Keith Richards says Rolling Stones’ ‘Hackney Diamonds’ was fuelled by Mick Jagger’s “angst”
Keith Richards has said The Rolling Stones‘ upcoming album ‘Hackney Diamonds’ was fuelled by Mick Jagger‘s “angst”.
The iconic band are due to release their 24th studio record on October 20 – you can pre-order it here. Following on from 2005’s ‘A Bigger Bang’, the LP will mark the Stones’ first collection of original music in 18 years.
Jagger and co. have already shared two singles from ‘Hackney Diamonds’: ‘Angry’ and ‘Sweet Sounds Of Heaven’ (feat. Lady Gaga and Stevie Wonder).
During an interview on BBC Radio 4 yesterday (October 10), Richards talked about the themes behind the group’s new material. When asked about the sense of anger that runs through the forthcoming album, the guitarist said that this was a result of Jagger’s mood while writing.
“Mick writes the lyrics,” Richards explained (via The Independent). “He’s got some angst in him, and he probably thought ‘let’s use it’.”
He continued: “Mick, given a song that he’s not really interested in can really make it bad [Laughs]. That’s maybe one of the reasons it took 18 years – because Mick’s waves of enthusiasm come and go.”
Additionally, Richards noted in the conversation how Jagger was the member to push for the Stones to record new music.
“Mick was the pusher,” he explained. “On the end of the last tour, for the first time, he hit me in the right spot. He said, ‘I’ve always wanted to record the band as soon as they get off of the road as possible, because they’re a band that is lubricated’.”
Richards told the station that the group – who last year celebrated their 60th anniversary – plan to take the album out on the road next year “if everybody’s still standing”. No tour dates have been announced as of yet.
‘Hackney Diamonds’ will also include contributions from Paul McCartney, Elton John and former Stones bassist Bill Wyman. Two songs – ‘Mess It Up’ and ‘Live By The Sword’ – feature their late drummer Charlie Watts.
In other news, Jagger has explained in an interview how Beatles icon McCartney came to be on the record.
“We suggested he played on this punk tune,” he said. “I didn’t know how it was gonna work out, but he really rocked it and he loved doing it. He said, ‘It’s great playing with a band! Really enjoyable playing with a band’.”
Meanwhile, Jagger recently confirmed that The Rolling Stones are already at work on their next full-length effort.
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Tom Skinner
NME
