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Stones keep on rolling in music rich list
26.01.07
Rock legends: The Rolling Stones earn the vast amount of their money from touring
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The Rolling Stones have topped the US music rich list for the second year running.
Mick Jagger and his bandmates raked in £76.5m last year, £70.4m of it from their A Bigger Bang tour.
The tour was temporarily postponed when guitarist Keith Richards fell out of a tree and underwent brain surgery, but the Stones were soon back on the road.
They topped the annual list of music's top moneymakers compiled by Forbes magazine. It ranks music acts according to tour grosses, album and digital sales in the US.
Madonna was fourth in the list after amassing a 2006 fortune of £49.1m - £43.6m from her Confessions tour.
The list also features Barbara Streisand in fifth place. She made an average of £2.3 million per gig last year, taking her annual total to £48.6m.
Other big earners included Kenny Chesney, country star and short-lived husband of actress Renee Zellweger, who made £45.7m; and Celine Dion, who amassed £43.3m for her show in Las Vegas.
Artists rake in the big bucks thanks to touring rather than record sales, according to Forbes.
"Like so many of the acts on our list, the Stones earned the vast majority of their money on the road," the magazine said.
"Madonna tends to generate more headlines than record sales these days - you are more likely to have heard about her adoption travails than have bought one of her albums.
"But her Confessions tour proves that some fans aren't satisfied seeing her in the tabloids - they want to see her live."
Top 10 US Music Moneymakers
1 Rolling Stones - £76.5m
2 Tim McGraw/Faith Hill - £67.1m
3 Rascal Flatts - £56.1m
4 Madonna - £49.1m
5 Barbra Streisand - £48.6m
6 Kenny Chesney - £45.7m
7 Celine Dion - £43.3m
8 Bon Jovi - £39.3m
9 Nickelback - £37.6m
10 Dave Matthews Band - £30.5m
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