In Jerry Halls - Tall Tales she tells of how she & Mick helped Keith detox on their couch of their rented Woodstock home....love the part where they knew Keith had beat it and was getting himself back together......

Then when he ( Keith) started getting more together you could see him getting more macho. His Ego thing was coming back and he's start going out and throwing knives at trees.

ROCKMAN

I never read that book... but I remember reading from Bockris Keith bio a story of how those two macho men (with no lack of ego) communicate: as people like that tend to do, message goes through their wives. They were planning a tour (was it Steel Wheels?) and Mick wanted to know if Keith is in condition to do the tour. So he sent Jerry to inquire the case from Patti. Keef, after having his bottle of vodka with orange for breakfest, turned out to doing fine

- Doxa

The Rolling Stones are in a position where they can do as they please with their personal health, habits, etc.(legally, financially, socially). Let's all hope for the best for this album and tour.

The Stones are much more effective performing ballads these days so the notion of them recording plenty of rockers does not inspire me too much. The rockers have been the least effective aspect of their music in more recent years. I hate the lyrics they tend to use these days - there's too much 'butt' and 'ass' type lyrics that really don't hold any weight.The Stones lyrical quality has declined so much since the sities ans seventies.
I'd just like to see the Stones music mature convincingly without them trying to prove their vitality with such lame songs.

To be honest with you, I have to disagree with that 100%.As far as I'm concerned the "ass" lyrics etc. (Sparks Will Fly / I want to **** your sweet *** / I've never seen a woman so hot)(similar sentiment in DLS) hold plenty of weight.The Stones are the best band I've ever heard at capturing the feeling you get when you (any red blooded straight male) see attractive females - a girl at the beach or your girlfriend walking by or a good-looking waitress or a girl at a party.I like this type of song very much because they are positive & up-beat especially when compared to much other modern rock where the whiny depressed singer bitches and complains about how sh*tty his life is and how they can't take it any more.It is not supposed to be some sort of boring - ass literature like most of Bob Dylan's recent material.I think another problem the Stones have or at least a big part of the problem to no fault of their own is not that they are getting too old but that a large part of their fan base is getting too old.They are kind of in no man's land - they're too old for young people to know about & their music for the most part is too modern for most of their old fans.

rbarnes00 Wrote:
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> The Rolling Stones are in a position where they
> can do as they please with their personal health,
> habits, etc

Hardly

The lead singer is no longer able to perform two nights in a row due to a throat problem which developed on the last tour and which needed checking out to confirm it was nothing more sinister

The drummer has recently recovered from radiotherapy treatment for throat cancer

One guitarist was ordered to give up smoking last year as he was at risk of contracting emphysema which he was told would kill him in a year and has been in and out of rehab for alcohol addiction for years, a problem which has often rendered him unable to function on stage on a regular basis and which if not sorted out soon could prove fatal or at best cause his liver to collapse and lead him to require a transplant.

The other guitarist is an chain-smoking alcoholic with no apparent interest in changing his lifestyle but whose playing skills have been seriously hampered by worsening arthritis, who looks 10 years older every tour and who still (rumour has it) occasionally dabbles in hard drugs. I shudder to think what his insides must be like, and anyone who persists in this "hes indestructable" myth is deluding themselves.

Reading that, are you optimistic about these guys being in any fit state to tour say, five years from now?


They've done great to still be able to do what they're doing and they still do it very well, but lets face it, age is catching up with them and they're going to have to be very careful about their respective lifestyles to be able to function as a band for much longer.

I'm sure some people here recall the first (second?) time Ron was rumored to join the Stones: 1973, when Keith was getting busted/strung out, & expecting visa problems. I have a Creem w/ "Ron Wood to join Stones?" on the cover.

Bloody Hell Gazza - If I wasn't already depressed enough,I am now!

ALL true though. This will be the last time.

We've got to be careful not to sell them short either although I also heard Daryl Jones has developed a huge gambling problem & and has the Italian mafia after him (probably subliminally influenced by playing Tumbling Dice too much),Kent Smith likes the old crack pipe a little too much, & Bernard Fowler has turned to robbing banks because of being under payed.

Totally in agreement with E Twining on this one. The banal lyrics that have characterized much of the latter-era output are laughable if not outright embarrassing.

So it was great before but now they can't put out those types of songs anymore?These are some piss poor arguments.

Coming from a bunch of 60 year olds - I think some folks expect a little more than "@#$%& your sweet ass" lyrics, frankly. I think that's reasonable. I find nothing "funny" about lyrics like that...

Hey.Fine.If you don't agree with my original post on this thread,I don't know what to tell you.You are entitled to your sh***y opinion.It sounds like a loss of testosterone to me.Personally I'd much rather hear lyrics like that than "a fag in L.A." or "hang around in gay bars on the west side of town" or I won't even mention CSB.What does she blew my nose mean?That is what he says,right?Is it a drug reference or what?It doesn't make much sense to me but, obviously it is still a great song.I don't care if someone is 90 years old as long as they put out good music.Anyway, as we all know that is not the only kind of music they have.Songs such as Already Over Me , Thru and Thru, Almost Hear You Sigh,I Go Wild, Fancyman Blues,Out of Control (I was in shock & awe when I saw this performed live 10-20-'97),One Hit,Keys To Your Love,Moon Is Up, & You Don't Have To Mean It,Blinded By Rainbows,Sad Sad Sad,I Can't Get Next To You Aug.3,'94 & How Can I Stop just to name a few,show their diversity and mastery of many different styles of music.As they say : It's Only Rock 'n' Roll (But I Like It).No hard feelings but I feel this point of view needs to be represented.I'm going to find a girl to jump on top of me & give it to me nice and slow.