Hal Ashby’s Let’s Spend the Night Together captures the Rolling Stones’ 1981 North American Tour in support of Tattoo You. It was filmed at the Brendan Byrne Arena in East Rutherford, New Jersey on November 5 and 6 and at Sun Devil Stadium in Tempe, Arizona on December 13. At this point in time, one year shy of the band’s 20th anniversary, the Stones are singer Mick Jagger, guitarist Keith Richards, bassist Bill Wyman, drummer Charlie Watts, and “the new guy,” guitarist Ronnie Wood. They are supported by Ian McLagan on organ, Ian Stewart on piano, and on saxophone Ernie Watts and Bobby Keys. Together, they deliver a high-energy show of classic hits and deep cuts.
Buy The Rolling Stones: Let’s Spend the Night TogetherThe film opens outdoors in Tempe where the band runs through 11 songs, opening with “Under My Thumb.” One can tell from the bright colors of the stage design, the work of Japanese designer Kazuhide Yamazaki, and their clothes that the time period is early ’80s. Throngs squeeze into the pit in front of stage where it already looks like there’s enough people. A cool helicopter swoops into the stadium and a bunch of folks are seen on a hillside listening.
The first song played off Tattoo You, which was mostly studio outtakes recorded during the previous decade, is “Neighbors” with Ernie Watts doing a fabulous job filling in for Sonny Rollins who played on the album. After the bluesy “Black Limousine,” the band heads to Motown covering the Temptations’ “Just My Imagination (Running Away with Me)” with Jagger joins arrangement on guitar. They then play the rocking Eddie Cochrane’s “Twenty Flight Rock.” During “Let Me Go,” Jagger puts the audience to the test by running through them with multiple security guards creating a loose bubble. They slow down for “Time Is on My Side” with old photos and film clips of band members, including previous members Brian Jones and Mick Taylor.
“Going to a Go-Go” starts the East Rutherford portion. A time-lapse segment shows the crew setting up, and the band performing. Richards gives Jagger a break by singing the lead vocal on “T & A.” “She’s So Cold” starts with a montage from multiple venues on the tour. Then the film moves between locations. “Honky Tonk Women” sees the band joined by a bevy of beauties, including Jagger’s partner Jerry Hall. For no apparent reason, Mick gets into a cherry picker up high during “Jumpin’ Jack Flash” only to be lowered back onto the stage where he just was. The concert/film concludes with “Satisfaction,” which the audience surely got.
Scanned from the original 35 mm camera negative, the video comes from a new 4K scan in 2160p SDR, displayed at the film’s original aspect of 1.85:1. The pastels appear in bright hues. Whites, such as Mick’s pants, are accurate. Blacks vary in richness. The image delivers good depth. Fine texture details are apparent, as seen in the fabric draping the stage and of Wyman’s track suit.
The audio is available in DTS-HD MA 5.1 and 2.0. This is one of the few times I prefer the 2.0 mix because too often on the 5.1 the bass thunders in the subwoofer and rattles the cabinet. The vocals are clean as are the arrangements with various instruments sounding distinct in the mix as they fill the speakers.
The 4K UHD set includes a Blu-ray and the special features on both discs are:
- Audio Commentary by Justin Sosa, host of Hang Fire: A Rolling Stones Podcast
- Audio Commentary by entertainment journalists/authors Bryan Reesman and Max Evry
Let’s Spend the Night Together is a very good document of the ’81 Stones tour. The band is in fine form even if some doubters, including a couple members, questioned if they were too old to still be out there rocking. Sure to please Stones fans and newcomers. The video from the new scan delivers a great picture. The bass for the 5.1 audio is mixed too loud but the 2.0 track is satisfying.
