Rolling Stones/Sydney,Australia 2014

The 2014 Australian tour schedule was changed due to Mick’s complaint of throat problems, but last week our shop released “MELBOURNE 2014” on November 5th, revealing his poor condition at the live before canceling the next show. This time, the Hanging Rock performance on the 8th was canceled, and the Sydney live on the 12th, which was Mick’s comeback live, will be released this time. This has strangely led us to document “Mick’s illness from illness to recovery”. The source is an audience recording that recently appeared on the Internet, but immediately after the start of the live, Mick’s voice is slightly pushed down compared to the sound pressure of the performance, which is a balance that is common in the early part of a concert. However, this balance may be fortunate for Mick. Because at the beginning of this day, which was the comeback live, his singing voice was still in a throaty tone. In other words, he sang the melody line in the same tone as in Melbourne from start to finish, and frankly speaking, the “feeling of recovering from illness” is fully open. I want to say, “Oh my, aren’t you still fully recovered?” but maybe it was because the fast tune “Respectable” was waiting for the beginning of the live show that day. In fact, Mick’s singing was clearly stronger than the first two songs, and it seemed as if he had released all the power he had been holding back. Here, Mick finally showed signs of recovery, but on the other hand, the performance of this song itself was troublesome because it felt weak. Perhaps the fact that they performed without guests like in the United States and Tokyo Dome backfired. Furthermore, in “Tumbling Dice”, Keith took a flashy turn from the intro, and not only Mick but the whole group was not very cohesive. The tension at this point sounds much different from that in Melbourne. The slow number played in the first half of the set is a relief at such times. It was “Sweet Virginia”, which was a good thing for the group to get back on track in this state. Both Mick’s singing and the backing music had a good atmosphere, and I felt that they would have preferred to play this song rather than “Ruby Tuesday” or “Angie”, which have been played a lot in Japan. The Stones, who must have gotten into a good mood with this song, made a bold decision on the set list that day. They removed “Doom And Gloom”, which has been played since 2012, from the set. It is still fresh in my memory that this song made me feel cold at the Tokyo Dome, and it was the same in Europe. Also, considering how painfully Mick sang in Melbourne, it is no wonder that he said “Let’s stop playing today”. However, this was clearly successful, and after this, Mick and the group improved their performance. Moreover, Mick Taylor’s playing was even more polished in Perth than in Europe in the summer, and his Taylor style was spectacular in “Midnight Rambler” on this day! Moreover, when he joined the group just as they were getting into a good mood, he played so hard that it was really stunned in the first half. The usual “phrase stuttering phenomenon” and odd timing mistakes are still there, but the feeling of playing on and on is already superb. And that’s not all, when the performance slows down, the audience claps to encourage the Stones (!), and the heartwarming scene of Charlie responding to them and matching the rhythm was wonderful. And in the second half of the live, Mick recovers, and he breaks away from the weak singing that seems to disappear like in Melbourne, and sings through in his usual tone, so it’s very reliable. Compared to the on-sound pressure of Melbourne, the recording has a slightly light texture and clarity that is uniquely attractive, and the light echo makes it easy to listen to, unlike the good-student Melbourne. The echo does not blur the contours of the performance, but rather makes it feel comfortable to listen to. However, the original sound source had some problems, and the parts where the sound was cut off for a moment or noise were pinpoint restored. This makes it much easier to listen to than the original state. Furthermore, the fatal cuts in “Miss You” and “Gimme Shelter” were also edited to create a complete recording (Miss You 7:56-Gimme Shelter 0:33 were filled in with a different recording from the same day). The sound quality of the recording itself is excellent, so with such meticulous restoration, this is a must-listen! And Mick will be making a complete comeback with his next release. Allphones Arena, Sydney, Australia 12th November 2014 PERFECT SOUND Disc 1 (68:29) 1. Intro 2. Jumping Jack Flash 3. It’s Only Rock’n Roll 4. Respectable 5. Tumbling Dice 6. Sweet Virginia 7. Bitch 8. Paint It Black 9. Honky Tonk Women 10. Band Introductions 11. You Got The Silver 12. Before They Make Me Run 13. Happy 14. Midnight Rambler (with Mick Taylor) Disc 2 (52:33) 1. Miss You 2. Gimme Shelter 3. Start Me Up 4. Sympathy For The Devil 5. Brown Sugar 6. You Can’t Always Get What You Want (with The Sydney Philharmonia) 7. Satisfaction (with Mick Taylor)