The Rolling Stones – You Know What These Are (Cannonball CA-2003013/4)

Disc 2 (34:40):  All Down The Line, Midnight Rambler, Bye Bye Johnny, Rip This Joint, Jumping Jack Flash, Street Fighting Man

After spending about two weeks on the west coast for the start of the 1972 tour, The Rolling Stones visited Tucson, Arizona, for the first time in their career.  The show at the Community Center on June 14th is well documented both on tape and with newspaper reviews. 

Two audience tapes exist.  The first can be found on Ain’t Touched a Drink All Night (Weeping Goat WG-007), is missing the opening song “Brown Sugar” and “All Down The Line” and has substantial cuts in “Sweet Virginia,” “Midnight Rambler,” and “Bye Bye Johnny.”

A second and much more complete recording surfaced afterwards.  It is distant, flat but clear recording capturing the entire show except the last three minutes of “You Can’t Always Get What You Want.”  This tape can be found on the Yugoslav manufactured Exile on Tuscon St. (Risk Disc RD-009) and on disc two of Winterland Stars (VGP-338).

The Stones sold out the 9,000 seat arena.  Three hundred people stormed the gates to get in, but were repelled by tear gas, one of the many acts of craziness surrounding the STP.  Onstage Scott Carter, reviewing the show for the Arizona Daily Wildcat, stated:  “They’re the Rolling Stones and they bring no surprises.  They’re predictably outrageous, loud, gruff and exciting.  And in their concert last night they demonstrated their lasting popularity in the United States and the fact that they really haven’t slowed down in the 10 years they’ve been together.”

Meri Regal of the Tucson Citizen writes the most interesting review of the lot.  She first points out the appropriateness of Jagger’s name (“JAG (v) to prick…JAGGED (adj) having a harsh, rough, or irregular quality…JAGGERY (n) a type of unrefined brown sugar”) and continues that “HE is the show.  Whereas, say, the late Jim Morrison was catlike, Mick Jagger is a bird – rooster, cockatoo, jay (a jaeger, in fact, is a robber bird) – and a more pavonine rock singer there never was.”

The setlist is standard for the tour, starting (indeed) with “Brown Sugar.”  (Because it was missing from the older tape source, some speculated the show started with “Bitch.”)  Mick doesn’t say much during the show, but does point out this is their first concert in Tucson before “Rocks Off.” 

“Gimme Shelter” sounds fantastic, one of the highlights of the show.  The Arizona Republic pointed out the proliferation of frisbees sailing around the venue while the Stones played.

Much of the first hour is occupied with songs from the new album Exile On Main Street, and the audience’s reaction to “Tumbling Dice” shows it to be the most popular.  Jagger encourages them to sing along to the acoustic “Sweet Virginia” and to come closer for “You Can’t Always Get What You Want.”  Even though the ending is cut, Mick Taylor’s solo is complete.

Jagger drones on during the band introduction after “Midnight Rambler” because the guitar went out of tune.  “Bill Wyman who just lost a few strings, which is why I’m rapping so long” he jokes before they start into “Bye Bye Johnny.”  The rest of the show goes off without a hitch, including a melodramatic version of “Street Fighting Man” to close the show.  The audience are so restless that Bill Graham himself has to come out and assure them that the Stones are gone and there will be no more music.

You Know What These Are is a very good release of a hard-to-find show.  Cannonball released this title, among other Led Zeppelin and Pink Floyd titles, to provide very good sounding tapes in affordable yet tasteful packaging.  The artwork is austere but effective with several tour pictures on the front and back.  Until a better sounding tape comes along, this is worth having.