A Bigger Bang Tour

A Bigger Bang was a worldwide concert tour by the Rolling Stones which took place between August 2005 and August 2007, in support of their album '' A Bigger Bang''. At the time, it was the highest grossing tour of all time, earning $558,255,524. It has since been surpassed by U2's 2009–11 U2 360 Tour, placing second .

History

In 2005, the Stones announced plans for another world tour starting 21 August at a press conference and a mini concert at the Juilliard School in New York City. The A Bigger Bang Tour was expected to include dates throughout the United States and Canada before going to South America, Asia and Europe. During the Q&A, Mick Jagger told reporters that it would not necessarily be their last tour.

All rehearsals for the tour took place in Toronto, Ontario, at the midtown private school Greenwood College School; for the full stage rehearsals, a hangar at Pearson International Airport was rented.

In keeping with tradition, the Rolling Stones performed a surprise club show on 10 August 2005 at the Phoenix Concert Theatre before an audience of 1,000, each only paying $10 (the Phoenix's regular cover charge).

The tour had its official start on 21 August 2005 with two shows at historic Fenway Park in Boston. The Stones' huge stage caused extensive damage to the outfield, so that approximately 40,000 square feet (4,000 m²) of sod had to be brought in to repair it, and a subsequent baseball game held at the park three days later had to be pushed back an hour to give the grounds crew more time to complete the repairs.

At the end of 2005, it was announced by tour producer Michael Cohl that the A Bigger Bang Tour had grossed a record-shattering $162 million since opening at Fenway Park. This broke the previous North American record, held by the Stones themselves for their own 1994/1995 Voodoo Lounge Tour, which grossed approximately $120 million.
In terms of revenue, the A Bigger Bang Tour was the largest tour in North America. The second largest was the Stones' 1997/1998 Bridges to Babylon Tour.

On 1 February 2006, the Stones played their first concert at the Baltimore Arena since 1969, the second smallest venue they played for the entire tour. Their most intimate performance, save the surprise Phoenix show in Toronto, was in Radio City Music Hall on 14 March 2006, in a private concert for supporters of the Robin Hood Foundation. This benefit concert was their only performance at the venue to date. Other intimate venues the Stones played during the tour was the Beacon Theater in New York City. On 28 August 2005, the Rolling Stones performed at Frank Clair Stadium in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, their first performance in Ottawa since a performance at the Ottawa Auditorium 40 years earlier on 24 April 1965.

While on the American leg of the tour, on 5 February 2006 the Stones played " Start Me Up", " Rough Justice" and " (I Can't Get No) Satisfaction" at the halftime show of Super Bowl XL in Detroit. Before performing "Satisfaction", Jagger made an uncharacteristic comment on their longevity: "This one we could've done for Super Bowl I." Jagger was asked to leave out two sexually suggestive lyrics. The audio on his microphone was lowered twice for the two requested omissions, but Jagger still sang those lyrics.

The outstanding scale of the tour was realised on 18 February 2006 when the Stones played a one-night concert on Copacabana Beach in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The free concert was broadcast on television and broke several records as the largest rock concert of all time. There were a reported two million people present on the beach and crowding subsequent streets. A special bridge was constructed for the band to cross from the stage to the hotel safely. Three days after the monstrous event, U2 played in São Paulo, and clearly affected by the huge night, ended their concert with the words: "I can't get no satisfaction!". While the Guinness Book of World Records states the largest free concert ever was given in the same spot in 1994 by Rod Stewart, to 3.5 million people, that figure includes everyone who was on Copacabana Beach for fireworks and New Year's Eve celebrations, not just for that concert. This show was recorded for exhibition on digital movie screens across the United States via Regal Cinemas and heard live on XM Radio. Additionally, the show was shown live on AOL Music in partnership with Network Live.

The Stones arrived on 8 April in the People's Republic of China for their first-ever performance in the world's most populous country (performances planned in 2003 for the Licks Tour were canceled due to the SARS epidemic). The Chinese authorities requested that the group not perform "Brown Sugar", " Honky Tonk Women", "Beast of Burden", and "Let's Spend the Night Together", as they were considered to be "too suggestive."

"The Biggest Bang", a four-disc concert DVD collection with several shows from the band's 2005–2006 legs of this tour, was released in June 2007.

"A Bigger Bang: Live on Copacabana Beach", a double CD / triple LP / Blu-ray / double DVD live album, was released on July 9, 2021.

After their 18 April 2006 performance in Wellington, New Zealand, the Rolling Stones took a one-month break before embarking on the European leg of their A Bigger Bang Tour. Mick Jagger remained in New Zealand to film a cameo in the sitcom ''The Knights of Prosperity'', while Keith Richards and Ronnie Wood went to Fiji for two weeks with their wives.

During the vacation, Richards fell from a tree. After suffering a concussion, he was rushed back to Ascot Private Hospital in Auckland, New Zealand, for further observation. Although reports claimed he had been released two days later, it was soon confirmed by the hospital he underwent brain surgery on 5 May to relieve a blood clot that had gathered behind his skull. The BBC
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