THE Rolling Stones always took themselves very seriously.

Those middle-class white boys from the Dartford Delta famously struck a carefully-structured pose pitched somewhere between impoverished black Louisiana sharecropper and Regency buck… and then watched the money come pouring in.

As history bears witness, they made a very handsome career out of this preposterous pretence. And at the time, young people everywhere seemed to buy into the notion that a four-four beat might change the world.

But one thing was for certain. The boys themselves sure didn’t do irony… In stark contrast we have those stupendous impostors who make up the Counterfeit Stones, five loveable, leering rock ‘n’ roll rogues who have taken the original reprobates’ story and given it a complete rewrite.

Their act works for a number of reasons, the main one being that the band, fronted by singer Nick Dagger, has closely studied the various Stone ages and quite probably taken the subject to degree level.

These days, it’s easy to forget that rock and pop singles were once all about intros. A prime example is Not Fade Away, which announces itself with the telltale chopped chords that arguably kick-started the 1960s.

For success once hinged on distinctive opening bars. Remember? And if you need further proof, then look no further than It’s All Over Now, Honky Tonk Women, Start Me Up or Brown Sugar.

This was the golden era of songs written on guitars, and it’s obvious that the Counterfeits have not missed the slightest detail or nuance.

But above all, this concert – punningly titled Get Off My Chord Tour 2010 – takes an affectionate, if relentlessly tongue-in-cheek look back at the high noon of British rock.

Satisfaction guaranteed… and should most definitely be taken seriously.