NEW YORK:

The Rolling Stones are rolling in cash, leading Forbes.com’s list of top money makers in the music industry in 2006 with $150.6 million in earnings. Mick Jagger, Keith Richards and the rest of the band “don’t sell many discs these days, but they have little trouble luring fans to see them live,” the business news website said.

The group’s ‘Bigger Bang’ tour grossed a whopping $138.5 million last year, Forbes.com said, putting them ahead of music’s biggest acts and pop icon Madonna.

With the advent of the Internet, the Stones and other music stars no longer earn big money from selling their recordings but by performing on the road, Forbes.com said.

Behind the Stones, the country music couple Tim McGraw and Faith Hill ranked second with earnings of $132 million, country trio Rascal Flatts followed with $110.5 million and Madonna came in fourth at $96.8 million.

While her recordings no longer generate major sales as in past decades, singer Barbara Streisand came in fifth with her 20 US concerts raking in a total of $95.8 million. Average tickets for her concerts cost nearly $300.

The rest of the top 10 music money makers were singer Kenny Chesney at $90.1 million, Canadian pop star Celine Dion at $85.2 million, Bon Jovi at $77.5 million, Canadian rockers Nickelback at $74.1 million and the Dave Mathews Band with $60.4 million. The Forbes.c-om list was based on revenues from North American concert tours reported by trade magazine Pollstar and US album and digital sales from Nielsen SoundScan.