Diana West, sitting in for the vacationing Michelle Malkin, posts a piece about the current reigning kings of the geriatric rock ‘n roll circuit- The Rolling Stones. While I enjoy seeing the old greats probably more than most, she points out the realities of life:
If the Rolling Stones (and other aged rock stars) have successfully avoided growing up, they have not, as has been duly noted, successfully avoided growing old.
Her other point about the ability of superstars of yesteryear to fill giant stadiums with high-priced ticket paying fans is something to watch as well. Like the over-the-hill athlete or the long-running sitcom star, the question becomes when to bow down gracefully. As she notes in the piece, it appears tickets for the Rolling Stones concerts in Great Britain aren’t exactly selling like hotcakes. Maybe they need to face the reality that their fan base is dwindling? Or don’t do the concert scene anymore…
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Of course, that works to my benefit, as we have this wonderful little concert venue right here in central New Hampshire where I’ve seen bands like The Doors, ZZTop, Ted Nugent, Vanilla Fudge, Sammy Hagar, The Black Crowes, The Allman Bros., Deep Purple, John Kay & Steppenwolf, Blue Oyster Cult, BB King, and many others. The small house is packed, oxygen tanks abound, and the musicians, like fine wine (well, not appearance maybe) are in most cases, even better than they were "in the day"- with age comes more practice, and of course, practice often leads to perfection- although I can’t speak to the Stones, as I’ve never seen them. When they come here to our tiny cental NH amphitheater, I’ll see for myself.
