“We worked very meticulously, with a little hit here and there”: How “working under the influence” was part of life for the Rolling Stones
The Rolling Stones have got another new album on the way, and these days they work in a much more timely manner to how things used to be. As guitarist Keith Richards says, working under the influence was a significant part of their story.
The band’s forthcoming album, Foreign Tongues, was announced in May. It marks their first release since 2023’s Hackney Diamonds and their 25th studio album overall. Just like their previous record, it has also been produced by Andrew Watt, and features appearances from Paul McCartney, Robert Smith, Steve Winwood and the Red Hot Chili Peppers’ Chad Smith.
READ MORE: “Call my guitar man if you want the exact number”: Keith Richards reveals the astonishing number of guitars in his collection
In an interview with MOJO, Watt confirms that for the making of Foreign Tongues, Richards (now living a clean lifestyle) would arrive at Metropolis Studios each day at the allotted hour – a far cry from the years of what became known as “Keith Time”, when sessions could be held up for hours or even days.
Richards now says, “Working under the influence is a part of the story because it’s the one job where you can get away with it. I’m not driving, you know. But this idea of everyone being befogged by drugs… it wasn’t like that.”
He adds, “We worked very meticulously, with a little hit here and there, and drugs were used either so we could stay awake to finish a song, or to go: ‘Gimme a break.’ And it was the era. The ’60s and ’70s were wide open for it.”
The team who were around the band during this “wide open” era remember often have much more chaotic memories of working with The Stones. Celebrity publicist Alan Edwards once recalled how a very drunk Richards couldn’t be woken, and was loaded right onto a plane to fly to the next country while the band were out on tour.
In Edwards’ memoir, I Was There, he shares: “The tour manager couldn’t wake Keith up in a hotel room to fly to the next country. So roadies carried the bed, with Keith sleeping in it, out of the hotel, loaded it onto the plane then hauled it off when the plane touched down again.”
The new Rolling Stones album will be released on 10 July, and is available to pre-order now.
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