Stones tour back on track

The Rolling Stones announced their rescheduled European tour dates today with news that guitarist Keith Richards has made a complete recovery after his brain operation.

The Bigger Bang tour will kick off at Milan’s San Siro Stadium on July 11.

The band will play 21 stadium dates in 11 countries, but gigs in nine countries have been postponed until after the summer, and two dates – in Nuremberg and Leipzig – have been cancelled.

Richards underwent brain surgery last month after falling out of a palm tree during a holiday in Fiji.

Today he apologised to fans for the disruption to the tour schedule but said he was looking forward to getting back on the road.

“Excuse me, I fell off my perch,” he said in a statement. “Sorry to disrupt everyone’s plans but now it’s full steam ahead. Ouch!”

The postponed European dates are in Barcelona, Brussels, Gothenburg, St Petersburg, Brno, Warsaw, Athens, Zagreb and Frankfurt. A revised schedule for these cities will be announced shortly.

Rolling Stones world tour promoter Michael Cohl said: “We are delighted to announce the Stones tour is back on track and thank all the fans and ticket holders for their patience.

“We have put in as many shows in as many countries as was feasible. This is still going to be the most incredible rock show ever.”