Rolling Stones Expected to Announce Summer Tour

It’s a cryptic delight for fans of the Rolling Stones: billboards erected in various North American cities – including two along Toronto’s Gardiner Expressway – brandishing the band’s famous lips and tongue logo and the word “Wednesday.” Click over to their website and you’ll notice a daily countdown that ends tomorrow, accompanied by the hashtag #StartMeUpWednesday, implying an announcement from the band is imminent. Of course, the guessing game would be a lot more fun if the Stones hadn’t recently signed with concert promoters AEG and agreed to an 18-date tour.

“Their … tour plans have been just about the worst-kept secret in rock,” Rolling Stone magazine wrote, noting the band is already booked to play the U.K.’s Glastonbury Festival at the end of June.

Okay, so Mick and the gang aren’t the most discreet bunch. The important thing is a North American summer tour in honour of the band’s 50^th anniversary appears to be on the horizon, and if the two billboards are any indication, Toronto should be on their itinerary. Hogtown also frequently serves as the band’s rehearsal space, as the Stones have revved up in the city prior to previous tours and played surprise gigs in venues as varied as local clubs and a private school.