Rolling Stones Return to Their Roots with the “50 and Counting” Tour

George Manos has led the global security firm Thor Executive as president since 2005. In his free time, he is a longtime fan of the Rolling Stones, and he has not missed a tour since 1968. Most recently, George Manos had the opportunity to see them in late 2012 at Brooklyn’s Barclays Arena, an early stop on the Stones’ “50 and Counting” Tour.

As reviewed in Billboard magazine, the tour, which continued until July 2013, was stripped down, had minimal gimmicks, and featured the raw sound that made the Stones famous. The septet included the core unit of Keith Richards, Mick Jagger, Ron Wood, and Charlie Watts, augmented by Chuck Leavell and Daryl Jones.

A key transformation was that the band connected more with their roots in early rock ’n roll and the music of Chuck Berry. Particularly welcome among fans on the tour was the return of guitarist Mick Taylor, who had joined the band in the late 1960s following the death of Brian Jones and played on such classic albums as Let It Bleed. Taylor was featured in an extended jam with Wood and Richards on the bluesy classic “Midnight Rambler.”