Stones Plus Three on Road in Europe
Malmo, Sweden — Out of the darkness came Mick Jagger, dressed in blue shirt and green pants. The magic was back. The Rolling Stones were on tour — with a surprise start and a packed house at Baltiske Hallen in Malmo.
It was the opening of the first Stones’ tour of the European Continent since April 1967. The tour will wind up October 9th in Amsterdam.
For the last part of this opening show, they had three other musicians up on stage with them. Late of Delaney and Bonnie, Jim Price played trombone and trumpet and Bobby Keyes was on saxophone. Stones road manager Ian Stewart, who was a member of the original band back in 1963, sat in on piano.
The Stones opened, as they did in America, with “Jumping Jack Flash,” and their set included a liberal dose of Chuck Berry songs, “Johnny B. Goode” and “Roll Over Beethoven” being two they don’t do often on stage.
And there were the “classics” like “Sympathy for the Devil,” “Let It Bleed,” “Live With Me,” “Love In Vain,” “Street Fighting Man,” and “Honky Tonk Women.” The sell-out audience missed only “Satisfaction,” and when the Stones left the stage, thousands of people were shouting for more. They didn’t get it, as the Stones were already on the way back to their hotel in Denmark.
In Denmark, they held a press conference which lasted all of 15 minutes. “Foolish questions,” explained Mick, adding, “Let me get out of here.” The press got in four such questions.
Do you like Simon and Garfunkel?
Mick: Oh, come on.
Who is the greatest person in show biz today?
Keith Richards: Shirley Bassey.
Jagger, are you satisfied with your part in ‘Ned Kelley’?
Mick: No, it’s not worth seeing.
Your opinion on dope?
Mick: Oh, come again another day!
Prior to the opening concert, Mick had told a reporter, “We are not making any money out of this tour. It has only been arranged as a friendly gesture for our European fans. The contact with the audience makes us feel happy. There’s nothing to replace it.”
Following Malmo, the Stones played Helsinki, Finland, and then Stockholm, Gothenburg, and Arhus in Sweden, and Copenhagen. After a week in Germany (Hamburg, Berlin, Cologne, and Stuttgart), they’re in Paris for two nights at the Olympia, September 22nd and 23rd, followed by one-nighters in Vienna and Rome. They start October off in Milan, move on to Lyons, and then back to Germany for concerts in Frankfurt and Essen, October 5th and 7th, before closing in Amsterdam.
Also on the tour is Chicago guitarist Buddy Guy‘s group, featuring Junior Wells on harmonica. Chip Monck and a 12-man team are producing the tour.
This is a story from the October 1, 1970 issue of Rolling Stone.