The Rolling Stones are one of the most famous rock bands in the world and one of the most important in rock history. Of British origin, they are formed by Mick Jagger (vocals, harmonica, guitar), Keith Richards (guitar, vocals), Ronnie Wood (guitar, choirs), Charlie Watts (drums, percussion). Together they have become a world rock legend, a reference point for all artists in this field and above all idols for several generations of young people and not only. Their music can be defined as the perfect mix of rock and blues, evolving from the rhythms of rock and roll of the ’50s. The foundation of the Stones was originally five British guys who were passionate about rhythm & blues, who loved playing guitar and especially good music. The five were very different in social background and childhood; some of them were born from parents who were teachers (Lewis Brian Jones), others from working-class families (Keith Richards), others from higher social backgrounds (Charles Watts was the son of an RAF pilot). The boys met at school and music always had an important place in their lives: they started playing first on their own and then in parish groups, taking the path of music. The official union and birth of the Rolling Stones took place on July 12, 1962.when in the BBC studios the musician Alexis Corner asked the band to replace them in the television recording: Brian Jones, Mick Jagger, Keith Richards, Mick Taylor, and Ian Stewart played together, the official debut took place in the temple of rock in London, the Marquee, and the success was soon enormous, in January 1963, Charlie Watts entered the BBC. The years of their debut (1962-1963) saw them join the Decca Records label and oppose the Beatles as image and target. Famous was the advertising slogan: “Would you let your daughter go with a Rolling Stones?” In 1965 for the first time, they got a huge success with the song “Satisfaction”. It was during this period that Jones and Richard introduced the guitar weaving technique (guitar weaving): the two guitarists played rhythm and solo at the same time. Richard said that while listening to some group works he came up with this technique to make the sound of two guitars sound like four or five guitars. In 1969 Brian Jones died in mysterious circumstances: he was replaced in the group by Mick Taylor. Brian will always be Taylor’s period was however important for the rapprochement to the blues and the freshness of new arrangements, but he will be replaced in 1974, the seventies spent among hits at the top of the charts, such as the albums Black and blue, Love you live and Some girls.1974 Mick Taylor decided to leave the band, causing great difficulties to the Stones. He was called Ry Cooder who accompanied the band on tour that year; in the end, also Ry Cooder couldn’t manage to live with the unruly English lineup, so in 1975 Ron Wood (a long-time friend who worked with Rod Stewart in the Jeff Beck Group and the Faces) was hired to replace him. Keith Richards and Mick Jagger began to have disagreements: the former wanted to go back to rock and roll, the latter wanted to get closer to pop, so the meltdown and crisis was felt in the air, sanctioned by the release in 1988 by Keith Richards of his first solo album (Talk is cheap). In the 90s the Rolling Stones returned to the scene and produced an album every three years, This was followed by world tours, and from 2000 onwards the band’s mega-concerts continued throughout the world without ever losing audiences and audiences. In Italy the Rolling Stones came several times; one of the most recent performances was on 22 June 2014 in Rome, at the Circus Maximus, in front of an audience of 71,000 spectators. The myth of the Rolling Stones continues through the generations, embodying the ideal of rock music, aggressive, powerful and strong. Their symbol (the tongue with its mouth wide open) has become one of the most famous icons in the world, demonstrating that despite all the changes, the periods of crisis and meltdown, the ugly and bad of world music have never given up.
Discography
1964 – The Rolling Stones
1964 – England’s Newest Hit Makers
1964 – 12 x 5
1965 – The Rolling Stones No.2
1965 – The Rolling Stones, Now!
1965 – Out of Our Heads
1965 – December’s Children (And Everybody’s)
1966 – Aftermath
1967 – Between the Buttons
1967 – Flowers
1967 – Their Satanic Majesties Request
1968 – Beggars Banquet
1969 – Let It Bleed
1971 – Sticky Fingers
1972 – Exile on Main St
1973 – Goats Head Soup
1974 – It’s Only Rock ‘n’ Roll
1976 – Black and Blue
1978 – Some Girls
1980 – Emotional Rescue
1981 – Tattoo You
1983 – Undercover
1986 – Dirty Work
1989 – Steel Wheels
1994 – Voodoo Lounge
1997 – Bridges to Babylon
2005 – A Bigger Bang
2016 – Blue & Lonesome
