Keith Richards Page 5

The Rolling Stones have topped the UK album chart this week, with their 23rd studio album Blue & Lonesome.

The album is the band’s first of new material since 2005’s A Bigger Bang and features covers of classic tracks by American blues artists.

The Rolling Stones have topped the UK album chart

Continue reading: Rolling Stones Score Their First UK Number One Album In Over 20 Years

The Rolling Stones are planning a new world tour.

Veteran rockers Sir Mick Jagger, Keith Richards, Ronnie Wood and Charlie Watts, are hoping to hit the road in 2017 for a series of concerts all over the world.

A source told The Sun: ''Mick will never lose that bug for performing.

Continue reading: Rolling Stones Planning New World Tour

The Rolling Stones have announced they will release their first studio album in over a decade on December 2, titled Blue and Lonesome.

The album is comprised of covers of songs by American blues artists, whose work was responsible for getting the band members into music in the first place.

Continue reading: Rolling Stones Announce First Studio Album In 11 Years 'Blue And Lonesome'

The Rolling Stones’ guitarist Keith Richards is to star in a documentary movie about his childhood years growing up in post-war Britain, as well as curate a weekend of films, documentary clips and live performances for BBC Four.

The 72 year old guitar hero will front the 60-minute documentary film Keith Richards – The Origin of the Species, directed by Julien Temple, which will form the centrepiece of the BBC’s My Generation season, about the history of pop music, next month.

Richards will also “hand-pick” two nights of films and live performances that will constitute what it calls a “lost weekend” of programming in July.

Continue reading: Keith Richards To Star In BBC Documentary About His Early Life

Current pop music often finds itself being ridiculed by the veterans of the industry. Whether they rose to fame because of a reality show, release hit songs written by other people, or are played on a particular radio station, no popstar is safe from the sharp tongues of the likes of Keith Richards.

Keith Richards is sceptical of today's pop music

The Rolling Stones guitarist has lashed out at the pop world (not for the first time), accusing artists such as Adele and Rihanna as being dependent on other people. 'They can't rely on themselves, can they?' He told Time Out London in an interview.

Continue reading: Keith Richards Blasts Adele And Rihanna For Over-Reliance

Damien Hirst's autobiography is to be ghost written by James Fox - who worked with Keith Richards on his 2010 memoir Life - and will be released by Viking Penguin next autumn. The publisher promises it will cover everything from Hirst's childhood in Leeds to his rise to become the world's most successful artist.

Damien Hirst At The Tate Modern

"They are a very cool and creative publisher with a huge amount of energy and enthusiasm. They care about all their readers from top to bottom and are not afraid of pushing the boundaries," said the artist.

Continue reading: Damien Hirst Autobiography: From Semi-Criminal, To Multi-Millionaire

Keith Richards' forthcoming children's book Gus & Me: The Story of My Grandad and My First Guitar, will offer an insight to the rocker's relationship with his grandfather, Theodore Augustus Dupree, who played in a jazz band.

Keith Richards Has Written a Children's Book

The autobiographical book will also include photographs from Keith's family collection, as well as artwork by his daughter Theodora Richards - who is named after her great-grandfather.

Continue reading: Keith Richards' Children's Book Inspired By His Grandfather, Theodore

The Rolling Stones had one of the largest crowd Glastonbury had ever seen huddled in front of them when they took to the stage on Saturday (June 29) and it wasn't just Worthy Farm that saw a record audience because the BBC coverage of the performance was viewed literally by millions at home.

The Stones pulled in a massive audience

The historic performance brought in a record number of viewers; 2.6 million in all tuning in on BBC 2, with many more watching online. When the Rolling Stones played at Glastonbury last Saturday there was always a chance that something special was going to happen and believe it or not, it was a pretty memorable performance to say the least - as so many people will be able to vouch for. On average, 1.3 million viewers tuned in between 10.30pm and 1am - the time the band performed - and peaked at the 2.6 mil mark. That made it the second most viewed channel of the night, behind BBC 1, who were showing Die Hard with a Vengeance (the obvious choice). The performance also set a new record for the most number of viewers to ever tune in to any Glasto performance.

Continue reading: The Rolling Stones Set BBC Viewer Record During Historic Glastonbury Performance

And that's it. Another year passes and Worthy Farm closes its gates on the Glastonbury Festival revellers for another 12 months. Though there's always the distant murmur of someone professing it "the best Glastonbury ever," there was a palpable feeling that this year's festival was among the finest in history. Firstly, there was heightened anticipation given the fallow year in 2012 and secondly, the sun came out. Oh, and The Rolling Stones made their debut, rollicking through a two-and-a-half-hour set on Saturday (June 29, 2013) and scoring five-star reviews across the board.

Mick Jagger Performing With The Rolling Stones At Glastonbury Festival in 2013

The surprise return of David Bowie in 2013 had left many commentators speculating on the possibility of the Thin White Duke headlining the legendary festival, though there was no lingering thoughts of "What if?" once Glastonbury got underway on Friday with a snappy set from Sheffield heroes Arctic Monkeys. Bowie became all but a moot point after Saturday, when Mick Jagger, Keith Richards and company played a career spanning set that included 'Jumping Jack Flash,' 'Tumbling Dice,' 'Start Me Up,' 'You Can't Always Get What You Want,' 'Gimmie Shelter,' 'Doom and Gloom' and 'Midnight Rambler.' "The night belongs to the Stones. By turning on the charm as well as the formidable back catalogue, they prove themselves well worth the wait," said the Guardian's Dorian Lynskey. 

Continue reading: Glastonbury Festival 2013 In Pictures: Sun, Cider And The Rolling Stones [Pictures]

The Rolling Stones headlined at Glastonbury on Saturday (29th June) but the viewing public were more interested in watching Bruce Willis' 1988 classic action film, Die Hard, according to The Daily Mail. 2.54 million tuned into the BBC to watch The Rolling Stones' performance whilst 2.78 million watched Bruce Willis punch, kick and shoot in Die Hard. 

Mick Jagger with Ronnie Wood in the background performing at Glastonbury.

The BBC sent over 300 staff members to the Glastonbury Festival, at the cost of £2 million, but more people tuned into watch Bruce Willis' Die Hard than Saturday's (29th June 2013) coverage. 

Continue reading: The Rolling Stones At Glastonbury VS. Die Hard- And The Winner Is...?

After decades of failed attempts, Glastonbury Festival organiser Michael Eavis finally managed to book the biggest rock group of all time for the world-renowned UK festival, and with an absolutely riotous set that had the huge crowd off their feet for the full 2+ hours set, The Rolling Stones managed to show just why they are still the biggest band on the planet.

The dinosaurs rockers proved their worth on the Pyramid Stage

Their headlining slot on Saturday (June 29) night proved to be the icing on the cake to what had already been an absolutely triumphant day two at the Somerset festival and after a hit-filled set from the Arctic Monkeys during the Friday headlining show on the Pyramid Stage, followed by the huge set from the Stones last night, the pressure really is on for Mumford and Sons to deliver when they take to the stage on Sunday (June 30) night to close the festival. Good news for people at home (in the UK) too, because the group did show some of their performance on the BBC afterall (an hour of it at least), despite saying otherwise prior to the set. Checking off such classics as '(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction,' 'Gimme Shelter' and 'Paint It Black' during their set, they may have been together for half a century, but Mick Jagger, Keith Richards, Charlie Watts and Ronnie Wood managed to grab hold of the audience like few other bands on the bill would be able to.

Continue reading: The Rolling Stones, Public Enemy And Elvis Costello Bring Worthy Farm To It's Knees: Glastonbury Day Two Round-Up

In an official video on The Rolling Stones' official YouTube Channel, The Rolling Stones discuss their upcoming Glastonbury Saturday headline set, with guitarist Keith Richards stating that "there were many years we were offered it and turned it down. I look upon it as a culmination of our British heritage really. It had to be done and it's gotta be done, and we'll see what happens." 

The Stones at Glasto - it had to happen eventually.

 Singer Mick Jagger also voiced his enthusiasm for the prestigious slot: "All my kids are going to be there so I'm going to be visiting them in the days before the actual show and they've got all sorts of activities lined up for me to do. My brother lives in Glastonbury too." After forming in 1962, the band became part of the US' 'British Invasion' and have to date released 24 studio albums and eleven live records with eight consecutive No.1 ranking albums.

Continue reading: The Rolling Stones "Destined" For Glastonbury

The Rolling Stones might have a few years on youngsters in the business these days, but they have no qualms about collaborating with new talent, as their recent performance, featuring Carrie Underwood, clearly shows. The Stones stopped by Toronto's Air Canada Centre last weekend and performed a gig off their 50th anniversary tour.

One of the biggest surprises of the night came as the band launched into an amped up rendition of “It’s Only Rock’n’Roll (But I Like It)” Just as Jagger was ripping through the second verse, Underwood, typically a country songstress, strutted up on stage and joined in, launching into a sing-off that must have been worth hearing live. Underwood even got her own moment to shine, with a brief solo right before Jagger joined back in. Then the audience even got treated to a bit of a visual show, when, during the lively instrumental provided by Keith Richards, Ronnie Wood and Charlie Watts, the two singers bust a move together. You’d think the younger Underwood would have the upper hand in that, but Mick definitely wasn’t letting up.

Continue reading: Rolling Stones Unite With Carrie Underwood To Rock Toronto

Keith Richards has revealed a not really shocking at all secret: he doesn’t own an iPod! Gracious no! It’s true, the Rolling Stone veteran still would, believe it or not, listen to music on physical formats over MP3. Crazy, utterly crazy.

Richards joins the we presume 13 other people in the entire world not to have an iPod, and he said in a recent interview "I don't have an iPod. ... I still use CDs or records actually. Sometimes cassettes. It has much better sound; a much better sound than digital." Cassettes!? Madness! Richards’ reasoning for turning his back on the iPod generation comes down to sound issues apparently, with the guitarist saying that listeners are "all being shortchanged" with the sound that comes out of an iPod.

The iPod exodus isn’t prevalent in the Richards household however, with the musician adding "My old lady's got one. My kids have got them. I say, 'Look me up this.' Or, 'Oh I like that. Check me that,' I know what these things can do. I'm not totally anti-them." Furthering his thoughts on music’s movement to the digital age, Richards resigned himself to the fact it was here to say, commenting "They're sucked into it and they can't get out of it, nor can we; so is the public. There's something missing there, but it's the price of the future I guess." Thank goodness the Rolling Stones are still here then, doing their very utmost to prevent the future from happening. Their tour around the US starts in Los Angeles on Friday, May 3^rd.

Continue reading: Rolling Stones' Keith Richards In 'Doesn't Own IPod' Shocker!

The Rolling Stones have announced a series of tour dates for their 50th anniversary tour and it looks as though they’re pulling out all the stops to make 2013 a year to remember. Not only are the band playing the legendary Glastonbury Festival for the first time, but they will also be returning to Hyde Park, London; the scene of one of the most iconic gigs in the band’s history.

The band’s drummer, Charlie Watts, however, won’t be too enamoured with either of these concert dates, as he has told The Guardian that he doesn’t like outdoor gigs. “I don't want to do it [Glastonbury]. Everyone else does. I don't like playing outdoors, and I certainly don't like festivals. The worse thing playing outdoors is when the wind blows, if you're a drummer, because the cymbals move… it really is hard to play then.” Luckily for Stones fans, the rest of the band are a little more upbeat about the prospect of the hugely high profile performances. They might be faced with a slightly grumpy Watts, but frontman Mick Jagger, at least, is looking forward to playing Hyde Park. The Rolling Stones last played there in 1969, when they were mourning the death of their guitarist Brian Jones.

“Hyde Park holds such great memories for us and we can't think of anywhere better to perform to our UK fans this summer,” said Mick Jagger. His songwriting partner and guitarist Keith Richards also commented “We had such a ball last year and the energy between the band is so good, we can't wait to get back on that stage where the Stones belong.” 

Continue reading: Charlie Watts Not Looking Forward To Glastonbury? Rolling Stones Drummer Isn't A Fan Of Outdoor Gigs

The Rolling Stones' live tour has been punctuated by a few things; the new greatest hits album, GRRR!, ticket prices, and special guests. But now that everyone’s heard the two new songs on the album, and bought the tickets, it’s time to focus on those special guests.

Mick Taylor, for the first time playing with the band on U.S. soil since 1981, joined the mighty rockers on stage to rapturous applause. It was when Jagger thundered into an 11-minute rendition of 'Midnight Rambler' that Taylor rocked as if the years had never left him. Jagger said afterward. "He's great! Really good!" The Stones, while harping back to their glorious and explosive past, are also embracing modern trends in their live shows. And don’t worry, they’re not breaking out into dubstep remixes, laying down ‘phat beats’ onto their tracks. The Stones are The Stones and that won’t change, but they did allow the audience to have some sort of say on the set list via their smart phone, as they voted for a song of their choice on the bands' new mobile app. 1964's 'Around and Around' was the song of choice.

Earlier in the night, during his solo set, Keith Richards spoke about Hurricane Sandy: "I know you guys had a rough time,” he said, according to Rolling Stone, “We admire the way you stuck with it. Keep on trucking, you know?"

The moment we've all been waiting for; The Rolling Stones live tour 2012 kicked off on Sunday, November 25th at London's O2 Arena. Was this the homecoming tour everyone expected, or did the aging rockers do nothing to justify their heft ticket prices?

Unsurprisingly, it seems no one left the gig claiming they did not receive value for money, even if the idea of 'value' might have a slightly skewed meaning in this context. The critics, especially, were enthralled by the show, with most publications awarding The Stones high marks. "Your cash buys you a chance to see Jagger, Keith Richards and Charlie Watts reunited with bassist Bill Wyman, who turns up for It's Only Rock'n' Roll and Honky Tonk Woman - his facial expression suggests a man very much not reconsidering the wisdom of quitting - and more excitingly, guitarist Mick Taylor, whose guest spot on Midnight Rambler is really thrilling," say The Guardian in a 4/5 review. Billboard seemed equally enamoured, doting, "With Charlie Watts keeping up an almost impossibly vigorous backbeat, the show was now en route to glory. That was thanks in disproportionate measure to the incredible showmanship of a frontman who roared like a vocal leviathan and sprinted back and forth in as brilliant a display of gymnastic showmanship as he has ever given."

Were you at the gig on Sunday? If so, let us know below what you thought of the show. The Stones resume the U.K leg of their tour on Thursday, returning to the O2, before heading to America to fulfil the New York dates. 

Finally, The Rolling Stones begin their much anticipated, and highly priced set of live gigs this Sunday at the 02 Arena, London. With 50 years under their belts, is this going to be the last time we see the aging rockers live?

Paul Sexton, a music journalist who has met and interviewed the band in the run-up to the latest concerts certainly thinks they've got more up their sleeve. "It would be nice to think that wouldn't be it," he writes, according to Reuters. "Once the machine gets fired up again, it's hard to imagine there won't be more live shows to come. If these dates went well, you could imagine sufficient momentum for some kind of recording project." This has truly been a 50-year anniversary to savour, if you're a fan of the band, that is. With an average age of 68 and a combined age of 275 years, 76 days, the band have produced a photo book, written two songs, collaborated on a documentary, released a greatest hits album, played warm-up gigs in Paris and committed to five concerts to mark the occasion.

Perhaps Sexton is right, and the newfound momentum for the band will be the catalyst for a new album; their 21st full studio album. Fans will be hoping this is the case, as the highly inflated ticket costs for their London and New York Shows will have priced many ardent rockers out of those elusive concerts. 

In an explosive 50th anniversary year for the Rolling Stones, having released a new album, a documentary about the band, and revealing a set of live shows in London and New York, the Stones have now revealed that two old band mates will be joining them at their gigs in London next week, reports the Guardian.

Former bassist Bill Wyman, and guitartist Mick Taylor will appear as special guests at their sell out show at London's O2 arena. It was in the Crossfire Hurrican anniversary documentary that Taylor chose to reveal the primary reason for leaving the band back in 1974 was due to his heroin addiction at the time. Both musicians have hooked up with other members Ronnie Wood, Keith Richards, Charlie Watts and Mick Jagger, over the years for some charity gigs and reunion shows. This will be the first time, however, that the entire 6 members of the legendary band will be appearing together for a long time.

The band have recently revealed a new video for their single 'Doom and Gloom' from their new album 'GRRR!' as well as plans for an iPhone app that will allow users to see interviews and special features surrounding the band. Despite already having a career spanning 50 years, they've taken the future in their stride and truly embracing their longevity. 

Continue reading: Rolling Stones Will Be Joined By Mick Taylor And Bill Wyman In London

With the announcement of a fifth date for 2012, many are starting anticipate a great live schedule for The Rolling Stones in 2013, and their guitarist Keith Richards isn’t exactly pouring cold water on the suggestion.

It was revealed yesterday (November 13) that the veteran rockers – celebrating their 50^th anniversary in the music business this year – were to play the Barclay’s Center in New York on December 8, putting the show in between their two pairs of sold-out shows in London and New Jersey respectively. With murmurs suggesting that the band’s commitments next year might go as far as headlining legendary UK festival Glastonbury, The Daily Telegraph quoted Richards saying in an interview "Without saying yes or nay, once this starts rolling, I can't see it stopping. The band feels good about themselves, they still feel they've got something to offer. Obviously there are a lot of people out there who agree. We'll go along with it."

For a long time this year it looked like the much rumored shows to mark their 50 years in the business might not happen, with celebrations being confined only to an photography exhibition and the releasing of a new greatest hits album. However, vocalist Mick Jagger said live dates were always in the pipeline, saying "I thought it would be kind of churlish not to do something. Otherwise, the BBC would have done a rather dull film about the Rolling Stones."

Continue reading: After New York Show Announcement, Keith Richards Can't See The Rolling Stones Stopping

Divorces can be a hard time, especially if you're Ronnie Wood and you have to sell off a boatload of your stuff to pay for it, as was the case yesterday when the veteran rocker took to Julien's Auctions in New York to sell on some of his most valuable possessions.

The masses of memorabilia on auction spanned four decades of the famed guitarist's work with The Rolling Stones, with the two-day auction selling on all manner of things, including several worn leather and velvet jackets, some real and some cardboard guitars, an assortment of tour ephemera and a signed lithograph of Eric Clapton. Two of the highest fetching items that Wood sold included a white leather coat for $8,960, and a lithograph of Eric Clapton drawn by Wood that includes both the guitarists' signatures fetching $5,120.

However, neither of these came close to matching the sums his guitars amassed, with a 1955 Fender Stratocaster guitar often used on stage by Wood fetching a whopping $60,800. Even one of the cardboard guitars fetched a pretty penny, with a guitar cut-out given to Wood by fellow Stones guitarist Keith Richards selling for $6,875.

Continue reading: Ronnie Wood Auctions Off Rolling Stones Memorabilia Following Divorce

This year marks 50 years of The Rolling Stones, and just as we've always known, they continue to show us that they know how to celebrate. In November and December this year they are set to play four dates; half at London's O2 Arena and the other half at Brooklyn's Barclay Centre in Newark, New Jersey. They have also released a book entitled '50', have a photographic exhibition at London's Somerset House dedicated to them and a greatest hits album, boldly titled GRRRR! Tonight, though, fans came in their droves to the UK premier of 'Crossfire Hurricane', the new documentary of the band.

The documentary focuses mostly on the band's heyday, and includes never before seen footage of them, including interviews with all members the iconic rock and roll act, past and present. Keith Richards described the reception as 'overwhelming'. "I did not expect Leicester Square to be going bananas, do you know what I mean?" he said. "It was quite, it was heart warming to say the least, especially walking out you felt you were still in the movie. Take 2."

The NME also revealed that Ronnie Wood has said they'll be playing some tiny secret gigs: "There's going to be little club gigs that we're gonna surprise ourselves to do as well, we'll bung a few in next week or the week after, so look out for any Cockroaches gigs or whatever! I don't know who we'll be billed as but we'll turn up somewhere and put a few to the test. Tiny, 200, 300 people kind of places."

Continue reading: Even After 50 Years, The Rolling Stones' Reception Is Still 'Overwhelming'

Rolling Stones tickets are cropping up for ridiculously inflated prices across the web after the 'official' batch sold out in just seven minutes this morning. According to The Telegraph, the 'cheap seats' were all gone by 9.03am (three minutes after they went on sale), while the more expensive tickets had been snapped up by 9.07am.

Unfortunately, the demand to see the Stones at London's O2 Arena means unofficial retailers will be handsomely paid for their tickets, some of which are being sold for thousands. Unless the band play Glastonbury - which is now hugely unlikely given the cost of tickets to the group's own shows - UK fans will have to shell out for tickets and flights to one of two concerts in Newark, New Jersey. On announcing the shows, frontman Mick Jagger said, "Everybody loves a celebration, and London and New York are two good places to do it in!" while Keith Richards offered, "Sorry to keep you all hanging around but the waiting is over. I've always said the best place for rock and roll is on the stage and the same is true for the Stones. I'm here with Mick, Charlie and Ronnie and everything is rocking. See you very soon!"

According to The Sun, Mick, Keith, Charlie Watts and Ronnie Wood will make around £15 million from the four 50th anniversary shows.

The 2012 London Olympics opening and closing ceremonies were excellent fun, but were we deprived of a chance to see the Rolling Stones perform?

Apparently so: the band's guitarist, Keith Richards revealed to Absolute Radio that they could have been one of the stars to welcome in or wave goodbye to a tremendous Olympic games. "I think there was some politics going on and technical things," the 68-year-old explained. "I don't think probably that we would be ready for it, you know. So we had to give it a miss and, anyway, with the Olympics I'd rather be in the audience than be part of it." The ceremonies included performances from Coldplay, Muse, Jessie J and The Spice Girls, but The Rolling Stones would have turned the events from great to amazing, no doubt.

Perhaps the most annoying thing is that we could have seen their reunion for free, if we were watching on the television that is. Now, the guys stand to net a cool £4m from their upcoming gigs in London and New York. "I think everybody basically keeps themselves in pretty good shape,' explained Mick Jagger, despite the band members having a combined age of 273. Tickets for gigs at the O2 in
London have been selling for more than £650 each.

The Rolling Stones live tour announcement has caused an Internet pileup, as over a million fans log on to online ticket vendor Viagogo to find out about tickets, Gigwise reports.

It seems as though the incredibly high-ticket prices won’t put off fans of the ageing rockers, but with a place at one of their London or New York concerts so highly coveted, there could be plenty of illegal activity surrounding ticketing. "The Rolling Stones are a global phenomenon – and one of the last supergroups still performing with a full line up," says Viagogo spokesperson Ed Parkinson. "This is a once in a lifetime opportunity to see them, and there will be some unscrupulous organisations looking to take advantage of that. Always check the reputable ticket market places like Viagogo to find the true market value and never buy a ticket that isn’t 100% guaranteed."

Another musical event often shrouded in ticket controversy is British festival, Glastonbury, and Keith Richards has started the rumour mill about a possible appearance. "On a good day, if the weather's fine, [Glastonbury] is an interesting proposition," he told the BBC, before hinting at future Rolling Stones live shows, adding: "Anything is possible. This band isn't going to wind up with four shows."

Following on from yesterday's announcement by The Rolling Stones over fundraising plans for their funerals (they're playing some extortionately priced gigs if you've had your head in the sand), the molten misshaped lump of rock that stands for Keith Richards these days has said that the band aren't ruling out the possibility of playing Glastonbury Festival next year.

Richards was talking to BBC Radio 6music and discussed the bands plans beyond the four recently announced dates in London and New Jersey. "Nobody has given us a heads up but this band isn't going to wind up with four shows. Next year looks like it is on." He then added "On a good day if the weather's fine that's an interesting proposition. The band wants to get these four gigs under their belt and then think about next year after that. Anything is possible with this band."

If the band were to play Glastonbury, it'd be another two fingers up to fans who are going to be paying up to $561 (and that's not including the VIP packages) to see the group at their two London O2 Arena shows on November 25th and 29th. A festival ticket for the whole of Glastonbury is cheaper than that.

The Rolling Stones ticket prices are out, ready for scrutiny and complaints, and boy have we got some complaining to do. £950 you say? Oh okay fine we’ll take two.

The news that those shiny pieces of paper and card that will grant you access to the rock 'n' roll fantasies of many will cost somewhere near a grand has come as no real surprise. And you guys without the corporate accounts and Mercedes king rings; you’ll get in on the cheap, as the lowest price tickets will be £90. "Everybody loves a celebration, and London and New York are two good places to do it in," said Sir Mick Jagger, according to The Telegraph. And who could disagree? NYC and London are both stellar locales, but it’s the entrance fee we’re moaning about, Mick. Tickets for the shows will come with a hefty price tag, with a face value ranging from £375 down to £90 for the O2 shows, and to boot: a "VIP hospitality" package announced today will cost gig-goers £950 per head, including "premium tickets", a champagne reception and a three-course dinner. It really should include a limo ride and a game of checkers with the lads, for that price.

Anyway, there’s the bottom line; if you want to see one of the biggest events of the year, where possibly the most successful Rock 'n' Roll band of all time reunite for one last show, then you’ll have to not only be as quick as Keith Richards on the guitar, but as flash as Jagger on the mini-bar*.

Continue reading: Want Rolling Stones Tickets? Got £950?

Their stones probably don't roll as much as they used to back in the summer of love, but Mick Jagger, Keith Richards, Charlie Watt and Ronnie Wood certainly still know how to screw their fans. Delight has turned to dismay today (October 15, 2012) after The Rolling Stones announced that they'd be playing their first live shows for five years this winter, and then revealed exactly how much it would cost the public to see them.

Ticketmaster is showing prices ranging from $170 to a quite frankly offensive $651 for the band's two just-announced gigs at the O2 Arena in London on November 25th and 29th, making those that grumbled at paying up to $112 for people like Radiohead earlier in the year probably feel like they've got an absolute steal. Given that museums are normally free in the UK, people may be stunned to find themselves parting with such an amount to see these relics of a bygone age, the jingle of coins in the band's pockets possibly now the only thing that will be capable of drowning out the loud creaking in their joints as they grimace and limp about the O2 Arena come November.

The shows go on sale on October 19th and are being performed to mark the band's 50th anniversary in the music business. How disgusting then, that the same industry that gave them a chance in 1962, is now so untrusting of its new bands to build a career that its reliance on the nostalgia dollar results in prices like these.

From the fast frames of the video, you initially might think it's an advert for second hand leather, but no! Those wrinkled surfaces are in fact faces, and they're emitting words! They're The Rolling Stones and they've announced some live shows! Muzu.tv posted a video this morning that saw Mick Jagger, Keith Richards, Ronnie Wood and Charlie Watts reveal that they will be playing two shows at the O2 Arena in London on November 25th and 29th, and two shows in the Prudential Center in New Jersey on December 13th and 15th. The shows are great news for fans who've been speculating all year what the band might do to mark their 50th year in the music business; so far they've been relatively disappointed, with just a photograph and memorabilia gallery and a new greatest hits release to show for the anniversary.

Continue reading: The Rolling Stones Announce 50th Anniversary Live Shows

The Rolling Stones this year celebrated their 50th birthday as a band. It's the right year, therefore, for the band- Mick Jagger, Keith Richards, Ian Stewart, Brian Jones and Bill Wyman- to release a greatest hits album, aptly titled 'GRRR', as well as some new music- the first to be released in 6 years, and it's been 20 years since their last hit.

'GRRR!' will include their biggest hits including 'I Can't Get No (Satisfaction)', 'Jumpin' Jack Flash' and 'Street Fighting Man' alongside 47 others, or 77 others if you get the 80 track edition. The record will also include two new songs. 'Doom and Gloom' was released today to a soberly positive reception and a general feeling of excitement as they release dates for their upcoming tour.

The single harps back to a golden age of grit and energy that seemed to have faded in their later years. The Telegraph describes the track as an “energised, uptempto blues attack” and the NY Times states that it's a “classic, apocalyptic blues-rock-stomp”. But neither review seems entirely enamoured by the rock-veterans musical offerings. The general consensus seems to be that, although good, the track never quite reaches the heights that it promises, its potential is left unreached. “It lacks the real juice and wayward spirit of those bygone days.” However, one can't sniff at the clear effort that the band, whose average age is 68.25, is still putting into their music- it's admirable.

Continue reading: The Rolling Stones Release New Single, Part Of Their New Album 'GRRR!'

The Rolling Stones’ new single, ‘Doom and Gloom,’ one of two new songs on their forthcoming greatest hits compilation, Grrr!, due on November 12, is out, and we’ve had a listen.

The first thing to say is: well done to the guys for not producing and releasing a dubstep or electronica sound in a desperate and laughable attempt to glean a youthful audience. This is, intrinsically and quintessentially a Rolling Stones song, and for that; for managing to capture the raw, seemingly ephemeral sound that brought them a life of true rock and roll notoriety, we doff our entertainment caps at the ageing rockers. ‘Doom and Gloom’ is, at its core, a blues track with all the energy of a new born colt. Keith Richards and Ron Wood create a dirty rhythm upon which Jagger rasps his unclean vocals, and this all sways precipitously over a bespoke Charlie Watts beat.

"I had a dream last night that I was piloting a plane/And all the passengers were drunk and insane,” rasps Jagger - elongating every lyric he can get away with. In fact, the singing on the track is probably the least impressive thing about it, but when the mercurial frontman gives the mic a break, a harmonica solo ensues, and it works. It would be easy to reject anything new from such a legendary rock outfit. We could say it’s nothing original, and that they’ve past their best. And whilst they probably have, as long as they’re making decent songs, they might as well have fun whist it lasts.