Book Review: Life by Keith Richards (with James Fox)
Movie Review: Ladies and Gentlemen: The Rolling Stones, directed by Rollin Binze

The singer/songwriter Paul Simon once lamented on the Dick Cavett Show in the 1970s that there are no geniuses in modern popular music, and that most of the genre, including his own material, was fairly mediocre. I strongly disagree with this appraisal and I believe that the songs beautifully crafted by John Lennon and Paul McCartney for The Beatles are genius. I also think that that the philosophical tone and subtexts of David Bowie’s Berlin work is borderline genius. In terms of technical abilities, there are brilliant players, such as Eric Clapton, but I believe there is only one musician who is a genius in rock and roll and that is Keith Richards. Careful listening to the best years of Mr. Richards’s work reveals a man who could find spaces and rhythms in time for his guitar work that are almost beyond comprehension. I’ve long thought that I understood how Mr. Richards accomplishes this: he loves music and plays it with joy and abandon. After reading his fabulously entertaining autobiography, Life, this hypothesis was strongly confirmed.

Life is a lengthy book and it is packed with some of the funniest material I’ve ever read in any book, much of it at the expense of Mr. Richards’s writing partner in The Rolling Stones, the singer Mick Jagger. Although Mr. Jagger is praised as a brilliant blues harmonica player and the greatest showman of his generation (which I also believe to be true), Mr. Richards spends much time putting him in his place and wondering how their strong bonds from the past, built on a foundation of loving the blues, have evaporated. At one point, he even gets rid of a pet bird he owns because it was like having Mick Jagger in a cage with its constant lip pursing.

I was surprised at how detailed Mr. Richards’s memory is, given that he abused heroin and alcohol for so many years and was on top of so many “celebrity most likely to die” lists. The description of his childhood years in post-war Britain are incredibly well-written and a joy to read. His discovery of the guitar, the blues, and his band mates are of particular interest. The late Brian Jones is savaged in the book and the late Stones keyboardist and founder, who was not officially in the band, Ian Stewart, is canonized. (I spoke two sentences to Stewart in 1975 and managed to embarrass him with praise.)

Keith Richards notes all over his book how much he loves playing and reiterates the great mantra of rock and roll: it is the passion as much as it is the technical skill that makes a performer and artist excel. Proof of this is found in the newly re-released film, Ladies and Gentlemen: The Rolling Stones. The movie shows footage of the band in 1972, touring around what many believe to be their greatest album, Exile on Main Street. The differences between Mr. Richards and Mr. Jagger are made more apparent after reading Life. Although Mick Jagger dances with joy to the sounds of the band, he is a performer, almost an actor, for the length of the show. His every facial expression is calculated. In contrast, Keith Richards is just grooving along, knowing that the band is cooking and that he’s the engine of this rock and roll train.

Some of the best moments in Ladies and Gentlemen feature Mr. Richards singing, especially the acoustic “Dead Flowers,” which was a highlight on the Sticky Fingers album. From what was then new material, it is amazing just how fast a band can play on songs like “Rip this Joint” and “All Down the Line”. This is The Rolling Stones at their best and it is not to be missed by their fans.

Keith Richards took American blues and the style of Chuck Berry, flew with it, improved upon it, and regurgitated this amazing new sound back to the world. Although there are moments in the autobiography when you realize that he’s one mean and angry man, just the sight of seeing him smile blissfully in the concert film reminds you of why you listened in the first place.