When the Rolling Stones decided to launch their first US arena tour in two decades, many wondered how their stagecraft, honed to play to the last rows of stadiums, would play in a smaller setting. The band's No Security tour rolled into Southern California's Arrowhead Pond of Anaheim on February 9th and 11th.

The relative intimacy of seeing the Stones less than a football field away comes at a price, with tickets ranging from $90-$300, leading one to think the night's event should come complete with full bar and backstage passes. What the night ticket buyer came away with was simply the world's most famous rock 'n roll band, performing on an open stage (no backdrop) for two hours.

As expected, the Stones' enduring core -- Mick Jagger, Keith Richards, Ronnie Wood and Charlie Watts -- were musically tight, confident and absolutely professional on stage. The audience hit their feet immediately as the band took the stage with the familiar opening chords of Jumping Jack Flash.

Jagger strutted and shook his stuff across and behind the stage in a pink shirt and sunglasses, playing it up in typical form. An onstage camera crew captured closeups which were projected on a huge screen that hung over the stage, adding a visual counterpart to the sheer brilliance of Richards' guitar playing.

After a few ''crowd pleasers'' like Respectable, You Got Me Rocking, and Honky Tonk Women, the Stones reached into their vast catalog to play Moonlight Mile, Sweet Virginia and Some Girls to a roaring response. Richards then took center stage and performed a beautiful Thief in the Night.

After introducing the entire stage band and back-up vocalists, the Stones walked down a catwalk which projected out through the middle of the floor seats to a second stage, similar to the Bridges to Babylon tour.

Shaking hands and smiling to the fans as they walked to the alternate stage, bras and panties were thrown to the stage not getting much reaction from these veterans. The Stones led off the small-stage set with a cover of Route 66, which Mick dedicated to the songwriter Bobby Troup who recently passed away. At this point, the show became stale and mediocre.

Playing a couple more songs on the second stage, the Stones returned to the main stage. Although Mick continued with the same energy, the band appeared uninspired playing four of their most popular songs in a row (It's Only Rock 'n Roll, Start Me Up, Brown Sugar,Sympathy for the Devil) probably for the millionth time. What was considered to be a more ''intimate'' setting could only bring hopes of more ''intimate'' songs to close the night.

The Rolling Stones [ tickets ] continue their tour of North America through April.