80,000 Rolling Stones fans flock to Prague for biggest concert of thesummer

Some 80,000 Rolling Stones fans flocked to Prague on Sunday to see the legendary British rock group perform in the Czech capital and neither the tropical heat nor the rain that followed could keep them away. The Rolling Stones had already honoured their Czech fans with magnificent concerts three times since the fall of the Communist Regime in 1989. They chose to make Sunday a fourth appearance and front man Mick Jagger even decided to celebrate his sixtieth birthday in Prague.

80,000 Rolling Stones fans flock to Prague for biggest concert of thesummer

Rolling Stones in Prague, photo: CTK

After the performance of the two opening bands, Czech "dinosaurs" of rock music Olympic and the popular Latvian band Brainstorm, former Czech President and the Rolling Stones' personal friend and fan, Vaclav Havel, was asked to come on stage to introduce the band:

"I congratulate Mick on his sixtieth birthday and thank him for his decision to celebrate it in Prague", Mr Havel said before the blue lights went on and the rock group came on stage to give a stunning performance."

Mr. Jagger even learned some Czech to welcome his fans; Ahoj Praho, ahoj Cechy - Hello Prague, hello Czechs - he screamed after the first two songs - Brown Sugar and Start me Up.

Roman Casado from Radio Prague's Spanish service was at Prague's Letna plain on Sunday evening. I can imagine the atmosphere is hard to describe in words...

Rolling Stones fans waiting before the entrance, photo: CTK

"Imagine thousands of people waiting before the entrance as early as on Sunday afternoon - in over thirty degrees Celsius. I was expecting people in their forties or even fifties but most of the crowd was made up of young people or parents with their children. That was proof that their music is still much alive. Olympic and Brainstorm were quite impressive but we were all waiting for the Rolling Stones. And then, when it was time for them to appear, it started raining heavily, and the sky was lit with lightning. So, we were all worried that they would cancel the concert. But the rain stopped and Vaclav Havel appeared. The concert was amazing as there was still lightning in the sky, which worked very well with the special light effects on stage. It was like one big rock-and-roll thunderstorm. Something the Stones hadn't even expected, so I think it will be a memorable experience even for them."

Mick Jagger, photo: CTK

Could one tell that Mick Jagger had just celebrated his sixtieth birthday?

"No, not at all. Of course you can tell on his face that he isn't exactly young but he was so electrified by the music that he jumped around like a teenage boy. So did the others in the band. They sang nineteen songs altogether - starting with Brown Sugar and ending with I Can't Get No Satisfaction. Their performance was a little over two hours long and ended with fireworks."

With 80,000 spectators, I think I would have been a little claustrophobic.

"Well, there were definitely more than 80,000 spectators because several thousand fans came to see the concert from outside the gates. Everything could be seen on one big screen. But the organisers did a good job. They did not sell more tickets than comfortable."