The Rolling Stones, who are currently in the midst of their No Filter tour across the US, dug through the archives this weekend (October 9) to perform their 1967 tune Connection for the first time in 15 years.
Performing at Nissan Stadium in Nashville, the deep cut, taken from their album Between the Buttons, was last played during a Vancouver show at BC Place Stadium in November 2006.
For the rendition, guitarist Keith Richards – who co-wrote and sung the original track with frontman Mick Jagger – grabs the mic to take on vocal duties. “Great to be back,” Richards tells the crowd. “It’s great to be anywhere. Here, blessings on us all. Gold rings on all of us. I’m going to start off on something I haven’t done in years. This should be fun.”
Connection was composed by the Stones pair when the band were relentlessly hounded by British authorities over their drug use in the 1960s. The lyrics read, 'My bags, they get a very close inspection. I wonder why it is that they suspect them/They’re dying to add me to their collection/And I don’t know if they’ll let me go.'
Shortly after the track was released, 18 officers showed up at Richards' home, arresting both him and Jagger. Richards was charged with “allowing his house to be used for the purpose of smoking cannabis", while Jagger was charged with having four tablets of amphetamines. They were both set free after a high-profile trial that dominated the UK press at the time.
Throughout the night, Jagger and co. performed a medley of Stones classics including Paint It Black, Gimme Shelter, Miss You, Trouble’s a-Comin and the 1971 ballad Dead Flowers, which was selected by fans via an online vote.
