In May 1963, the Rolling Stones signed Andrew Loog Oldham as their manager. His previous clients, the Beatles, directed the former publicist to the band. Because Oldham was only nineteen and had not reached the age of majority--he was also younger than anyone in the band--he could not obtain an agent's licence or sign any contracts without his mother co-signing.
Encouraged perhaps by his girlfriend and professional ballerina, Melanie Hamrick, Jagger began taking ballet lessons in his 70s, crediting the practice with honing his posture, balance, and flexibility.
When I'm watching my TV
And a man comes on and tells me
How white my shirts can be
Well he can't be a man cause he doesn't smoke
The same cigarettes as me
I can't get no, oh no, no, no
Hey, hey, hey, that's what I say
I can't get no satisfaction
The original cover artwork for Sticky Fingers (1971), conceived by Andy Warhol and photographed and designed by members of his art collective, The Factory, was highly innovative, showing a suggestive picture of a man in tight jeans complete with a fully working zipper that opened to reveal a pair of underwear. Owing to the damage caused by the zipper to the vinyl disc, and the expense in producing the unusual cover, later re-issues featured just the outer photograph of the jeans.
In 1963, the band's manager decided that Ian Stewart should no longer be onstage, that six members were too many for a popular group and that the older, burly, and square-jawed Stewart did not fit the image. He agreed to let Stewart stay as road manager and play piano on recordings. Stewart accepted this demotion. Keith Richards would later say, "Stu might have realized that in the way it was going to have to be marketed, he would be out of sync, but that he could still be a vital part. I'd probably have said, 'Well, f*** you', but he said 'OK, I'll just drive you around.' That takes a big heart, but Stu had one of the largest hearts around."
On 29 September 1963, the Rolling Stones began a "package tour" headlined by Bo Diddley, Little Richard and the Everly Brothers. During the tour the band recorded their second single, a Lennon-McCartney-penned number entitled "I Wanna Be Your Man" that reached No. 12 on the UK charts.
In his autobiography, Richards reckons that on average, he slept only two nights a week for most of the Stones' glory years. "This means that I have been conscious for at least three lifetimes," he calculates. No sleep, and he can still do the math! An interesting aside: Keith claims he wrote the "Satisfaction" riff in his sleep.
She would never say where she came from
Yesterday don't matter if it's gone
While the sun is bright
Or in the darkest night
No one knows, she comes and goes
Goodbye Ruby Tuesday
Keith Richards told Esquire that Jagger once pushed the mild-mannered Watts over the edge. Jagger, after a few drinks in a hotel, phoned Watts and asked, "Is my drummer there?" Watts, dressed in a full suit, knocked on Jagger's door, told him "Don't ever call me your drummer," and punched him in the face.
After rolling his eyes at their performance on The Hollywood Palace, guest host Dean Martin told the audience, "I'm gonna let you in on something. You know these singing groups today, you're under the impression they have long hair. Not true at all. It's an optical illusion. They just have low foreheads and high eyebrows."
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