The Rolling Stones: Hackney Diamonds and performing at 80

By Tom Wilson

The light show begins on an empty stage and anticipation fills the air as the crowd awaits the arrival of the gods of rock n’ roll. A voice booms over the speakers, reciting the iconic line, 

“Ladies and gentlemen, The Rolling Stones!” 

Guitars start blaring, drums start pounding, and strutting on to the stage come Mick Jagger, Keith Richards, and Ronnie Wood. The crowd, already loud, is now deafening and overpowers the amps. This may sound like a special performance, but to the Stones this has been ordinary for the better part of six decades. 

Longevity is the word now best associated with The Rolling Stones. After over six decades of success, the group shows no signs of slowing down. Two years since the passing of drummer Charlie Watts, the group have released their first original album in twenty years: Hackney Diamonds. With features from Paul McCartney, Elton John, Lady Gaga, and Stevie Wonder, the album certainly doesn’t lack star power. With the Stones not getting any younger, do they still have it? 

Calculating longevity is complicated. Queen is still performing, and their music is still listened to by many, but since Mercury’s death their level of success has not reached the heights it did while in their prime. Similarly, while the music of The Beatles has endured, the band never reunited after their 1970 breakup. I use the word longevity with the Stones as they have demonstrated a strong ability to adapt. The twentieth century saw the release of the most successful material, with songs charting in every decade from the 1960s onwards. In the twenty-first, the group emphasized their performing ability. Already renowned for their high-energy concerts, the band took their skill to another level in the twenty-first. Touring is something most artists refrain from as they get older, but the Stones’ tireless drive has seen them perfect their stagecraft.

The passing of drummer Charlie Watts in August 2021 had a major impact on the band. Upon the announcement, many wondered whether it was the end of The Rolling Stones. For almost sixty years, amidst changes to the band’s line-up and almost constant fallings out between Jagger and Richards, Watts held down the beat of the group. He is credited on two of the songs of the album, with his hand-picked replacement Steve Jordan playing the rest. 

Originally a jazz drummer, Watts’ demeanour on stage was in deep contrast to his band mates and the stereotypical rock drummer. He never frantically hit the drums like the great John Bonham, and he always sat up straight. Despite these traits, he could still hold the rock n’ roll crowd through his mesmerizing playing. “There was a feeling about Charlie and a subtlety about how he played,” Keith Richards said earlier this month, “I never had to worry about a thing, which gave the rest of us the freedom to fly.” 

Within the group, his influence over others was substantial. A notable altercation in an Amsterdam hotel saw an intoxicated Mick Jagger phone Watts and ask him “Where’s my drummer?”. Watts, furious, put on his suit and made his way to Jagger’s room. The frontman opened his door and was greeted with a punch to the face. “Don’t ever call me ‘your drummer’ again,” Watts reminded him, “you’re my fucking singer!”. The passing of such a pillar would be enough to break up a band. Led Zeppelin ceased all operations after John Bonham’s untimely death, and many wondered if the Stones would face the same fate. The transition to Steve Jordan, however, has been seamless. Watts had given the group his blessing in picking Jordan when the former was unable to tour while ill in the final year of his life. Jordan may not be Watts, but his talent and chemistry with the rest of the band makes him an adequate successor and has allowed the group to keep performing without losing too much of their identity.

The most impressive aspect of The Rolling Stones’ longevity is their ability to perform on stage as if time had stood still. Mick Jagger, who turned eighty this summer, floats and struts about arenas with more grace than many in their twenties. Even in the 2020s, a Stones concert is never dull. If it isn’t Jagger constantly grooving in a sparkly blazer, Keith Richards and Ron Wood will steal the spotlight with their guitars.  

Of course, these men do not look young. There is no hiding that fact. However, it is their aura, the way they dress, and their unchanging commitment while on stage that sets them apart from others in their generation. To keep in shape, the band have made sure to prioritise their health. Mick Jagger is a skilled ballet dancer. Keith Richards, infamous for his drug and alcohol use in his younger years, now lives what he calls a “clean lifestyle”. To maintain mental health, Ronnie Wood finds time to himself through painting. The former Faces guitarist is an adept painter, holding multiple exhibitions of his work. Much of his work depicts performances of The Rolling Stones in a way that only someone on the stage could understand. These newfound habits may sound like antithesis to rock music but are necessary for the group to keep performing at the level they do.  

The Stones sell out stadiums and their cultural impact is unmatched. In 2015, they performed in Havana, Cuba, in front of an estimated 500,000 people. This broke the previous record attendance at a Cuban concert by over 400,000. That the Stones can perform in front of so many is certainly impressive, but it is the breadth of their cultural might that sets them apart. To make such numbers as one of the first Western bands to visit the island post-Castro, especially at their age, emphasizes the Stones’ everlasting impact. 

Hackney Diamonds’ announcement in September was followed with the release of the first single off the album, ‘Angry’. All the ingredients of a Rolling Stones song are there in ‘Angry’: a punchy guitar riff, Mick Jagger’s vocals, and present but not overpowering drums. The music video features actress Sydney Sweeney on top of a car riding through Los Angeles. Even with the iconic in 2023 actress in modern settings, everything about it is pure Rock N’ Roll. In that area of their game, the Stones have shown that the old masters don’t lose their touch.  

While a rock band, the Stones are rooted in the blues, and Hackney Diamonds is no different. Friends in childhood, Jagger and Richards reunited in their early twenties through their shared love of blues musicians like Muddy Waters and Buddy Guy. The tracks ‘Dreamy Skies’ and ‘Rolling Stones Blues’ bring it back to the early beginnings of the genre, with slide guitars, the harmonica, and a wailing vocal performance from Jagger.  

Hackney Diamonds may well be The Rolling Stones’ final album. While it certainly isn’t anything ground-breaking, it is what one has come to expect from a Stones album: high quality rock n’ roll that makes you want to move your body and crank the speaker up to ten.