The Rolling Stones Are 82 And Their New Album Is An Important Reminder

At 82, Mick Jagger and Keith Richards have released a new Rolling Stones album called Foreign Tongues, and it is, by every account, not a nostalgia exercise. Out July 10 on Polydor/Capitol, the 14-track album features guest appearances from Paul McCartney, Bruno Mars, Robert Smith of The Cure, and Red Hot Chili Peppers drummer Chad Smith. It is their second album of original material in three years, following 2023's Hackney Diamonds, which won the Grammy for best rock album. The new songs are pointed, political, bluesy, and country-inflected. Producer Andrew Watt, who also helmed Hackney Diamonds, describes watching Jagger and Richards write together as something close to magic. "There's no Mick song that's not better with Keith in it, and there's no Keith song that's not better with Mick in it," he says. "They complete each other. It's unbelievable to watch and to learn from. They build and they play to each other's heartbeats, and the roof leaves the building."

The Billboard cover story interviews were conducted separately on different continents, and the contrast between the two men is delightful. Jagger, polished and meticulous, is reading a physics book about what existed before the Big Bang. Richards, slyly mischievous, says smartphones feel like "Toytown" and describes his grandchildren as "little creatures rolling around that sort of vaguely remind you of somebody." Both were asked about AI. Richards: "I'd rather hear something original. Music could do a lot better than trying to copy itself." Jagger: "If you were any kind of creative person, you wouldn't make a song in the style of The Rolling Stones using AI." Between them, 63 years of music. They are nowhere near done.

Source:https://www.billboard.com/p/rolling-stones-mick-jagger-keith-richards-cover-story/