Mick Jagger says playing the same songs "gets boring".
The Rolling Stones are heading back to Australia in 2014 and in the eight years since they last toured, Mick Jagger remains as vocal as ever.
Having also just completed their first American tour since 2006, Jagger told the Chicago Tribune that their 2013-14 circuit was far from certain at the time.
“They're never inevitable. Everyone had a really good time in the five shows before Christmas (in London, New Jersey and New York).
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"We wanted to see how the band was playing, how people were reacting. We didn't get too much moaning or complaining.
"What was quite good is that we set a small goal. We rehearsed for a long time, as if we were doing 100 gigs.
"But it's helpful to do these things in bite-size pieces, so you're not feeling there's this dreadful endless thing of being on the road. You knew it was going to be done.”
It the same interview, he told of the difficulties that come with compiling a set list with a back catalogue stretching over 50 years. “It's a tricky thing for me. You get bored doing the same songs.”
Tickets for the Adelaide show will range from $80 to $500, with similar prices for Brisbane and Perth. Sydney and Melbourne's shows have not yet made prices available. The cost is a similar range to what was seen during the American tour, with Jagger saying he would feel bad if there were hardcore fans who were genuinely priced out of seeing the band.
But he believes “there's a price for everybody”, although the dangers of the majority of the tickets being snapped up by secondary sellers for a massive profit are certainly real.
“I'm very much against the secondary ticket market. I don't know anyone who isn't. We have a lot of secondary market problems in the UK, it's really bad there. I think it should be illegal”.
After more than 50 years of performing, Jagger still maintains a strict workout regimen to try and remain in peak condition, telling USA Today: “I'm quite serious about it. You have to be physically fit, mentally alert, vocally strong.
"It's dull and repetitious. The only thing I enjoy is the dance rehearsal. I rent a dance studio and loon around in it”.
Despite the tour, rumours regarding a new album remain just that, although he understands that when you're as big as the Stones, people want to hear the classics.
“It would be nice to have a new album, but people don't like the new album when you play it on stage. It's not a good excuse [for a lack of a new album] but it's the truth and has to be said,” he said.
Former bassist Bill Wyman played with the band in 2012, but will not tour, as was the case in America. “He's not keen on touring. He made that very clear to us," Jagger said.