Rock Legends Rolling Stones Give Historic Concert in Cuba

It’s the first time The Rolling Stones have played the island; they’re the biggest act to play since Fidel Castro’s communist government took power in 1959.

Fans wait outside the venue where the Rolling Stones will play…

“We all wanted to be at Woodstock”, said Nilda Dominguez, 60, who said that as a teenager she struggled to get her hands on music by the Stones and other bands because Cuba’s revolutionary leaders looked down on rock music.

“After today I can die”, Joaquin Ortiz, 62, told the AP. This time, USA forces were armed with briefing books and press invitations, here to seal the president’s 2014 opening to Cuba with a string of expertly crafted public events that saw Obama call for democracy live on state television, then attend a Major League Baseball exhibition game with Cuban President Raul Castro.

The Stones opened their first-ever show in Cuba with “Jumpin Jack Flash” and finished more than two hours later with “Satisfaction”. “This is like my last wish, seeing the Rolling Stones”.

For years, many Cubans listened to bands like the Stones in secret because their music didn’t line up with the government ideology.

Mick Jagger and the boys played for free in Havana. Singer Mick Jagger said it was a “great, historic moment”. “Another culture has come to Cuba, another culture and we’re becoming friends”. Along with Cubans, there were thousands of foreigners, part of a wave of new tourism to the island.

“What a cool audience”, said Jagg4er, who promised “an unforgettable evening” for Cubans.

In the heat of Cuba’s revolution from the 1960s to the 1980s, foreign bands such as The Rolling Stones were considered subversive and blocked from the radio.

In a video message released in the days before the concert, the veteran British rockers said: “We’ve performed in many incredible places, but this concert in Havana is going to be an historic event for us”.

But for a generation of older Cubans who loved rock music – albeit quietly – the Stones show may be as significant as Obama’s visit, Zolov said.