Charlie Watts’ Final Concert: Rolling Stones’ 2019 Tour

The 2019 edition of the Rolling Stones’ No Filter tour concluded in Miami Gardens, Fla., on Friday night (August 30), marked by off stage headlines as much as for its artistic and financial triumph. No one would have guessed that the concert would prove to be the last of Charlie Watts’ career.

It was fitting that the final performance of a tour that had been postponed for two months due to the shocking March 30 announcement of Mick Jagger’s heart valve procedure, came a day earlier than expected. On Thursday, the Stones announced that the concert, scheduled for August 31, was being moved up one day due to a crossfire hurricane named Dorian, a Category 4 storm described as extremely dangerous that was heading for Florida. Despite the precautions taken, it still rained heavily during the performance.

It was the latest headline in a series of unexpected events that impacted the 2019 tour, none more so than the stunning news about Jagger’s health that broke on March 30, just three weeks before the tour was set to begin.

Incredibly, perhaps six weeks after his procedure, Jagger shared an awe-inspiring clip of him dancing on May 15, as he began to get back in shape for the rigors of the tour.

pic.twitter.com/nx5JFB2ZuJ

— Mick Jagger (@MickJagger) May 15, 2019

When the 2019 tour was originally announced, way back on November 19, 2018, the Miami concert was supposed to be the first date on April 20. Fans who had purchased tickets months earlier had to wait for Jagger, 75, to sufficiently recover. And he did, in magnificent fashion, shimmying across the stage and the full length of the catwalk that was set up at each venue.

At Hard Rock Stadium, the Stones gave a 19-song performance with a setlist virtually identical to the rest of the tour, featuring such classic rock favorites as “Jumpin’ Jack Flash,” “Honky Tonk Women,” “Miss You,” “Brown Sugar” and “Gimme Shelter.”

Watch the evening’s explosive opener

Watch “Tumbling Dice” from the final concert

The 2019 edition of the Stones’ “No Filter” tour, sponsored by the Alliance For Lifetime Income, consisted of just 17 concerts, spread over a generous two-and-a-half months. Jagger, Keith Richards, Watts and Ronnie Wood were each well into their 70s; the schedule allowed them to perform at their peak.

The final concert’s fan’s choice was a 1966 favorite.

For this tour, the Stones performed two acoustic numbers with the core four on the catwalk.

Watch them perform “Sweet Virginia”

As the rest of the band begin “Sympathy For the Devil,” the Stones make a quick costume change and return to the main stage.

Watch them perform “Honky Tonk Women” from the final show, with the crowd singing along

Related: Our recap of the tour’s opening night on June 21

Pollstar, the trade publication that covers the business of live events worldwide, reported that the first 10 shows of the 2019 run talled $108.3 in sales with a ticket tally of 474,397. The No Filter tour began in Europe on September 9, 2017, and resumed in 2018. The tour earned $416 million, making it one of the ten biggest of all time.

Watch the main set’s final number

During “Gimme Shelter,” the evening’s first of two encores, Hurricane Dorian made its presence known, as the Stones performed in the rain.

Fittingly, the evening closed with “(I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction.” Watts was just 23 years old when he and the Stones recorded it. It proved to be his final live performance.

Related: Links to 100s of current classic rock tours

The Rolling Stones, August 30, 2019, Hard Rock Stadium, Miami Gardens, FL, Setlist

Jumpin’ Jack Flash
It’s Only Rock ‘n’ Roll (But I Like It)
Tumbling Dice
Out of Control
Under My Thumb
You Can’t Can’t Always Get What You Want
Sweet Virginia
Dead Flowers
Sympathy For the Devil
Honky Tonk Women
You Got the Silver
Before They Make Me Run
Miss You
Paint it Black
Midnight Rambler
Start Me Up
Brown Sugar
Gimme Shelter
(I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction

Watch the final bow

Thanks to dnewton98, EdBmusic and someguywholikesmusic for the videos.

Related: Our review of the Stones’ August 1, 2019 concert at Metlife Stadium