The Rolling Stones Rip It Up at MetLife Stadium

A quick recap of the band’s second night in North Jersey on the Hackney Diamonds Tour ’24

May 27, 2024May 28, 2024 Ron Hart 0 Comments 2024, Bernard Fowler, Chanel Haynes, Chuck Leavell, Darryl Jones, Hackney Diamonds, Hackney Diamonds Tour, Karl Denson, Keith Richards, Metlife Stadium, Mick Jagger, New Jersey, Ron Wood, Steve Jordan, The Rolling Stones, Tim Ries

Hackney Diamonds logo on the big screen at MetLife Stadium (Image: Rock & Roll Globe)

Hi. I’m writing from my aisle seat in section 121 of MetLife Stadium here in East Rutherford, NJ, waiting for the Rollling Stones to take the stage in a little under two hours.

I had spent the afternoon waiting for ticket prices to go down on Gametime and SeatGeek, but they just kept going up in cost. Not even two days ago, tickets for this gig were selling for less than $100, but now the scalper bots are asking $200, $300 for seats in the nosebleeds. So when I saw this “obstructed view” ticket pop up, labeled as such because of the tent covering the soundboard was slightly obscuring part of the catwalk, I grabbed it on Gametime for a cool $150 plus those annoying Ticketmaster fees.

Are you hungry? The food will have to wait, cuz it’s too damn expensive up in here. Plus I gobbled down an almond butter biscuit in the parking lot, washing it down with some fresh distilled ice water. I should be good.

I cannot tell you how grateful I am to have an aisle seat. I’m a big beast, been that way since I was a young boy. So having this extra space for my fat ass is most welcome at this juncture. It’s a beautiful, coolish night and it will indeed be most exciting to see Mick and Keith, both 80, plus Ronnie Wood, age 76, turn this mutha out on the second night of their two-night stand here at Metlife. The old folks are packing in as sibling act Lawrence prepares to take the stage. And despite their publicist denying Rock & Roll Globe the opportunity to interview them, I remain impressed by their stage presence and their ability to fill up this stadium with their super catchy soul-pop. I’ll definitely keep an ear out for their upcoming album, Family Business. They just covered Stevie Wonder’s “Higher Ground,” btw.

Lawrence opening for the Stones at MetLife Stadium (Image: Rock & Roll Globe)

As I sat in waiting, I could feel the anticipation down in my plums. And when the Stones took the stage to the opening strains of “Start Me Up,” the capacity crowd exploded with pure elation. And amazement, mind you, given the lithe energy Mick, Ron and Keith all displayed across this solid two-hour performance. They debuted several songs on this tour tonight among the classics they’ve been playing regularly on this tour in support of their latest album, Hackney Diamonds, which gets better with each listen. They broke out “Bitch” and “Heartbreaker (Doo Doo Doo Doo)” early in the set, while Richards introduced his contribution to the new LP, “Tell Me Straight,” during his portion of the set that also included the Tattoo You highlight “Little T&A.” The band also introduced the live standard “Midnight Rambler” towards the end of the initial set as well.

The Rolling Stones performing “You Can’t Always Get What You Want” at MetLife Stadium 5/26/24 (Image: Rock & Roll Globe)

One big omission, however, was “Miss You,” which the group had been playing nightly up until this evening. But when you consider the uniqueness of this stop, it didn’t matter. Especially when this version of the live Stones band, which includes Steve Jordan of the X-Pensive Winos on drums in the place of our dearly departed Charlie Watts, played such stone Stones classics as “Honky Tonk Women,” “Sympathy for the Devil,” “Jumpin’ Jack Flash” and a roaring rendition “(I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction” that closed the concert.

I went to this show with my sister-in-law as well as my mother-in-law, who last saw the Stones in 1972 at Madison Square Garden. She said they played better tonight, and I believe her.