Rolling into Petco Park

By Jamie Reno

IN THE 1960's, many iconic baby boomer songwriters bemoaned the unappealing prospect of aging. But Mick Jagger said it best when, in the Rolling Stones’ 1966 single “Mother’s Little Helper,” he declared, “What a drag it is getting old.”

But hey, what did Mick know? He was just 23. Four decades and lots of road wrinkles later, reality has set in for the 62-year-old rooster and his geezer bandmates, guitarists Ron Wood, 58, and Keith Richards, 61, and drummer Charlie Watts, 64. They’ve reevaluated the passage of time.

The Stones, rock’s eternal bad boys, have a more wizened, more crooked swagger these days, and a remarkable new energy and sense of musical purpose. Thanks largely to Watts’ successful treatment for throat cancer and Wood’s completion of rehab, there’s been a heartening renewal of the fragile but evidently unbreakable friendship and solid songwriting partnership between Jagger and Richards.

Time may no longer be on their side, but the Stones are healthy and closer personally than they’ve been in years. Their new record, A Bigger Bang, released in September, is the best thing they’ve done since 1981’s Tattoo You. They’re impossibly rich and have nothing left to prove, yet they’ve somehow managed to conjure up a batch of pared-down, well-crafted songs with a bluesy sound that returns the band back to its Marquee Club roots in London.

A Bigger Bang is also one of the group’s more intimate and personal records. The release still features typical gritty, ribald rockers, such as “Rough Justice” and “Oh, No, Not You Again.” There’s plenty of the band’s patented bravado. But Mick and Keith now seem a little more willing to share a bit of themselves in poignant R&B-tinged ballads like “Streets of Love” and “This Place Is Empty.”

The Stones’ best songs have combined raw sexuality and unabashed arrogance with a wry cynicism and aloofness that address universal longings but don’t reveal much about the group’s deepest vulnerabilities. “Totally autobiographical songs are cringe-y,” says Jagger. Yet the band has produced some of the rock era’s most beautiful ballads. The tenderness and introspection of songs like “You Can’t Always Get What You Want,” “Ruby Tuesday,” “As Tears Go By” and “Fool To Cry” elevate this band to its lofty place and perfectly complement their blistering rock tunes.

Speaking of which, you’ll hear lots of them and only a few ballads at their concert at Petco Park. And that’s fine. Who goes to a Stones stadium show to hear ballads? This concert will be what it should be: a two-hour rock ’n’ roll spectacle that will knock your hat into San Diego Bay, featuring fresh takes on some of the most famous guitar riffs in rock history—and some way-cool surprises.

On this tour, the boys are dusting off such lost nuggets as “The Last Time,” “It’s All Over Now” and “She’s So Cold,” as well as funky covers of “(Night Time Is) the Right Time” and “Lonely Avenue” in tribute to Ray Charles. The tour melds the appeal of an intimate club gig with the band’s signature outdoor show. Several hundred seats have been built directly into the stadium’s stage set, allowing some stoked San Diegans to share the rush of being onstage as this legendary band rocks. (November 11 at 6 p.m., Petco Park, 100 Park Boulevard, downtown, 619-220-8497.)

	50 People to Watch Party 2012 This year's event held at the Saltbox at the Hotel Palomar on January 20 honoring San Diego's best and brightest.

	47th annual Presentation Tea Photos of the 47th annual Presentation Tea at a private estate in Rancho Santa Fe

	Air Supply: Filling Lungs with Love Photos of an event to raise money for Sharlie Kaltenbach at a private estate in Olivenhain

	Super Stars... Let it Shine! Photos from an evening to raise money for the Boys & Girls Club of Carlsbad held at La Costa Resort