Although not quite as musically strong as The Rolling Stones: Sweet Summer Sun—Hyde Park Live (VL-1/14), this 13-song 2016 performance filmed in Havana, Cuba, where the Rolling Stones made their first-ever appearance, is certainly historic and was deeply appreciated by the open-air evening crowd (estimated to be some 500,000 strong). Now in their sixth decade, the original bad boys of rock ‘n' roll—playing before towering video projection screens on a massive stage with a long runway—kick off the set with Keith Richards's signature guitar riff on “Jumpin' Jack Flash,” as indefatigable septuagenarian front man Mick Jagger launches into his trademark hyperkinetic act (I've no doubt that Jagger easily met his daily Fitbit goal here), backed by drummer Charlie Watts and guitarist Ronnie Wood. The backup band includes decades-long Stones musicians Darryl Jones on bass and Chuck Leavell on keyboards, with Karl Denson and Tim Ries replacing the late, great Bobby Keys on sax, and Sasha Allen stepping in for Lisa Fischer on vocals. The string of hits includes “Honky Tonk Women,” “Paint It Black,” “Gimme Shelter” (featuring Allen),” “Angie,” and “Sympathy for the Devil,” as well as a 15-minute-plus rendition of “Midnight Rambler” and a characteristically beautiful, chorus-backed rendition of “You Can't Always Get What You Want,” before the classic closer “(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction.” Oddly, five songs (including “Tumbling Dice,” “Miss You,” and “Start Me Up”) were cut from the main concert and are presented here as bonus tracks, along with two audio CDs featuring all of the songs. Presented in DTS 5.1, Dolby Digital 5.1 and stereo on DVD, and DTS-HD 5.1 and LPCM stereo on Blu-ray, this is highly recommended. (R. Pitman)
The Rolling Stones: Havana Moon
(2016) 110 min. DVD: $29.98 (2 audio CDs included), Blu-ray: $34.98 (2 audio CDs included). Eagle Rock Entertainment (avail. from most distributors). Volume 32, Issue 1
The Rolling Stones: Havana Moon
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