| Apart from the Beatles, The Rollin' Stones, as they were originally called, are the most famous rock and roll band of all time. They have had a number of different line-ups but that generally accepted as the 'classic' is shown above. The group first came together around Brian Jones during 1962 and at one point included future 'Kink', Mick Avory on drums and a variety of other musicians before finally taking on board bass player, Wyman and drummer, Watts. The latter had previously played consistently for Alexis Korner's Blues Incorporated and probably saw some risk in joining this new venture. Before they became managed by Andrew Loog Oldham they also had a pianist called Ian Stewart who was relegated to roadie by Oldham which left the band as a five-piece. | |
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The EP sleeve shown on the left was the 'Stones second and it was entitled 'Five By Five'. It indeed shows the five members of the group in typical pose at a time when they had enjoyed about the first year of their stardom. None of the five songs the record contains were issued as singles- which made the disc a popular choice by fans who wanted to hear more from the band without the expense of buying an album. |
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The Stones were widely regarded as a good deal more raucous and unkempt than their arch rivals from Merseyside. In fact, Oldham promoted them in the knowledge that the more degenerate and rebellious they appeared then the greater would be their appeal. The members of the band saw themselves as a straightforward R&B outfit, and borrowed extensively from black American performers. Their first single was 'Come On' from Chuck Berry, although they used Lennon And McCartney's 'I Wanna Be Your Man' for their follow up. Both records were healthy hits, but it was their third release which indicated where things were going. 'Not Fade Away' was a song written by Buddy Holly in the style of Bo Diddley. The Crickets had recorded it as the flip to 'Oh Boy!' six years earlier, but the original lacked the power and aggression of the Stones' remake. The next five of their releases all occupied the UK #1 spot and the group attained international stardom by the time '(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction' appeared.. Although they had success with their own songs, notably 'The Last Time', they did not attain the status of Lennon And McCartney because their real strength lay in re-interpreting the work of others. Apart from their amazing musical success the group also courted less favourable publicity because of their association with drugs, narrowly avoiding imprisonment. Brian Jones appears to have fallen the deepest into drug abuse and following emotional problems in 1969 he resigned from the group and was replaced by Mick Taylor . Sadly, Jones was found dead in the swimming pool of his home a month later. Their production rate of singles slowed down as the 1960s drew to a close though their controversial image took longer to fade. They lost none of their appeal during the 1970s though perhaps they began to appeal to a broader audience. Whatever else is true about this legendary band it is certain that they did much to bring the R&B music they loved to a worldwide audience who were largely unaware of its black American roots. |
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