The Rolling Stones celebrated their first album release of original music in 18 years, Hackney Diamonds, at a small surprise show at Racket in NYC on Oct. 19.
The night started with a DJ set courtesy of Quest Love, and Samantha Urbani. Different VIP guests including Elvis Costello, Daniel Craig, Chris Rock, Jimmy Fallon, and more, were in attendance. With the death of drummer Charlie Watts in 2021, the Rolling Stones performed with the core trio of Mick Jagger and guitarists Keith Richards and Ron Wood, with other musicians supplementing.
This isn’t the first time the Stones have performed an album release show in the city. The band once rolled down Fifth Avenue on a flatbed truck and on another occasion rode on a caboose into Grand Central Terminal. Their newest record Hackney Diamonds has received rave reviews, with Variety describing it as their best work since 1981’s Tattoo You, and Telegraph seeing it as “the best rock’n’ roll album of the past four decades at least.”
They opened with “Shattered,” from 1978’s Some Girls, before playing their new songs “Angry,” “Whole Wide World,” and “Bite My Head Off.” The set also featured “Tumbling Dice” and “Jumping Jack Flash” before an encore for which the Stones were joined by Lady Gaga.
Dressed in a sequined maroon pantsuit, Gaga made an appearance to recreate her duet with Jagger on the new song “Sweet Sounds of Heaven” off Hackney Diamonds. The band’s Racket gig marked one of their smallest venue locations to date, particularly in the area, and was the perfect intimate setting to celebrate their newest album.
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