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May 26, 1982: Capitol Theatre, Aberdeen, Scotland (first show of the European Tour 1982) Under My Thumb/When The Whip Comes Down/Let’s Spend The Night Together/Shattered/Neighbours/Black Limousine/Just My Imagination/Twenty Flight Rock/Going To A Go Go/Chantilly Lace/Let Me Go/Time Is On My Side/Beast Of Burden/Let It Bleed/You Can’t Always Get What You Want/Band introduction/Tumbling Dice/She’s So Cold/Hang Fire/Miss You/Honky Tonk Women/Brown Sugar/Start Me Up/Jumping Jack Flash/Satisfaction
From Aberdeen Live: The Rolling Stones performance at the Capitol Theatre in Aberdeen was a long awaited return, coming back to the North-East after 17 years. The gig opened their European tour on May 26, 1982, costing just £6.50 a ticket – though demand was so high, that re-sellers were pricing tickets marked up to £100.
The Stones arrived in the Granite City and went straight to their hotel room – reportedly to watch the European Cup Final. The support act ended up performing for a whole 90 minutes, with the band glued to the match as Aston Villa defeated Bayern Munich 1-0.
Even Aberdeen FC were in attendance on the night, as invited guests of the band. The 36-stop concert tour promoted the album Tattoo You. Those in the crowd in Aberdeen that night could never know that it would be the legendary band’s final visit to the North-East.
They opened with the 60s hit single Under My Thumb, before moving through their greatest hits from the 70s and 80s. The Capitol Theatre, which housed the performance, had a later life as a nightclub before becoming a nine storey office building – doubtful there’s much rock and roll going on over there these days.
The Rolling Stones had visited the venue three times; first in 1964, then returning the following year, and their final visit in 1982. Their initial trip to Aberdeen was part of a wider tour, where they crammed in an exhausting 45 shows in May 1964.
Extra police and stewards were on hand for the band’s first time at the Capitol Theatre, with tickets ranging from five shillings to 15 shillings. In 1965 when the band returned, they stopped off in Laurencekirk for a spot of breakfast and reportedly sang praises for the fry up served in one of the local pubs.
On arrival in Aberdeen, the band’s driver collided with another vehicle right outside the venue – though no one was injured and the Stones barely noticed as they made their way in. For their final performance in 1982, and the last ever visit to the city, Mick Jagger reportedly threw a bucket of water over the crowd.
Whether this was for cooling purposes or just for fun is unclear, but the crowd had the time of their lives either way.
