Question: Should You Join A Rolling Stones Fan Club?Rolling Stones fanatics come from all parts of the world. European fans hold their base in Scandinavia and the United Kingdom beginning from as far back as 1964. Though the band has existed for a very long time, the fans have remained and even grown in number. The Rolling Stones fan clubs may have re-organized and have been handled by different members, but the clubs remained active in preserving old membership and welcoming new members and collectors all over the world. While Scandinavia is known as the main base of the Rolling Stones fan club, there are other fan clubs for Rolling Stones all over Europe. There is one in Holland for example. The latest official fan club of Scandinavia is the Danish fan club, which has the biggest membership with a total of 20,000 members. Fan clubs provide special privileges like the chance to gain access to certain records or Rolling Stones CDs that are hard to find. The fan clubs in Europe can help a fan get hold of various Rolling Stones memorabilia like special CD editions and t-shirts, among others. They also come up with a regular fanzine containing all the highly-requested information and photos of the band. As soon as a person is enrolled as a member, the club automatically sends in an official badge to the fan member. Membership costs may vary from place to place. It may be 250 Danish Kroner, 300 Swedish kroner, US$45, and EURO 35. Those Interested to join the club may send in their registration through info@stonesplanet.com or fax it thru +44-870-128-4238. There are also a good number of Rolling Stones fanatics in the United States. The USA branch of the Rolling Stones fan club office was opened in August 1999. It was opened after the Official Rolling Stones Fan Club of Scandinavia/UK decided to open their club to worldwide membership through the opening of a branch in the US. The USA branch is offering new members a package consisting of a membership card plus five issues of the Stones Planet Fanzine including its winter, spring, summer, and fall issues. Besides that, members also get a chance to meet Rolling Stones fans that come from all parts of the United States. The club helps members locate cheap CDs, concert tickets, memorabilia and important information about the band members. The said branch has the Stones’ photographer Bob Gruen, Stones’ piano player Chuck Leavel, and back-up singer Bernard Fowler as honorary members. Membership price (US fan club) is at $45, which is good for a one year membership. Interested members can send their application through bluelena@stonesplanet.com or send in the membership fee (in check or money order) to Tamara Guo, addressed to The Rolling Stones Fan Club Office-USA, PO Box 2264, Cranberry Twp.,PA 16066-1264, USA. There are many other Rolling Stones fan clubs scattered all over the globe. One may try to become a member of Stonesland, a club that welcomes all kinds of fans from all parts of the world. The club, which started in 1980, caters to hard core fans of the band. The club has a site (IORR.org) which contains the band’s great photos, news, videos, and many other things. The site is a good venue fans can meet, discuss, and share experiences with other Rolling Stones fans. It also provides cool opportunities like grabbing the cheapest tickets to Rolling Stones concerts. You can also get to hear the old and new music of this special rock and roll band. |