On the Rolling Stones' 1965 tour, guitarist Keith Richards described Invercargill in famously unflattering terms.
But in his memoir, Life, released last month, Richards instead paints Dunedin black.
"My God, there are some black holes ... Dunedin, for instance, almost the southern-most city in the world, in New Zealand," he wrote.
"It looked like Tombstone and it felt like that. It still had hitching rails. It was Sunday; a wet Sunday in Dunedin in 1965. I don't think you could find anything more depressing anywhere. Dunedin made Aberdeen seem like Las Vegas."
Not that everyone in Dunedin got satisfaction from the Rolling Stones concerts, either.
"On the face of it, they appear the least kempt and longest-haired of the great multitude of groups to visit us so far," Otago Daily Times reviewer John David wrote.
"Mick Jagger, the vocalist, works hard, but I confess to finding their appearance just a little too anthropoid. Elsewhere, they have been hailed as successors to the Beatles. My verdict: Neither their music nor their personalities compare."
The "Far East Tour" was promoted by Harry M. Miller and featured the Rolling Stones, Roy Orbison and The Newbeats. The Dunedin concerts were at 6pm and 8.30pm on Wednesday, February 3, in the Town Hall, the day after the Stones played at the Invercargill Civic Centre, making Richards' recollection of a "wet Sunday in Dunedin" unlikely.
But to many people at the concerts, the Rolling Stones were a revelation.
"The Town Hall was absolutely packed. There was an electric feel," fan Stephen Guest said yesterday.
"The Stones were like nothing I'd seen on Earth. The music had a real snarl to it. I'd never seen anything so cool in my life."
"It was a sunny day on the Thursday or Friday after the concert. We took the afternoon off school and went down to John Wilson Memorial Dr and the Rolling Stones were there sitting around in the sand dunes. They were wearing bright orange bathing suits with 'DCC' stamped on them, so I presume they were hired," Prof Guest said.
"They were very gentlemanly and friendly and genuinely cool. We had a cigarette with them and I got their autographs on a piece of paper. It was the best day of my life."
Retired Harry M. Miller managing director Anthony Hollows (74), of Turangi, still has vivid memories of the 1965 tour.
"The Invercargill concerts didn't go very well for the Stones, because most people were there to see Roy Orbison. The audience was dead and there was no yelling or screaming, as there usually was at the end of the Stones' songs. So, Jagger did a slow hand-clap. That's what coloured Keith Richards' comments about the 'arsehole of the world'."
When contacted yesterday, Invercargill Mayor Tim Shadbolt confirmed Invercargill was the "arsehole of the world".
"I think Keith Richards has got the two cities muddled up."
