‘Shine a Light’

KEVIN MAZUR / PARAMOUNT PICTURES

From left, Buddy Guy, Ronnie Wood, Keith Richards and Charlie Watts performing at the Beacon Theatre during the Rolling Stones concert film “Shine a Light,” directed by Martin Scorsese.

By Mark Whittington (contact)

Tuesday, April 15, 2008 | 2 a.m.

If you remember when rock was young, you never dreamed you’d reach the point where you’d find yourself staring up at the 6-foot nose hairs of a geriatric rock icon on a giant screen as the walls rumble.

Shattered. Sha-doobie.

In those early days, time truly was on your side. Your gods were forever young. But then rock’s pantheon began to crumble and fade away.

You started assembling a list of most memorable shows: Saw Jimi Hendrix, James Brown and the Allman Brothers with Duane; never saw the Beatles or Elvis.

You also lament your near-misses — that time you showed up to take entrance exams to see an anthropology prof’s posted scrawl, “Class canceled. Attending tribal ritual at Altamont Speedway.” Or the time you passed on a friend’s offer of a free ticket to see the Band at Winterland to help prepare a Thanksgiving meal for “widows and orphans.”

One good thing about the passage of time — at least now you can pop in the DVD of “Gimme Shelter” or “The Last Waltz” and catch what you missed.

You have no excuse to miss “Shine a Light,” Martin Scorsese’s love letter to the Rolling Stones. And you can — in fact, should — catch the way-larger-than-life version while it’s still around.

Here are five reasons not to miss “Shine a Light” in IMAX:

1. Shakin’ sexagenarian

Mick Jagger is the hardest-working (living) man in show business. Sure, he’s wrinkled like fine Corinthian leather, he’s wearing orthopedic tennis shoes and he’s rearranged hits to fit his vocal range. It’s still a hoot to watch him shake his ostrich feathers to “Sympathy for the Devil” at 64.

2. Guitar with gusto

Keith Richards and Ronnie Wood are the new Glimmer Twins. Neither is a great guitarist individually, Richards admits, but together they are better than any 10. Nowhere is that more clear than on Wood’s aching acoustic slide on “You’ve Got the Silver,” which somehow makes Richards’ atonal warbling bearable.

3. Supporting cast

It’s only rock ’n’ roll for the rhythm section. Charlie Watts, his usual steady self, is the deadpan comic relief of “Shine.” And Darryl Jones carries the Stones on his rock-solid bass lines. It’s worth the price of admission just to hear him channel the Motown funk of “Just My Imagination.”

4. Cameos in blues and White

Everyone has idols, even the Stones, who sit fairly near the top of the pantheon of rock gods. It’s obvious that they worship Buddy Guy, one of the last of the old blues guys. Guy’s playing on “Champagne and Reefer” is understated elegance. He’s the best of the concert’s arguably unnecessary guest stars, although Jack White is an able foil for Jagger on “Loving Cup.”

5. Rockin’ sound

The sound is better than a live concert. It’s loud enough to demand that you bounce in your seat — and to cause some rock geezers to reach for the earplugs we now (secretly, reluctantly) carry in self-defense. The audio is crystal clear, allowing you to single out each guitarist, the tinkling piano of Chuck Leavell, the honking sax of Bobby Keys.

Plus the price is right. When was the last time you could plunk down a mere $14 to see the Stones, let alone in an intimate setting like New York’s Beacon Theatre?

Sure, you can quibble with the set list, as Scorsese did, or grouse about the Clinton gang’s intrusion on the festivities. The bouncy jump cuts and extreme close-ups will have you hanging on to your seat at the start.

But you’ll quickly adjust, sink into your theater seat and marvel at how well rock has aged.

It’s so good that you’ll kick yourself for missing the U2 3-D IMAX concert movie when it was in town. The petition for a double bill starts here.