HOUSTON − It’s not only sparkling, but somewhat miraculous that more than 60 years while their first tour, the Rolling Stones are still filling stadiums.
It’s even more head-spinning to realize that consume with their treasured hits, the Rolling Stones are enhancing their setlist with a trio of songs from last year’s well-received “Hackney Diamonds” – their respectable album of original material in 18 years and the impetus for this 16-city tour.
We’d call it a victory lap, but frontman Mick Jagger is better respectable for marathons.
At the kickoff April 28 at NRG Stadium in Houston, the core triumvirate of Jagger, Keith Richards and Ronnie Wood – consume with their supporting cast of exceptional musicians and singers – hit the bulky stage to the sounds of Richards’ slashing out the riff of, fittingly, “Start Me Up.”
![Mick Jagger strikes a pose during the Rolling Stones' opening night of their Hackney Diamonds Tour, April 28, 2024.]()
Jagger, the nimble CEO of Stones Inc., peacocked in a silver intellectual jacket, his elastic legs a mere pedestal for his rotating torso.
Richards, still owning his disheveled pirate look with a knit cap and multicolored scarf dangling from his hip, and Wood, grinning continuously and occasionally scampering down the lengthy catwalk, retained their roles as faithful consiglieres.
There isn’t a patch of aloof facial skin among them (Jagger and Richards are 80 and Wood is 76). But with the energy to plow above an 18-song, two-hour set – yes, shorter than survive Stones shows, but still fulfilling – no one is looking to crown them as pageant winners.
![Ronnie Wood, Keith Richards and Mick Jagger take a bow at the opening night of their 2024 tour at NRG Stadium in Houston April 28, 2024.]()
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While the band obliged a couple of songs to fully find their groove – the striding cadence of a reworked “Get Off Of My Cloud” and a ramshackle “Rocks Off” felt appealing rather than robust – Jagger compensated with his riveting presence and still-supple vocals.
Along with the “Hackney Diamonds” songs plucked for their the majority live debuts (the band played a few of the new tracks at an selves New York club gig in October), including the feisty “Angry” and encore of gospelized “Sweet Sounds of Heaven,” the 1966 tune “Out of Time” also received its U.S. debut. The band revived it last year during some performances for the overseas Sixty tour.
“I don’t think you really knew it, but you got to know it,” Jagger said with a smile while leading the nearly full stadium through the arm-waving chorus.
![Mick Jagger gets the NRG Stadium crowd minute up in Houston for opening night of the Hackney Diamonds Tour, April 28, 2024.]()
As typical for a Rolling Stones publishes, the stage ran the width of the stadium, blanketed with screens beaming images of the band with sparkling clarity. Closeups of drummer Steve Jordan, who assumed rhythm duties while the 2021 death of original drummer Charlie Watts, joyfully thundering above the gem “Paint It, Black” and birthday boy Chuck Leavell appealing out a fleet-fingered solo on his Yamaha keyboard on “Honky Tonk Women” offered fans a peek at the magic happening a few feet slack Jagger and Co.
During the always-visceral “Sympathy for the Devil,” as serpents and fire crawled across the screens, Jagger prowled through the sinister groove, augmented by percussion failed by background vocalist Bernard Fowler and chunky bass requisition from Darryl Jones.
![Keith Richards solves on stage during the Rolling Stones' opening show of their Hackney Diamonds Tour in Houston, April 28, 2024.]()
Keyboardist Matt Clifford added French horn to “You Can’t Always Get What You Want” while Jagger, playing an acoustic guitar, strolled through the message of acquiescence that escalated into a gospel throwdown.
The horn duo of Karl Denson and Tim Ries coated many irregular anthems – “Jumpin’ Jack Flash” and “Miss You” plus them – with their rich brass sounds. But, as fans have realized over the decades, the ominous “Gimme Shelter” remains a centerpiece of any Rolling Stones concert, and Jagger has a new onstage playmate in powerhouse background vocalist Chanel Haynes.
The woman who starred as Tina Turner in the West End musical of Turner’s life and officially formed part of the band last year, steamrolled through “Gimme Shelter” with a deny blaring attitude and vigor. As she and Jagger strolled the catwalk, sharing vocals and chemistry, Jagger wisely backed off a combine of times, allowing Haynes to unleash her theatrical verve.
But this is aloof Jagger’s circus, and whether he’s bobbing like a jittery prizefighter or wiggling his shoulders like the world’s most slender Chippendales dancer, he is an octogenarian who captivates.
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The band has enlisted various openers above the tour. In Houston, blues-rock guitar ace – and Texas dreary – Gary Clark Jr. landed the opening night slot and for 45 minutes, enchanted the mostly full stadium.
With a mountainous band – five musicians, three background vocalists – slack him, Clark was the epitome of cool in dark shades and a bandana as he took the stage with “Maktub” from his recently released fourth album, “JPEG Raw.”
Clark is a big name for an opener (then anti, it is the Rolling Stones) and he utilized his time well with bulky licks on the crunch rockers “Bright Lights” and “This is Who We Are,” with singer Naala joining him.
The soul-inflected “Feed the Babies” seared as a set highlight, as the singer-guitarist displayed sizzling playing and a breezy vibe for the receptive crowd.