Rolling Stones Returning To Canada With A Bigger Bang

The Rolling Stones are returning to North America for another leg of their A Bigger Bang Tour, which will kick-off on Sept. 20 at Boston's Gillette Stadium and take them through new Canadian markets in Halifax and Regina.

The Rolling Stones were the top grossing band in the world for the first half of 2006, generating almost $150 million U.S. in concert receipts from 1.1 million fans, according to Billboard Boxscore. A Bigger Bang is expected to ring up a box office total of more than $400 million by the time the tour finally winds down.

"We're very excited about coming back to the U.S. and Canada," says singer Mick Jagger. "We're going to play many cities that we didn't get to before, and also return to some of our favourite places."

The band are promising "a variety of material ready so we can keep it fresh," and a healthy Keith Richards. The guitarist and medical miracle is apparently feeling no ill effects following a May brain operation he was forced to undergo after hurting himself while on vacation in Fiji.

"Keith's fine, his head's better, he's playing well and enjoying himself," says Jagger.

Canadian concert promoter Michael Cohl says fans should expect "young contemporary opening acts" and lower ticket prices in order to draw more youthful crowds to the shows. The Stones' longtime promoter also promised that ticket prices will be about 10 to 15 per cent lower, on average, and that there will be additional discounts for students.

People on the prairies should be especially excited about the Stones' first performance in Saskatchewan, as the Regina Leader-Post is calling the concert "an historic moment" and "the single greatest event Regina has ever hosted." Apparently, the paper has already forgotten that Regina welcomed Canada's best male curlers to the Brier bonspiel in March.

More information on the tour and all things Stones-related is available on the band's website.

Here are The Rolling Stones' Canadian tour dates:

Sept. 23 Halifax, NS @ Halifax Commons
Oct. 8 Regina, SK @ Mosaic Stadium
Nov. 3 Vancouver, BC @ BC Place Stadium