Rolling Stones Post Countdown on Website for Upcoming Tour Announcement

The countdown has begun -- literally -- for the Rolling Stones' announcement of its North American tour dates.

The group's website is hosting a countdown to this Wednesday (April 3), accompanied by a video of the group performing "Doom and Gloom," one of two new songs from the 2012 50th anniversary compilation "Grrr!," during its handful of late 2012 shows.

The group is rumored to be playing multi-nights in 18 cities, including Los Angeles, Anaheim, San Francisco, San Jose, Seattle, Chicago, Dallas, Toronto, Boston, Philadelphia and others. Chuck Leavell, the Stones' longtime keyboard player, tells us that the various Stones' other concerns made it a bit harder to get its latest tour plans in order:

"I just think everybody's had other things to do and other things to focus on, so it's not as easy as it would seem to get everybody in the same room and say, 'OK, we're gonna do this' and 'What dates are we gonna do?' and so forth. So there's logistics involved, and...all I can say is I'm keeping my fingers crossed and hoping that that phone rings."

The Stones have already announced a June 28 appearance at the Glastonbury festival in England, while a multi-night stand at London's Hyde Park is also being rumored. Stay tuned.