never see them again considering their advanced age and the fact that they play exclusively in stadiums now, so they probably won’t come back to Milwaukee or play in Green Bay. But if you have the chance to see them, I highly recommend not passing that opportunity up.