Rolling Stones keep on truckin’ with multimillion-dollar gig at Bellagio

As they say in the trucking business, start me up.

They say that, right? That phrase was certainly heard at high volume Monday night at Bellagio Ballroom, where the Rolling Stones played an unannounced show at the Freightliner customer appreciation dinner, held during American Trucking Associations’ Management Conference and Exhibition show.

There had been advance word around the Strip that a major resort ballroom had been secured for an A-list band, with the Stones the leading contender, and those rumors turned out to be true. Fans reportedly paid $3,300 apiece for a ticket to the performance.

According to a source familiar with the fee the Stones’ command for such a gig, the band was paid a $3 million appearance fee with another $1 million spent on the band’s rider (all of the extras a band demands as part of performing at such a show).

The Stones return to Las Vegas for shows at T-Mobile Arena on Oct. 19 and Oct. 22. An MGM Resorts spokesman said the company would have no comment about the show or any of the details of the booking of Bellagio Ballroom as the company does not speak about private events.

As for the concert, the band performed for 90 minutes — 14 songs spanning their entire career. Reportedly unearthed were “Mixed Emotions” from “Steel Wheels” along with “Out Of Control” from “Bridges to Babylon.” Such classics as “Tumbling Dice,” “Honky Tonk Women,” “Miss You” and, yes, “Start Me Up” also were rolled out.

From the stage, the band mentioned Martin Daum, president of Daimler Trucks North America, thanking him for inviting them to play the gig. Opening was a band featuring Matt Baldoni of the Australian Bee Gees act at Excalibur. He posted on his Facebook page:

“Last night I got to play a big corporate event with my friends, which is cool enough. We had a blast hanging out and playing music, and we made great money. But security was very tight at the Bellagio, with metro cops everywhere. It was tough to even get in and out of the building and through the hallways. We soon found out it was because of the headliner. Ladies and gentlemen, the Rolling Stones.”

The Stones are now are en route to the highly anticipated and aggressively hyped Desert Trip festival at the Coachella site in Indio, Calif., this weekend and on Oct. 14-16. That lineup features six of the most legendary rock acts ever: The Stones and Bob Dylan on Friday, Paul McCartney and Neil Young on Saturday, and the Who and Roger Waters of Pink Floyd on Sunday. That show is booked by AEG Live, which also booked the Stones’ show at T-Mobile and also connects the band to such lucrative private gigs as Monday’s at the Bellagio.

John Katsilometes’ column runs Saturday, Sunday, Tuesday and Thursday in the A section, and Fridays in Neon. He also hosts “Kats! On The Radio” Wednesdays at 8 p.m. on KUNV 91.5-FM and appears Wednesdays at 11 a.m. with Dayna Roselli on KTNV Channel 13. Contact him at jkatsilometes@reviewjournal.com. Follow @johnnykats on Twitter, @JohnnyKats1 on Instagram.