WTF with Marc Maron Podcast - Episode 639 - Keith Richards

Episode Date: September 20, 2015

Marc finally comes face to face with his childhood hero and the results do not disappoint. Keith Richards is rock and roll to many people, including Marc. So it’s no surprise that Marc would talk with Keith about his career arc, the evolution of The Rolling Stones, the solo work including his new album, the drugs, the arrests, the fights, the reconciliations, and the satisfaction of it all. Sign up here for WTF+ to get the full show archives and weekly bonus material! https://plus.acast.com/s/wtf-with-marc-maron-podcast. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

It's a night for the whole family. Be a part of Kids Night when the Toronto Rock take on the Colorado Mammoth at a special 5 p.m. start time on Saturday, March 9th at First Ontario Centre in Hamilton. The first 5,000 fans in attendance will get a Dan Dawson bobblehead courtesy of Backley Construction. Punch your ticket to Kids Night on Saturday, March 9th at 5 p.m. in Rock City at torontorock.com. Hi, it's Terry O'Reilly, host of Under the Influence. Recently, we created an episode on cannabis marketing. With cannabis legalization, it's a brand new challenging marketing category.

And I want to let you know we've produced a special bonus podcast episode where I talked to an actual cannabis producer. I wanted to know how a producer becomes licensed, how a cannabis company competes with big corporations, how a cannabis company markets its products in such a highly regulated category, and what the term dignified consumption actually means. I think you'll find the answers interesting and surprising. Hear it now on Under the Influence with Terry O'Reilly. This bonus episode is brought to you by the Ontario Cannabis Store and ACAS Creative. Lock the gates! all right let's do this how are you what the fuckers what the fuck buddies what the

fuckadelics what the fucking ears what the fuckaholics what's happening this is mark maron this is wtf the podcast yes keith richards keith richards is on the show he's got a new album out cross-eyed heart which is out now it's it's a sweet record it's closer to talk is cheap which was a great solo record there's a documentary keith richards under the influence it's now on netflix that everyone's loving i gotta watch it but i talked to him i talked to keith richards okay am i gonna keep it together just even to do this intro oh my god this is a pretty big day might be the biggest day ever i don't know it was a pretty insane day for me when this episode was recorded i can tell you that okay i mean i know some of you know that Keith Richards looms large in my psyche and in my heart, people.

And I don't think I'm alone in that. Yeah, I know that there's people in my generation, maybe the generation before me and the one before that and the one after me that that Keith is just the guy. All right. There was he was just the guy i mean i mean there are those of us who idolized and still do just that that that outlaw rock and roll image that he created and and and remains i mean i don't even know if i can explain it but there was just something about keith and and and those who get it, get it. I mean, Keith was just like the personification of fuck you. And there was something about that with a guitar. He was just a big fuck you with a guitar. And I was compelled, man.

I don't even know when it first happened to me. I mean, I knew the Stones, there's a in my mind there's a an issue of Guitar Player Magazine with him it's not even a particular good picture with his eyes half closed with that fucking Telecaster that TV yellow Telecaster just leaning into it

and I was like god damn it that's it that's all of it that's all you need is whatever's going on right there that's all you need and it wasn't even about necessarily it wasn't even about like being in a band or anything it was just something about keith and about drugs and about fuck you and about style and about all of that. I mean, I just, I don't, you know, I'm, look, I'm, I'm fortunate that I didn't pursue the exact life he represented.

You know what I mean? I mean, not, not so deeply that I died for it or got strung out. I'm also fortunate that I didn't pursue a life in music. I only say that because I just wasn't cut out for it. I was not that good a player. Wasn't that confident necessarily, which I learned now is really all you need i mean but you know being in a rock band was just not the direction that my ego was dragging me at that time and also i think it would have diminished it my love and worship for fucking keith richards the coolest

guy in the fucking world and i know that may sound hacking to some of you kids as i condescend to you i know even using the the term rock and roll may sound dated and weird but keith richards was the original thing mark laner uh the writer once i think he was in an article for spin i couldn't find it because i was looking for it. It said that Keith Richards moving across the stage was like the EKG of rock and roll. And I thought that was just fucking beautiful. I actually wrote to him to find out exactly what he said, but he had no recollection of it. But it's a weird thing with Keith because my relationship with him is ongoing. Because my love of a particular type of rock and roll

came directly from Chuck Berry somehow, through my father and through listening to the American Graffiti soundtrack and my father's love of oldies. I was just captivated by Chuck Berry and by that original riff. You know, the riff. And then like years go by where I'm just,

I'm loving Keith. I love the Midnight Rambler song more than anything in the world. And I don't even understand, you know, what makes Keith the amazing guitar player that he is. And over the years, you know, to understand Keith's rhythm and to understand, you know, why he's amazing. You know, because he's not like other guitar players. He's fucking Keith Richards. But the way he lays back and the way he nails a chord and the way that he decides what the rhythm is for a song and where it's at I mean it's fucking you know it's he's fucking

Keith man and I know some of you heard like I could barely keep my shit together when I did that 10 minute interview with him and some of you know that I read his book like it was a bible that I could believe in and I was blown away by his book because for years you know you just sort of keep keith tucked away in your mind as this amazing you know dope theme survivor you know this this this icon that represents the the sort of like dark heart of of rock music in some way and then you read that book and you're like holy shit he's uh one of the great uh you know intelligent bullshit spinners of our time there's a lot of hard truth a lot of fact a lot of history but the dude can tell a story and to me that was just like this only

makes it better this only makes keith bigger looming larger in my mind in different ways. And I guess it's just a big fucking, you know, love note to Keith Richards. But I was offered the opportunity to interview him. Now, you know, the Obama interview was intense and huge and an amazing event and an amazing interview. But I thought that, you know, I got my my shit together i knew what i was going to talk to the president about you know i prepared i stayed focused uh i think you could you know hear my nervousness was tangible in the first five or six minutes but i think i eased into it and you know within a very short time i was calling him man and finishing his sentences for him that's the leader of the free world could i keep my shit together with keith richards did i prepare so my interview with keith was to

take place in new york city it was to take place at the npr building in an npr studio because keith was coming down from connecticut to record morning edition so we got to the publicist fran who was amazing set us up to use the npr studio after he did morning edition for an hour and uh you know brendan mcdonald my producer business partner who you met on the episode after obama uh you've met him before if you've been around a long time with the show you know know, we go down there to NPR and we get there on time and we're informed. We sit down in a conference room with Fran and another person from her organization, the publicity house. And we're told that Keith is stuck in traffic coming down. He's running a bit late, probably an hour late.

He got stuck behind a funeral procession. I'm not even fucking kidding so we talked to fran for a little while and this we were in a conference room where they were gonna you know meet keith and then he's gonna do morning edition then he was gonna regroup in there and i noticed you know on the counter there was a small case of vodka miniatures and a two six packs of uh i believe it was sun-kissed orange soda. So I'm like, that's the new fuel. I'm putting shit together. And so Brendan and I go.

We go to Bryant Park, and we have something to eat, and then we come back. And we're waiting, and Keith's about to show up, we were told. And I don't even want to see him. I don't want to see him. I don't want to have eye contact with him. I don't want to. I can't handle't handle it man i can't handle it so keith shows up i hide in an office he goes into the studio to do morning edition and at some point i'm talking to brendan i'm like this is fucking crazy dude we're at npr you know what it doesn't matter i'm about to i'm

going to interview keith richards. It's just crazy, man. And I was trying to keep it together, but this was sort of a big deal. When somebody is your childhood hero. It's like, you know, some of you got all excited when so-and-so signed your baseball. I mean, come on. Waiting to meet Keith Richards. The guy that I think defined a lot of my personality for a lot of years. Like I said, I'm lucky I lived and I'm lucky that there was some part of me that didn't let me drift into complete pseudo Keith Richardness.

There was always some part of me, some part of my mind or my heart that would throw me a line when I got too far out to drift and saved me from sort of living on the dark side. But there we were, me and Brendan, waiting to talk to Keith Richards. He's in the studio at NPR, National Public Radio in New York City. And at some point, a woman comes up a bit. She comes out of a hallway, a bit frantic,

saying, he's smoking in there. He's smoking a cigarette in there. And I was like, oh, that's so fucking beautiful. Keith Richards is smoking in an NPR studio. Of all places, oh, fucking the human fuck you lives on. And the beautiful thing was is no one was going to fucking stop Keith Richards from smoking a cigarette. No fucking way. So I'm waiting and we're just waiting.

And then I hear that he's finishing up and then I go hide in this office because I do not want to see him. I do not want to meet him. I don't want to do anything. So then we're told that he's going to regroup. He's going to go into the conference room and reload, whatever.

So I go into the studio and it smells like cigarettes. There's an ashtray there. There's a pitcher of water. I've got my little tube of nicotine lozenges and I'm sitting in there and I got my little scribble sheet and I'm waiting for Keith.

And I was just sitting there and then there's commotion and I see outside the booth in the glass, Keith Richards walking in with a Captain America T-shirt on. And, man, I don't know, dude. Like I stood up and I'm like, Keith, you know. Oh, boy.

So I guess like, so we sat down. So I guess, like, so we sat down. And I'd like to say that I kept it together. I'd like to say that the nervousness, the fanboy excitement receded or I got it together after a few minutes like I did with the president. But I don't think I did. I was very excited and beside myself. And, you know, we talked a lot about music. You know, I've loved the Stones a long time.

And, you know, I'm sort of hung up. You know, like we talk about Bill Wyman, the original bassist. We talk about, you know, the whole arc of the career. You know, the history of the Stones is the history of modern rock and roll in a lot of ways and i sat there with keith he came in he walked in the studio trying to fucking recapture in my head it was amazing he had a big uh one of those sort of like keg party cups like the red plastic cup filled to the brim with something iced and orange and he was chipper and, uh,

present and, uh, a little loopy, but it was, uh, exactly. It was, I would have taken Keith anyway,

any way it happened, but he was fun. We had a good time and there's something that happened, uh, after we, uh, hung out. It was because we were doing pictures and,

uh, and he put his arm around me and he gave me a hug and he said, You're a fun one. I don't want what, but you're a fun one. So I don't know if you knew that, folks. But after this interview, whatever happened, Keith Richards declared me a fun one. Keith Richards declared me a fun one. So, Rolling Stones fans, lapsed Rolling Stones fans, or people who are too young to appreciate the fans, this is a historical document of a fucking lifetime fan meeting his fucking hero.

So, enjoy this, All right. I did me and Keith Richard. Hi, it's Terry O'Reilly host of under the influence. Recently, we created an episode on cannabis marketing with cannabis legalization. it's a brand new challenging marketing category. And I want to let you know we've produced a special bonus podcast episode where I talk to an actual cannabis producer. I wanted to know how a producer becomes licensed, how a cannabis company competes with big corporations, how a cannabis company markets its products in such a highly regulated category, and what the term dignified consumption actually means. I think you'll find the answers interesting and surprising.

Hear it now on Under the Influence with Terry O'Reilly. This bonus episode is brought to you by the Ontario Cannabis Store and ACAS Creative. Discover the timeless elegance of cozy. episode is brought to you by the Ontario your door quickly and for free. Assembly is a breeze, setting you up for years of comfort and style. Don't break the bank. Cozy's direct-to model ensures that quality and value go hand in hand. Transform your living space today with Cozy. Visit cozy.ca, that's C-O-Z-E-Y, and start customizing your furniture. Hey, man. Nice to meet you. Pleasure, man. Wow. Let's do it. Okay. We're on. We're on.

I got my nicotine candies. You got yours? Oh, baby, yeah. You got the real ones. Oh, I miss the Marlboro Reds. Yeah. I actually thought about smoking. I thought if there was a time to start again, it would be with you. Let me just hold one.

Yeah. You can just look at it if you like. Thank you very much. Yeah, man. What are we drinking this afternoon? Nuclear waste. Oh, perfect. That's good.

Yeah. You've adapted to it. No problem. I'm the. That's good. Yeah. You've adapted to it. No problem. I'm the head of the game. I figured you'd drink nuclear waste. You have to, right? Just to keep going? No, just to talk to you. I'm dying to figure out

whether I'm going to light this fucking cigarette. You know what's interesting? Let's see if you can hold out. Okay, I'll try. It's been about a decade, but I think I talked to you briefly on the phone. I don't let's see if you can hold out okay i'll try i'll try it's been about a decade but i think i i talked to you briefly on the phone i don't know if you remember maybe i'd like to think you would remember we talked i told you that i started smoking because of you i started drinking oh you're the one i'm the one good one that's good but it was funny because i remember reading an interview with you and and and they asked you what kind of cigarettes you smoke.

And you said, well, Newport, sometimes Marlboro Reds. So I was about 14. I went out and got a pack of both and just played it out. See what stuck. I don't know where they got the Newport smoke. You never said it. Never tried it. Marlboro Reds, yeah.

Yeah, right. Well, whatever. I was walking around with both in high school trying to figure out how to be Keith Richards. Oh, man. Yeah, it was a rough few years. I was in school trying to figure out how to be Keith Richards, too. Strange, isn't it? You figured it out.

Well, I interviewed the president a few weeks ago, and I'm actually a little more frazzled about this, because presidents come and go, but you're Keith Richards. You remain forever. Yeah, that's one of the blessings you're like royalty man oh I don't know about that I've no crown yeah are you sure I think you do I think you do well this is like a I'll get through the nerves in a minute but it's a big deal to meet you because you're a big idol of mine now do you when you started playing and you guys started to you know sort of come into your own do you remember the first idol of yours that you met

oh um little richard really yeah i'm bo diddly really yeah because we suddenly we were thrown onto this tour i mean before that we'd been working clubs, you know. I mean, suddenly we had a record. Yeah. And we were thrown on this tour with Little Richard, Bo Diddley and the Everly Brothers. And I suddenly met, you know, half of my... Childhood.

...mentors. Yeah. All in one. And I'm working with them too you know which was an amazing education

I mean that's that's a university for me did you talk to Bo did you ask him questions yeah we were on the road

for like three or four weeks really yeah I used to take care of Jerome Green was his maracas player uh huh and Jerome

was a great lush yeah and it was my job to get him out of the pub to get him on stage it's funny i think those roles changed later in life yeah i mean i was willingly uh happy to do it you know i mean jerome was a loose cannon, and somebody had to do it. Right. So we ended up becoming great buddies, and Bo. Little Richard was amazing to watch. Yeah. His stagecraft, let alone his music. I mean, he had an English band with him, which they weren't bad.

A pickup band? Yeah, yeah, basically. But they were pretty good. But I mean, I i'd have wished he had his own band with him but at the same time man the the way he was uh you never knew where he was going to appear from right right right i mean he let that band play uh lucille let the riff right for like five minutes non-stop in total darkness. And then he'd turn up in the back of the

auditorium with the spotlight on him. And walk through the crowd? Yeah, and walk through. And I went, wow, the way you can work a room. I'm learning things. Right. You've almost been learning things.

Yeah. And the Everly Brothers, I mean, it's so meticulously beautiful. Those harmonies, right? Wow. Yeah. And you were with them for like three weeks you did that tour? Yeah. Yeah, 63.

So that was before England's Newest Hitmakers? Or around the same time? It had just come out about the same time when was the last time you listened to that record um the odd track yeah it's a weird thing because like i listen to that record a lot you know and i came to the stones like much later because i mean i'm i'm 51. yeah so i was picking it up right but that record i played the at that record to me that was you know the that was the the pure intention the birth of it all yeah in a way i guess it was

it was for us anyway and uh and it was recorded in this little room that uh that professed to call itself a studio. Yeah. And the whole walls were covered in egg boxes. That was called soundproofing. First class, yeah, top notch. And it was a Grundig two-track, but it was hung on the wall. Yeah. Instead of, if it was on the table, it would have looked like, you know, unpro.

But it was hung on the wall. Give it a professional feel. Yeah, and then we cut the whole damn thing on that. So I started on two track. Right. Basic. Did you do Honest I Do? Yeah.

On that one? Can I Get a Witness? Can I Get a Witness, yeah. Yeah, yeah. Tell Me. Tell Me, yeah, yeah. And like that, you set out to be a blues band. Yeah.

Right? That was the intention. Pure. Straight up. Yeah. And at that time, you know who I talked to? I don't know if you guys are friends or not. A couple weeks ago, I talked to Richard Thompson.

Oh, yes, yeah. We're not friends because I hardly ever see him, but I know the man. Yeah, because I think he was a little younger, but he was talking about the scene in London at that time. There were so many bands, and you guys would all see each other late at night, like at restaurants, and see each other play all the time. And what was the scene you were involved in? It was all blues, right? Yeah, I mean, we were strictly, at that time,

at the beginning of the sound, strictly blues. You know, we were almost jesuit well let's say a missionary uh-huh but no our whole aim was to turn london on to like you know rhythm and blues on the blues right that was uh that was like the scope for the whole universe would be that, and to have three or four or five gigs a week, and that would be, that's it. Who were your guys early on? Who were the dudes that you were the most trying to emulate on the guitar? Like before Chuck, the straight-up blues dudes.

T-Bone Walker. Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah. Muddy Waters. Right. Very simply, Buddy Guy. Yeah. do t-bone walker oh yeah yeah yeah yeah muddy waters very simply buddy guy yeah um slim harper and yeah slim harper i mean jimmy reed i was yeah jimmy we was hard on jimmy reed yeah because we were not so much interested in being virtuosos and it was how those guys got that sound right right and to us it was the thing of trying to get close to making that kind of sound yeah yeah and we studied man what you and brian we started and stopped yeah what was brian's thing he was what was he into most we both brian brian very big into jimmy reed okay yeah so that's where that came from

well so mick and i were also into him but brian had the records right right we didn't you know mick had the muddy waters and and i had the chalkberry uh brian had uh the jimmy reed okay all right so i mean there was an obvious collection you know and a connection but jimmy reed stuff i i still think is some of the most beautifully recorded stuff and it's so simple yeah he plays it he does a weird thing right on the on the five he keeps he leaves that open yeah He does a weird thing right on the 5. On the 5 string. He leaves that open.

Yeah, because if you're playing an E, when he's playing the 5 chord, he lets the 3 chord, the 7th note, still hang. Right, he leaves the A open, right? Yeah, he leaves it open. I learned that from Bobby Goldsboro. Oh, really? Yeah.

He hit you to that? On a bus. He hit me to that because he'd been on the road with jimmy reed so he he hits me to you know the weird thing that makes that sound is like he does this yeah he leaves the open a string going you know oh man i've been trying to get that for years i would never have figured it you know it's funny how those moments happen I mentioned they must have been a few of those moments like when you were putting together

your chops where you're like oh fuck that's how that goes yeah are you kidding me I mean keep looking

how did he pull that lick off right even with Chuck when you did that fucking movie with him yeah man

bless his heart. We had the argument about the beginning of O'Carroll. Yeah. That was touch and go, man. Well, that was him testing me out, you know, and pushing. Chuck always has to be numero uno. Right. After all, the movie's about Chuck.

Yeah, right, right. numero uno right you know you know after all the movie's about chuck yeah right right i you know hey to me i'm living my childhood dream of being a second guitar behind chuck berry you know yeah you never knew what a pain in the ass that would be i guess i tell you what at the same time yeah he's a funny guy yeah it's just uh what is it mercurial He's a funny guy. Yeah. It's just, what is it, mercurial. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.

Yeah, yeah, yeah. One minute, he's like, grouch. And then he'd piss off for half an hour. Yeah. And he'd come back and he'd be... Back on top. Yeah. I don't know, what, did he take a hit or something? No.

But, no, yeah, he was a great movie changer but incredible to work with and I think my best feat out of that was when I said to Chuck Berry

Johnny Johnson stood around because Ian Stewart who had just died that year, who was the Stones' piano player. From the beginning. From the beginning. I mean, actually, I consider the Stones to be Ian's band. Really?

Yeah, yeah. He put it together. Really? He pulled us together. Without him, we wouldn't have coagulated. Uh-huh. And he only got pushed. He stopped being in the main lineup because what happened?

Oh, well, he wasn't good looking enough, and it was like they thought six was too many. Okay. Stu, having the largest heart in the world, said, yeah, I understand that. That's cool. But we recorded. It was still his band.

And he became a roadie our manager road manager and everything take care of everything so I think that's Ian Stewart that considered us his baby uh-huh and I consider him my dad sweet but so your relationship with Ian and sort of made you reach out and find Johnny yeah because the last thing that Ian Stewart ever told me and this was just before he died he said don't

forget Keith that Johnny Johnson is alive and playing in St. Louis Ian said that to you

yeah and within a year I'm working with Chuck Berry and I was saying you know in my mind I'm saying with Chuck Berry and I was saying you know in my mind I'm saying well without Johnny

Johnson it's never going to be the same so I say to Chuck hey Chuck Johnny around? Yeah. And Chuck comes with a very deadpan yeah he's in town

any chance of getting him together on this thing? And Chuck comes in a very deadpan way. Yeah, he's in town. Any chance of getting him together on this thing? I'll give him a call. Yeah. And the next day there was Johnny, and then I realized I had... The band. The stuff. Yeah. And I realized I had the stuff that had actually made Chuck's records.

Sounds so good. Yeah. And that he literally learned how to play those actually made Chuck's records. Sounds so good. Yeah. And that he literally learned how to play those licks from Johnny's piano playing. Yeah. That Johnny was first. Yeah, actually, yeah. And it's weird. When I watch that movie, because I've been a fan of yours my whole life,

but I'm not sure I necessarily understood how complicated the rhythm of Chuck berry is and how you deconstructed that to get your shit yeah it's a variation on the name but chuck and i basically played the same it's basically the role right you know it's syncopation right it's and for that you need a drummer that you can totally rely on you you know. Yeah. And which was, unfortunately for Chuck, once he'd used pick-up bands... Went away. Yeah, because he couldn't rely on the drummer and they were just bands he'd never met, you know.

Right. Which was unfortunate in that respect. But... Because there's a bounce to it. But I've no doubt Chuck walked out with the money. In a briefcase. Yeah. In a Cadill with the money in a briefcase yeah in a candle i know that brief case but that's it that's a bounce there's a bounce right it's a it's a cut against the beat you know but the drama has to be right on yeah for you to be able to like chop the beat around and

move it right and make it roll yeah that's the role in the rock and then right and that's charlie make it roll yeah that's the role in the rock and then right and that's charlie yeah solid because i count on that man a lot yeah fantastic yeah you know uh i imagine you you know but yeah i think what was abco reissued a few uh of the old ones yeah they reissued uh get your yas out right so i used i used to listen to that shit and you know in high school right and i put on the reissue and i had this moment in my living room i'm like holy fuck bill and charlie are holding this whole thing together right now yeah did you hey nothing like a good rhythm section like until i heard that that remaster and the way you guys were all fitting together i was like jesus man that's so solid but i don't know why i think in the live situation i think mick even said something about it that they were nailing it that night do you have do you have memories of those nights in

particular that you recorded and you know uh when you're on stage yeah um no quite honestly no because i'm not thinking about we're being recorded yeah or filmed it was even worse because people get aware of the cameras and this yeah they start to tighten up you know no tightening up i try and forget all about uh the uh you know what's going on around me yeah just do the gig yeah yeah i saw you I saw you in San Diego, I went, just now, the first night of the tour. It got better and better,

and that was a good show. It was a good show. It was a great show. I was nervous. I was nervous for you. I don't know what the hell is wrong with you. I love you.

I love you. What a guy. I hadn't been to see you in a long time. I saw you guys in 81 at Madison Square Garden when, I guess it was probably the Tattoo You Tour, and

Screamin' Jay Hawkins opened for some reason. Oh, yeah. I think James Brown was supposed to, and then something happened. I don't know what happened. He probably didn't like Screamin' Jay. I don't know, but it was just weird. Screamin' Jay comes out with the voodoo stick. I don't even think he had a fucking band with him.

Everyone at Madison Square Garden was like, what's's happening and then you guys came out and i just i didn't go see you because like i don't know like i it was strange for me when bill left was it strange for you absolutely i was furious i sent out the hitman except i love him so much. I can't go that far. Yeah. I'll just break your legs. Yeah. Yeah, no, it was a hard call, man. Yeah. What, did he tire out?

Yeah. And also he developed this fear of flying. Oh, really? So he was like driving to every gig, which is like, you know, sometimes they were so far. Right. And eventually he decided, it was his decision. Yeah, yeah.

To call it the day. And I said, are you kidding me, man? What are you going to do, right? You're in the RAF in 1956. Yeah, right. Schlepping around in Germany. Yeah. Yeah, right.

Schlepping around in Germany. And he was adamant, and he made his decision, and maybe it was right for him. Right. And all I can say is that, ooh, I get Daryl Jones. Yeah, yeah. He was great. It was great.

It was the first time I'd seen you guys in a long time. And like I said, I was nervous because I hadn't seen you in 35 years. And man, what a fucking, you sounded great. And I mean, there was moments there where, you know, there. We've improved over time. You've gotten good. I think you're really tight right now. You're good right now. I'm going to take it up.

Yeah. But the experience of it was like when I, there was moments where Mick was running, you know, running back and forth. Do you ever like, at the point where you guys are at now, you know,

I mean, we're mature gentlemen. You're a little more mature than me. Do you have moments where you're like, I hope he doesn't fall the fuck down? Oh, no,

I never worry about, no, Mick is so nimble, man. It's crazy. Yeah. I mean, Charlie and I always watch mick in case if you when you get out right right or is that you're not hearing the beat right right same as it actually is but uh we're actually experts he's he's crossed the beat okay and we? Yeah. Oh, we're like a safety net under Mick.

He doesn't realize it's one of me. But, I mean, Charlie and I are always like, well, you know, okay. We got it. We got him. We can actually do that, yeah. That's hilarious. Yeah.

That's what the job of a band is, to support the front man. Yeah, yeah. And now, when you got, because when we talked before, you talk a lot about the band and your band and the band. But I have to assume that when you got you because when we talked before you talk a lot about the the band and and your band and and the band but i i have to assume that when you guys started out you know at the beginning you you were just a bunch of buddies right yeah yeah and it just evolved into this

thing together by the music right who was the guy that you guys used to play with or played his club when he started was it alex corner is that who yeah alexis called alexis corner yeah yeah the healing club yeah and he was like a blues empresario yeah he he about he at the time probably had uh you know the blues uh nailed down in life you know if you wanted to hear blues you went you had to see alexis he's the only guy playing it basically right right and uh it was so he had cyril davis who was a great heart player with him and it it was it they were good alexis wasn't particularly you know that good on i remember alexis uh one night invited us, Mick and me, up to do a number. Yeah. And Mick and I said, we're going to do Roll Over Beethoven. Yeah. Lex is a media, he used to use a thumb pick.

Okay, yeah, yeah, yeah. He cut his strings and, oh, I'll leave it to you. And you just took it? Yeah, no, yeah, he didn't want to play that rock and roll. Oh, really? So he's a real purist? Well, kind of. Yeah. Also to play that rock and roll. Oh, really? So he's a real purist? Well, kind of. Yeah.

Also, he appreciated rock and roll and everything, but, I mean, he knew that he couldn't, he wouldn't be an addition. Right. I'm going to bow out on this one. Well, on the new record, you know, I listened to it like a couple of times. Cross-Eyed Hearts, the name of the record, right?

Yeah. So the first song, I noticed you're going way back for that. I mean, that's pre-Jimmy Reed, that's pre-Money West, Robert Johnson. That's Robert Johnson. Because I noticed... It's the tip of the hat to Robert Johnson. It's like Hellhound's on my trail almost, man. It's just a piece.

You can hear you breathing. You can hear every squeak of your fingers and every pick it's all very raw and organic and then you're just like that's all I got that's the riff it's almost like a blues meditation

you know what I mean I thought that would be when we got all the tracks together if we're going to put that blues in, might as well be the starter. Yeah. And then it's like, when people walk into movies

and they say, you know, the overture. Yeah, yeah, yeah. The subtle overture. And then you bookended it with Goodnight Irene, another blues, different style, more of a folk blues,

but on both sides you've got Lead Belly. Yeah, you've got Lead Belly and Robert just holding it all in. I wanted to do a classic American folk song. And the weird thing that happened is that Tom Waits had sent me a big book on Lead Belly and it had just arrived and I just put it on the table. Yeah. And at the same time, a few hours later,

in walks my guitar man, Pierre de Beauport. How long have you been with that guy? A million years, right? Yeah, yeah. Since the early 90s 91 yeah and that um brilliant guitar i mean i i'm lost without him yeah yeah yeah i mean he decides which guitar i'm going to play on songs that's how how much i trust him and um he walked in with this 12 string so i I'm looking at this book of Lead Belly that Tom Waits has just sent me,

and I'm looking at this 12 string, and I'm saying, I have no choice. I've been ordered to do a good night, Irene. Yeah, yeah. It's pretty haunting music, some of his stuff, huh? Oh, yeah. Lead Belly was deep.

You know, deep. And I found the original lyrics, you know, which are much... I know, I didn't know them. Yeah. found the original lyrics, you know, which are much... I know, I didn't know them. Yeah, they're much raunchier than... Right. Because then it became, you know, you get the black and white minstrels singing it.

I mean... Right. And it became like an American folk song. Right, yeah, yeah, yeah. People would waltz to it and stuff. But it was kind of a dirty song? The real show yeah yeah yeah yeah so what like you got a guitar guy this guy pierre but like you you're pretty

committed to like a handful of guitars right there's four or five that you you play it pretty much all the time yeah pretty much when it comes down to work yeah and i was watching i was trying to figure it out on stage because i you bought a Tele because of you way back when. Not a good one, but I had it. I think you were on the cover of Guitar Player, but I think you had one that was altered. I don't remember. The rhythm pickup was regular,

and then there was a humbucker on the lead pickup. We do screw around with them. We do rewire them. Yeah, yeah. And we do play around with the pickups on them, yeah. And you play that 54 all the time, that cream one, right? Yeah, yeah. And we do play around with the pickups on them, yeah. And you play that 54 all the time, that cream one, right? Yeah, yeah. For years. Years, yeah.

But I'm bashing the hell out of it still. What do you go into, though? You're not a pedal guy now, are you? No pedals? No, no. Just straight in. Hey, man, it's enough to stand up straight. Little load poking around on buttons.

So you just change the volume when you need to. Yeah, and also, I mean, any of those effects that I need actually can be done from behind. P, F, we need, try me low. Yeah, yeah. We do it from behind. Because I need to know where to put my feet. Oh, yeah.

I mean, tripping over those boxes that just ties you down yeah yeah yeah now what made you decide because when i talked to you before you guys were maybe going to do sticky fingers you're going to run all three but that that died in one night and the recording of it sounded great so what made you the next night decide like no we're not gonna we're not gonna do it well we've i don't know uh um maybe mix a better one to ask on that but uh you know you just thought uh and i think we all thought that uh you know doing it the whole thing once was enough and we were yeah that actually was sweating our balls right getting through it you know well you know but hey the whole album you know sure the hardest one to play

and my most beautiful one is I Got the Blues right which is so slow yeah and it's very the hardest thing for a band

is to keep a tempo a slow tempo yeah down I mean everything tends to speed up so it has to be

you know that Steve Gropper was great at that with Otis you know and Al Jackson the drummer you know in Memphis but you guys didn't just you don't want to drop into that I also notice I think that there's a there's the you know that to be the greatest rock and roll band the biggest rock and roll show you know you're, you know, to be the greatest rock and roll band and the biggest rock and roll show, you know, you've got to be big. You know what I mean? You did Moonlight Mile, which was beautiful. He hit those fucking notes.

That was crazy. Yeah. I started to like playing that on the stage. At first I thought, going out on a limb here, Mick, you know, it's a little sparse. But as we got into it, it was beautiful to play and great fun,

and they were loving it out there. Speaking of Otis, I was thinking about, because he could lay back on that groove, but I was thinking about, after Satisfaction was a hit and then he decided to cover it, that must have been a big fucking day.

That put another crown on, baby. Yeah, right? I mean, for one of our songs to be covered by one of the greatest R&B singers of all time, it was, I mean, let's die and go to heaven, or wherever. Because that was basically the cream on the whole thing. And then Aretha did it, and then we were in double heaven.

It was great to get that respect and that respond and reciprocation back from, hey, after all, he played black music. Right. I mean, why does white can be? Yeah, and he found that groove, though. Like, you know, to make that a soul song was something, huh? Yeah. It was amazing. And it was just amazing that these people that respected and admired so much would take to one of our

songs and then you played with on this record on the new record did you use spooner oldham right spoon is there and he played with Aretha on some of the big hits right down in Muscle Shoals so that must have been amazing to work with that guy you'd work with him before no first time I've ever met spooner although I've known him I feel like I've known him for years because he's been on so many regular... It was actually Graham Parsons that first pointed out Spooner Odom to me. Really? And that was in like 71.

He knew it. He felt it. Graham knew country music. Spooner was basically a country music player at that time. Uh-huh. I didn't even know that he was still around and uh and a couple of phone calls steve jordan bless his heart the man i work with and uh you know who co-wrote these songs with me and produced it you know great drummer fantastic been playing with him a long time on your solar stuff yeah i was turning the

fantastic been playing with him a long time on your solar stuff yeah i was turning the charlie watt said to me in the about 85 86 so we knew the stones were going to take a like a hiatus or hibernation or whatever you want to call it but uh and charlie watts said if you're going to work with anybody else, Steve Jordan's your man. Oh, yeah? Yeah. And I took him at his word. I listened to Charlie. Yeah.

And Steve and I started to work together. Not only did we just sort of work together, we fell into each other's arms, and he was a great friend of mine. That's great. Yeah, it's beautiful, man. Yeah, I mean, it's nice to walk into a studio with a bunch of dudes you know and trust, and we're going to make something.

And so, you know, the winos came together. You know, Ivan Neville, man. Yeah, yeah. Waddy Wachtell. I can never praise. Forever you play with that guy. I love that guy. Long time, right?

Great player. Great. Yeah. Sympathetical. Yeah. right great player great yeah it's simpatico yeah and this was the last record that Bobby Keys played on unfortunately yeah I'm sorry you lost your friend man yeah yeah thank you very much yeah hey Bobby's probably laughing his head off we had no idea that was to be his last recorded stuff when we did it but um no bobby hey that's mr rock and roll and yeah as large as texas yeah not larger between the

two of you it's like you you're both mr rock and roll he he certainly lived the life he certainly did yeah yeah now when that when when when you lose somebody that you've been with uh around with that long but you know you you i i guess at some point you realize that you know we're all living on borrowed time and he certainly didn't waste any right right no no they said i ain't got no time to lose baby no before you met graham though you were you were into country music but do you think parsons really kind of blew your mind on it, or what? It's just that I met Graham in London. He was actually with the Birds at the time.

They'd done Sweetheart of the Rodeo. Yeah, yeah, yeah. And they'd stopped in London and did a couple of gigs, and then they were destined to go play South Africa. And I happened to bump into Graham that night. I went to see the show, and we got to talking after, and he said, I'm getting this sort of feeling about South Africa,

and I don't know, I don't understand it. I don't know. So I explained to him, he said, it's like going to the South, honey. But even worse. This is like, this isn't segregation this is apartheid and once he'd understood well and he left the birds that day and stayed with me in london oh really he just let them go on their own yeah on principle yeah yeah that's beautiful yeah yeah yeah there we became very very close friends uh had a few cold turkeys together sweat it out yeah that's sad too yeah that guy died so young yeah man

that's another one you know but you still do like it's interesting like this record uh you know it's got all the stuff that you love on it you know you've got you've got your soul ballad you know, it's got all the stuff that you love on it. You know, you've got your soul ballad, you know, you've got your country music. I've got my reggae on. The reggae was really good, man. He's like doing reggae again. But you love it. I've always

loved it. I've lived in Jamaica for many years. Yeah? You don't got that place anymore? Oh, yeah. You still have it? Yeah. At the time you got? Oh, yeah. You still have it? Mm-hmm. Yeah. At the time you got it, though, didn't you have to get it? Like, you couldn't come home, right? I burnt the passport, actually. Because I got, someone sent me that box,

that box set that you did with those guys in the cave or something. What was that? Oh, the Wingless Angels. Yeah, man. The Rastafarian. Those recordings are crazy, man. Yeah crazy man yeah it's just like hours of like you know i'm sure like i'm like oh there's keith i can i can hear a little keith there you know i'm just backing up right yeah yeah i was letting the guys have their wild man and uh yeah luckily because nearly all of them have passed away since. Oh, yeah.

It's a nice box, that box. Yeah. It was a great experience, and it was sort of, oh, just to capture some of the last moments of this particular part of Jamaican culture. Yeah. And I managed to do it. Yeah. And they loved it.

We had great fun. I mean, you couldn't have funnier sessions in your life yeah what do you want a rum and milk so in in terms of you know being at the age right now and then sort of the type of song writing you're doing because there's a couple of songs on here like like on the new record like amnesia and nothing on me like where i felt were sort of like you know celebrations of being still alive in a way you know in a way i guess everything is yeah i mean i i nothing on me is uh it basically was about being busted right right yeah and it wasn't till i've listened to the whole record i realized that

the cops crop up a lot in this record in uh and rob blind yeah yeah that's right yeah yeah yeah well you made it you made it you're not wanted anymore you're good right yeah and there's no there's no warrants out there you're set you're solid yeah well let's talk about guitar players for a minute like cause alright so you lost Brian and then you

bring Mick in then you toured with Mick a bit Mick Taylor now I guess my question if I'm really gonna focus it

just out of my own curiosity because there was some shift where you guys sort of invented modern rock and roll there was some

shift probably right in the middle or right after Satanic Majesties where the entire sound and the groove became what the modern stones are. What do you think, what happened to sort of make that happen?

Was there a moment where you're like, this is where it's at? I mean, the difference between how you cover like, you know, Love in Vain or what you did with the blues and country music on Let It Bleed and Beggars in Exile, cover like you know love in vain or what you did with the blues and country music on uh on let it bleed and and beggars in exile like it it's just that that became the template for rock and roll from that point forward you know and in one uh in a way i can put this in two words jimmy miller

producer yeah yeah how did he affect that? How did he influence it? What did he say? Well, after Satanic Majesties, we were, Mick and I were like, we have to refocus. I mean, that was a mad year. I mean, there was Sgt. Pepper and Satanic Majesties. Well,

I guess they're all on acid, right? You know what I mean? Which is true enough. So you did all the acid, right? Which was true enough. So you did all the acid, you did the thing. Oh, they'd gone to India. So you had to keep up with the Beatles. Yeah, we didn't know. We had to refocus. Oh, that's interesting.

So that was the end of you keeping up with the Beatles. You're like, we've got to do our shit. Yeah, yeah. I mean, I couldn't go anywhere near there. And I realized that they, the Beatles, the boys themselves, are sort of

outpaced themselves. Right. You know, and they were, you know. Well, they lasted, what were they, that was it?

What are you going to do? What are you going to do? You know, numero uno, numero uno, numero uno, and so they started to like, started to, like anybody else, play around. But that was 67, that's 66, 67.

Those years were, I mean, it was crazy. I mean, there was LSD all over the place. And so a few made... Did you like that shit? I had a couple of good trips and a couple of bad ones. Just like anything else. But no, it was not something that I'd wake up

in the morning and sort of say, I must have a tab. Right, right, right. Because then what are you going to do for the next three days? Yeah, it's crazy. It was interesting yeah and uh i mean i don't say i i mean i don't regret any of it but it was an experiment right but i think in a way it kind of shook uh mick and i up uh because we said boom now we really got to tighten up. You know, this is why we got Beggar's Banquet. And I got to say that Jimmy Miller was the key in tightening the band up and refocusing, so to speak.

Well, it seems like you guys, like you said about, you know, doing, you know. Yeah, you want me to do it. About, um. Mm-hmm. you know, yeah, you want me to do it. About smoking that first cigarette in 10 years with Keith Richards. I don't know why I wouldn't do that. Thanks, man. I'm a bad influence. Not you, Keith.

That sounds so... Not you. You're not a bad influence. So, but in terms of of because when you talk about it you know i got the blues you know and that laid-back thing i mean somebody you know relaxed the band and and if it was jimmy miller how did he do that necessarily you know what i mean get you into that group because the sound is pretty different from Aftermath to fucking Beggars yeah it was

I think after the Satanic Majesties I think we'd actually reached the end of our tether you know we'd been working 350 days a year

for like four years you know I mean there was you know where did you go on your vacation? Vacation? Forget about it. Right, yeah, yeah. If we weren't on the road, we were in the studio. And I think, yeah, basically even at that age,

you know, we'd pretty much worn ourselves out. The year between that and bringing, and getting Beggar's Banquet together was basically re-energizing, getting some rest, re-energizing and refocusing. And as I say to me, it was Jimmy Miller

that put the lens in the focus. He was a drama. He had a great sense of that put the lens in the focus. He was a drummer. He had a great sense of sound. And he loved the band. Right. And he brought out the best in us. And did Brian die in the middle of that?

Somewhere around there, yeah. Brian is the kind of guy you love to hate. Yeah, oh really? Yeah. Yeah. I mean, he was... Brilliant but annoying, is that what you're saying? Brilliant, yes.

Beyond annoying. No, that man, motherfucker, he would be in Chicago and play a gig and he'd get asthma. I got to play three weeks in the Midwest without another guitar player. Thank God the girls were screaming loud enough. I mean, I'm trying to cover all bass. And then I find out that he was out of the hospital the next day and hanging around screwing groupies. Oh, yeah.

Excuse me, man, we need a little more dedication. You need a guitar, you got a job. Yeah. You got a job, you're in a band. So it went kind of from there, yeah. I mean, he became a drag. Yeah, yeah. And then when Mick Taylor comes in,

that was a whole different kind of guitar player, right? I mean, it's really interesting, the difference between, you know, like Taylor and Wood. But, like, Mick Taylor was like, he was a big part of the sound for a couple albums, huh? He certainly was. He was a brilliant guitar player. Yeah.

How's he doing? The last I saw him, I saw him he's doing all right he's a bit chubby but that's his privilege right yeah but uh he plays great um and we we work together for a couple of years uh but you know taylor you know i mean to me i'm a guitar player but you know on my own yeah i i really i mean it doesn't interest me my interest is in playing off of the other guy and all right yeah together because two guitars can sound like an orchestra right if you do it right right play off each other and that's really what yeah yeah there's ronnie and ice excuse me yeah call it uh the ancient form of weaving right yeah yeah it's like where you don't know who's playing lead who's playing rhythm that's what you did yeah which is true and then m-tailor was it kind of his own dude right yeah yeah so I had to

readjust right for that yeah yeah and and at that same time I just got into the five string thing so I was rearranging my sound and where'd you learn that I tell you what right could it was the first cat that I learned it from yeah I saw playing it yeah I didn't know because he wouldn't teach you anything right right keeps his secrets and bless his heart yeah but uh i'm still finding out man i mean what you can do with it because it's a whole different but to me it sort of re-interested me in playing guitar because i you know it's pretty much at the end of my possibilities on just straight tuning. Right, right. I'm not going to be Charlie Christian.

Yeah, yeah, yeah. You accepted that. And I don't want to be. Right, right. But when I got to the open G thing, I started to really research it. How to play a minor chord with open G. how to play a minor chord with open G and you get all of these

resonating notes and drone notes that fascinate and still do well that's what makes that's the genius of Keith right there it's funny you're talking about the Beatles I can't believe I'm smoking my first cigarette in 10 years

with Keith Richards in an NPR studio. Huh? Huh? How about that? Fuck everything. We're smoking at NPR. Yeah. You know what album I love, what song I love is when you play with George Jones.

Oh. Bradley Barn. Bradley Barn thing. I fucking listen to that all the time, man. I mean, that was a real honor for me. Was it? Yeah, to work with George Jones. I mean, first off, the Grand Parsons.

Yeah. Grand Parsons, George Jones is like the singer. The greatest singer. Amazing. He's there with Aaron Neville is another cat yeah I couldn't can use the voice as if it's you know effortless yeah anything with it yeah Frank Sinatra once said that he thought George Jones was the second best singer. You're right.

I would take exception. Oh, yeah. Right? Amazing voice. Amazing voice. And a great guy. Crazy as nuts in there. Were you guys playing off each other in the studio at the same time?

Yeah, we hooked just like that. You could feel it, too, man. It's a beautiful song. Darling, there's talk around town. yeah it's fucking great and you played with uh you did you did a record with jerry lee yeah and jerry lee is another great friend of mine yeah still yeah he's still he's still he's still hanging in huh man he's amazing man i guess you old devil's gotta stick together a little bit i guess we've had our tips and we've had our uh you know but no jerry and i you know we sort of a recognition of yeah similar souls right yeah and you played you were able to play with muddy and you played when buddy's still

around so you play with him sometimes yeah yeah somebody was on the show with us in uh minneapolis yeah on milwaukee did you play with wolf howling wolf yeah once um uh on that uh shindig oh yeah yeah yeah yeah i think we didn't actually play with him no i i was there and? Yeah. I once woke up in his house. How'd that happen? Well, I don't know. I fell asleep at Marty's. I woke up in a house. To Chicago? Yeah.

It was some party or something. They must have carried me from one on. What are we going to do with this white kid? I don't know. We'll just take him with us. What the fuck? There must have been a lot of the last weeks keith here and there how do you level off how do you how do you manage i mean i you know

i don't you we don't need to get too far into it you got pretty strung out for a few years oh yeah and uh deliberately it was an experiment yeah is that how you view it an experiment for a few years i'm the laboratory yeah yeah when did you realize that the experiment was over it was going on too long yeah yeah no i mean you've been threatened with you know seven years hard time you know that'll do it yeah yeah i love my band more than i love the stuff oh good yeah yeah so you were able just to taper off and get into a management system? Boom. I just kicked it. Yeah. What a relief, huh?

Yeah. I mean, I got sick of dealers and junkies, you know. Because you end up in that stuff. You end up and you realize that the only people you're talking to are like, are they strung out cats? That's right. You're in a hotel room full of people you don't know we're waiting for the man right right and so it was yeah it was time to cut that out and uh so do yeah cut it you know what's scary about that is that if you're in a

room full of five or six of those dudes or whoever that attracts if you go down if you fucking od you know what you're gonna be alone in that room. Oh, yeah. No one's going to fucking call the cops. Don't tell me about it. Right? Yeah, man. Oh, shit, he's down.

Let's go. I've seen the bodies. Yeah? Yeah. It's a scary fucking world. Oh, my God. I didn't realize you put out a new book that I downloaded to read on the plane, Gus and Me.

Oh, yeah. I read your children's book. I thought it would take a little longer. It took me eight minutes, but I downloaded it. It took me four minutes to read it. And to write it. But it's really a pretty book.

I mean, did you ever think in your life that you would be a children's book writer? No. I mean, the idea came up. I thought, are you kidding me? Right. Who came up with that idea? The publishers of Life, my own book.

Yeah. They'd come up with this idea about, there was a chapter in there about my grandfather. Uh-huh. And they said, this could be a really nice children's story. And I thought, if I'm going to write anything and do anything for kids I can only talk about something I love

you know which is my granddad and the guitar you know so it was in a way it was like taking my hats off to Gus

who was great to me he threw you a line he was your lifesaver it's a pretty it's a cute little book and your daughter illustrated it yeah

and yeah it was a family affair. Yeah, but she did a great job. She did. It's a pretty little book. I couldn't believe I'm reading a, I'm getting choked up reading a Keith Richards children's book. I love to sort of throw you the odd. I'm listening to your record,

and then I'm reading your children's book, and I'm like, what the fuck? All I want to do is drugs. I'm broadening your record and then I'm reading your children's book and I'm like what the fuck all I want to do is drugs I'm broadening my horizons I'll say man well you've got some grandkids right we've got five do you love hanging out with them yeah

it's worth hanging around to be a granddad did you ever think you would at certain times, no. But here I am, and there's five grandkids, and it's another thing. It takes you on another level. One thing being a father, which is fun enough.

You had a couple shots at that. Yeah. Two sets. Yeah, two sets yeah two sets yeah and uh and out they come you know but they're they're the great little kids yeah and uh yeah what do they have a name for you just grandpa or granddad or what do call you. Grandpa. Yeah. Him. Him. And you get along with all your kids? Yeah, sure.

Yeah, I know. It's a very close family in that respect. Yeah? Yeah, yeah. It's like a tribe. How were you with your dad growing up, you know, in general? I mean, because I know you loved Gus, but your father, did you guys fight it out for a few years? I don't know.

I grew up with just my mom and my dad. Yeah. So I grew up in a very adult area. So, I mean, sometimes, you know, I sort of wished I had a brother or a sister so I didn't have to listen to the arguments about the rent and the and the insurance right yeah yeah but there's no way out of that boom so you sort of grow up in an adult household whether you like it or not yeah and they treat you like a kid at the same time you you know they have problems and but not between themselves but just like day-to-day living you know i mean my dad worked uh and he worked his life for uh general electric making tubes right so of all things of all things yeah and this i'll get around to in a minute but so i leave home 17, the bird leaves the nest, and within a year my mum and my dad had split up.

I think I was the only reason to stay around. So I, you know, suddenly I'm making some bread and immediately I take care of mum. My dad, whatever, for 20 years, no contact whatsoever. Really? Yeah. And in 82, I think 81, 82, I sent him, I just sent a note and said, see if you can get this through to my dad, you know. Yeah.

You know, why haven't we seen each other for so long? So my dad comes down to my house, you know, I send him, and I'd taken Ronnie Wood with me because I wanted protection. So I meet my dad after 20 years, I was scared shitless. Really? Yeah, in a way, you know, I mean, I needed some support. Some kind of support. Yeah. And out comes my dad, you know, 20 years older, little old bloke, great.

And we slept too, straight away dad you know 20 years old a little old bloke great and we snapped to straight away you know I mean we just like got on and I had more fun with him for the next 20 years I showed him the world you know get on this plane come on and he's got Brooke sure sitting on his lap yeah Yeah. And I gave him the whole world he hadn't seen. And for the last 20 years of his life, we were like,

we played dominoes endlessly, you know, with a load of other guys, you know. And he liked his rum. Yeah, there you go. That he could drink us

all under the table. Oh, yeah? Yeah, it was amazing you know that's beautiful man and your mom bless her heart yes always saw her and uh the funny thing about my mom yeah is that she's uh she knows she's going and i went to the hospital When was this? It was 2002, I think. And so I brought a guitar with me and I sat on the end of the bed and she said,

Keith, this morphine's not bad, is it? You're 93 at last. Now you get it. Oh, that's fucking beautiful. So the new record's great, man. All right, cool. Love everything you do. And I guess to finish up, when you look back, not so much about regrets,

but is there anything you're still pissed off about? Is there anything stuck in your craw about the way things went down? I could have lived without being busted. And without being like cops putting things in my pocket and stuff. Oh, that happened? Yeah. Oh, yeah. Got set up?

It was terrible in London. Oh, the first big bust. Yeah. No, there was a second one. Oh, what have we got here? Oh, really? But I did have the pleasure of that gentleman. His name was, at the time, Constable. His name at the time was Constable.

And it was Constable, Constable. Constable, Constable. He got to be a sergeant or something before he was finally checked. Nothing to do with me by then, but I just read in a paper that he was sentenced to five years. Oh, really?

You don't even know why? Fuck him. Yeah, well, probably for the same thing. Send people up. Or just corruption or whatever. Yeah, yeah. Yeah, it was a bent station. Yeah.

You know, it's one of those things. You know, cops ain't perfect, and nor am I. So, Ronnie's good? Ronnie's good. Charlie's good. You and Mick are good. Yeah. Everything's all right?

Yeah. I'm looking forward to doing some more. Yeah. All right. Well, thanks for talking to me. It was a real honor. Really fucking amazing. It was a pleasure, man.

I'd rather laugh. And you smoked your first cigarette and tell me that. Yeah, with Keith Richards! Come on! Thanks, man. Pleasure, man. Okay, that was it. That was me and keith that was crazy that was crazy i got choked up oh my god all right all right i'm a fun one remember he said that i'm a fun one all right so i i hope that was that wasn't too embarrassing for me. Fucking me and Keith Richards, man.

Come on. I got to play a Telecaster now. You can go to WTFpod.com for all your WTFpod needs. Get a little JustCoffee.coop. I get a little back end there on the WTF blend. They've been with us since the beginning. What else? Yeah, get on the mailing list

check the schedule I'll be in Australia in October man you guys you heard it you heard it I talked to Keith Richards I can't fucking believe it now what do I do

people ask me what are you going to do after Obama what am I going to do after Keith Richards? Thank you. Boomer lives! Boomer lives! We'll be right back. Moose? No. But moose head? Yes. Because that's alcohol, and we deliver that too. Along with your favorite restaurant food, groceries, and other everyday essentials. Order Uber Eats now. For alcohol, you must be legal drinking age. Please enjoy responsibly.

Product availability varies by region. See app for details. Hi, it's Terry O'Reilly, host of Under the Influence. Recently, we created an an actual cannabis producer. producer becomes licensed, how a cannabis company competes with big corporations, how a cannabis company markets its products in such a highly regulated category, and what the term dignified consumption actually means. I think you'll find the answers interesting and surprising. Hear it now on Under the Influence with Terry O'Reilly. This bonus episode is brought to you by the Ontario Cannabis Store and ACAS Creative.