The Rolling Stones :: Brussels Affair 1973

What year is it, again? Within the last twelve months I have picked up the reissue of Exile on Main Street, the Keith biography, Life, and went downtown for a screening of the 1972 concert film Ladies & Gentlemen The Rolling Stones, documenting the American leg of the Exile tour. All worth it, and the Keith bio itself re-sparked my interest in the band’s Goat’s Head era, notably the Brussels Affair bootleg.

Allegedly a near-miss official Stones release documenting the ’73 tour, the band shelved the project due to issues with their former label. Among other heights the boot showcases prime-era Mick Taylor. This is also the show where I stopped hating on, and learned to love, “Dancing With Mr. D.” The version here is a ripper.

Forest National, Brussels, Belgium 10/17/73, 1st show

01 Brown Sugar
02 Gimme Shelter
03 Happy
04 Tumbling Dice
05 Dancing With Mr. D
06 Angie
07 You Can’t Always Get What You Want
08 Midnight Rambler
09 Honky Tonk Women
10 All Down The Line
11 Rip This Joint
12 Jumping Jack Flash
13 Street Fighting Man
14 Starfucker

Rotterdam 10/14/London 9/9/Newcastle 9/13/Munich 9/28/Vienna 9/1/73

01 Brown Sugar
02 Happy
03 Gimme Shelter
04 Heartbreaker
05 Street Fighting Man
06 Brown Sugar
07 Starfucker
08 Dancing With Mr. D
09 Angie
10 Midnight Rambler
11 Gimme Shelter
12 Street Fighting Man
13 Bitch
14 100 Years Ago
15 Sweet Virginia
16 Silver Train

Only the good shit. Aquarium Drunkard is powered by our patrons. Keep the servers humming and help us continue doing it by pledging your support via our Patreon page. 

31 thoughts on “The Rolling Stones :: Brussels Affair 1973

  1. i believe that the Brussels show is the one with the 14 minute Midnight Rambler that may have one of the defining moments of Rock ‘n’ Roll for me. The way the Stones come back into the full tempo ending from the conclusion of the breakdown 3/4 of the way through is something magical and I have listened and never heard it done quite like that on any of their other live boots. It reminds me of what I heard in August 1972 when I saw them at MSG in NYC. Transendant. Thanks for this post.

  2. After listening again it’s the version that clocks in at 12:41 on the first disc that just soars (Mick Taylor is in top form) and the recording is a primal moment.

  3. A huge thank you for posting this. Although I am not a die hard Stones fan, this post shows once again that the 1968 to 75 Stones truly deserved the title of Greatest Rock And Roll Band.

  4. thanks for this! The Keith bio and Exile reissue have also got me listening again to a lot of vintage Stones. Such great, great stuff.

  5. well, damn. this is just great. thanks for posting this. Both Brown Sugars…I haven’t enjoyed listening to the Stones this much in years. thanks.

  6. Yes, this is fabulous—-Don’t forget about how great “You Can’t Always Get What You Want” is here—-Charlie and Keith just GROOOOOOOVING. And of course, the Keith/Mick Taylor guitar stuff is how a rawk band ought should sound.

  7. This show was also released in quad and has been uploaded to Demonoid and elsewhere as a 4 channel DTS surround version. In the mid-70s they was a small handful of FM Quadraphonic radio concerts. You needed special gear (or it was just folded down to stereo), so it didn’t catch on. This show, a live Alice Cooper show from 1975 and a live in the studio Steely Dan show are what can be found easily. I’m sure that there are others. All of them were either King Biscuit or Westwood One Radio shows.

    This show, “The Brussels Affair” and “Ladies and Gentlemen…” in the new Blu-ray 5.1 mix are, to my mind, the single best Stones shows in terms of sound quality, energy, set list, Mick Taylor…

Comments are closed.