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The Rolling Stones live in Rio de Janeiro 2006
February 18, 2006: Praia De Copacabana, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil (free concert, largest rock show ever) Jumping Jack Flash/It’s Only Rock’n Roll/You Got Me Rocking/Tumbling Dice/Oh No, Not You Again/Wild Horses/Rain Fall Down/Midnight Rambler/NightTime/Band introduction/This Place Is Empty/Happy/Miss You/Rough Justice/Get Off Of My Cloud/Honky Tonk Women/Sympathy For The Devil/Start Me Up/ Brown Sugar/You Can’t Always Get What You Want/Satisfaction
More about The Rolling Stones’ Epic Free Show at Copacabana Beach in 2006
On February 18, 2006, The Rolling Stones turned Rio de Janeiro’s Copacabana Beach into the biggest rock ‘n’ roll party on the planet. More than 1.5 million fans packed the sand and streets for a once-in-a-lifetime free concert, making it one of the largest live shows ever. With the ocean as a backdrop and a massive stage set up right on the beach, it was pure rock spectacle.
Brazilian bands Afro-Reggae and Titãs got things started, but when the Stones hit the stage with Jumpin’ Jack Flash the crowd exploded. Their 20-song setlist featured most of the band’s classics along with four tracks from their (at the time) last studio album A Bigger Bang—Oh No, Not You Again, Rain Fall Down, This Place Is Empty, and Rough Justice. They even threw in a cover of Ray Charles’ Night Time Is the Right Time.
The event was sponsored by two telecom companies and broadcast across Brazil, streamed globally, and even shown in U.S. theaters. With over 10,000 police and emergency personnel on duty, security was tight, but things stayed surprisingly under control. Only 33 robberies were reported—a small number considering the sheer size of the crowd.
Some debated whether it was the biggest rock concert ever, with Rod Stewart’s 1994 New Year’s Eve show in Rio supposedly drawing 3.5 million. But then the show was part of Rio’s long-standing tradition of celebrating réveillon with massive gatherings with millions of people getting out in the streets every years. So, oops, sorry Rod…
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