How Mark 'Spike' Stent Mixed the Rolling Stones' Hyde Park Live for a Giant Outdoor Venue

Mark ‘Spike’ Stent had the unenviable job of turning two massive outdoor shows (the Rolling Stones’ 2013 Hyde Park gigs) into a tight, immediate live album. His main challenge: the open-air roar of 65,000 fans, London wind, and a stage set-up that could easily turn muddy. Stent didn’t just pull a stereo feed — he worked from 48-track multitrack recordings, then rebuilt each song by blending close-miked instruments with carefully placed audience mics.

He kept the mix surprisingly dry for a stadium show. Instead of drenching every instrument in reverb to simulate “bigness,” Stent relied on the natural spill from the PA and the crowd’s own roar to create space. Keith Richards’ guitar got a slightly narrower stereo image to keep it from fighting with Ronnie Wood’s parts, while Charlie Watts’ drums were gated tightly to avoid the rumble that comes with outdoor wind. The result is a live album that sounds like you’re standing in the eighth row, not drowning in echo.

Stent had already mixed Get Yer Ya-Ya’s Out! reissues and Some Girls Live in Texas, so