Rolling Stones: El Paso fans get nothing but satisfaction

That's the tag line advertisements for the Rolling Stones boasts. Friday night, the group backed up that boast in front of thousands of fans at Sun Bowl Stadium. Attendance figures were not immediately available, but officials with Live Nation, which put the concert on, said that attendance was in the 30,000s and that the Stones' people were pleased with the attendance.

The size of the crowd didn't seem to matter to frontman Mick Jagger, guitarists Keith Richards and Ron Wood, and drummer Charlie Watts. The group performed for nearly two hours and belted out 21 songs. Each night of the tour is a bit of a surprise because the Stones can play any number of songs spanning their 44-year career.

The band is touring in support of its latest CD, "A Bigger Bang," released in 2005. The Stones started its El Paso concert with the energetic "Jumpin' Jack Flash" -- instantly getting the crowd on its feet. Sir Mick, as dapper as ever, shimmied and pranced across the stage in black slacks, a red shirt with a black

undershirt and a black sequined jacket. Jagger quickly shed the jacket during "It's Only Rock and Roll.

" As he danced across the stage during the song, he turned toward the fans in the $500 "seats," which were onstage and towered above the stage that was part of the backdrop. The band's camaraderie showed through during "Shattered," when Wood tried to scratch his face between riffs. Richards, nearby, went over to Wood and happily scratched the itch to the amusement of both.

The fourth song of the set was a bit of a surprise, though El Pasoans probably hoped the Stones would play "El Paso." Jagger thanked the crowd for attending the show and said coming back gives the band a chance to perform a rare song. The band then played a sparse, one-verse version of the Marty Robbins' classic with Wood playing a steel-pedal guitar and Richards plucking a few strings.

The crowd roared its

approval, even though the song was largely made up of Watts' drumming and Jagger's singing.

After "El Paso," Jagger thanked the Dave Matthews Band for opening the show and commented that the band was probably already on its way to its Saturday performance near San Francisco. Then, in the middle of "Let It Bleed," Matthews came out with a sheepish grin, intensely eyeing Jagger, and joined the Stones for the song. Matthews and Jagger traded off on vocals as well as harmonized on them.

As soon as the song was over, Matthews shook each of the Stones' hands and bowed in show of respect to each of them. One of the highlights of the night might have been the extended version of "Midnight Rambler," which had a blues jam in the middle of it with Jagger doing call-and-response shout-outs with the fans. Next was the always rocking "Tumbling Dice.

" After briefly introducing the band and its backup performers, Jagger surrendered the microphone to Richards for his chance to sing lead vocals on a couple of songs. As Richards approached the microphone with his lit cigarette -- not caring, or not knowing, about the Sun Bowl Stadium's anti-smoking policy. He was clearly touched and almost embarrassed by the applause as he launched into "You Got the Silver.

" The band started playing "Under My Thumb" when the center of the stage detached and moved mechanically from the south end of the stadium to the B stage near the north side. While it was great for those fans in the end zone, it was hard for fans on the floor to see because the giant screen on stage did not show any of the performance on the B stage. The Stones then played "She's So Cold," "Start Me Up" and "Honky Tonk Woman" on the B stage before moving back to the main stage.

It was time for the more darker songs of the night as Jagger donned a red jacket with a matching red top hat for "Sympathy for the Devil." "Paint It Black" followed, and the main set ended with "Brown Sugar." After a quick break, the band played the reflective "You Can't Always Get What You Want" before finishing with the rave-up song "(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction.

" While the Stones have several backup musicians who help round out the band in concert, the true fifth member of the group is its gigantic stage setup. Those who were awed by the Stones' "Voodoo Lounge" stage setup were likely bowled over by the "Bigger Bang" setup. It had double the steel and production of what made up the Voodoo Lounge stage setup, Stones officials said.

The Rolling Stones have less than a dozen concerts left on this record-breaking tour. By the time the tour ends in Hawaii next month, the band will have sold nearly 2 million tickets for a total of $256 million in revenue, according to Rolling Stone magazine, which cited figures compiled by Pollstar. The "Bigger Bang" tour, which began last year, set a record during its 2005 leg when it recorded $162 million in 43 dates.