Keith Richards, many decades ago, called him “the greatest R ‘n B singer this side of the Atlantic.” Less than a year ago, he called him “the best frontman any band could hope for.” The man of whom he speaks, Michael Philip MICK Jagger, turns 81 today. He remains the greatest frontman in Rock and Roll history. I speak of recent experience, having watched and listened to him only two months ago at Giants Stadium. He was exceptional and awe inspiring. I’m not piling on Joe Biden, but it is astounding that he and Mick are the same age. Jagger’s voice sounded almost exactly the same as it did 50 years, when he wasn’t nearly as great a singer as he is now. The Rolling Stones’ last two albums, the fantastic Blues covers Blue & Lonesome, and this year’s Hackney Diamonds, are Mick’s best performances since 1983’s Undercover of the Night (that may not be thought of as a great album, but Mick is fantastic on it). Blue & Lonesome may very well be Jagger’s best overall performance of the band’s career. His singing and harp playing is sublime. Check him out on Willie Dixon’s “I Can’t Quit You Baby”:

50 years ago today, on Mick’s 31st birthday, the Stones release one of their greatest singles, though Mick is the only band member on the basic track. He’d recorded it in late 1973, with Ronnie Wood on acoustic guitar, Willie Weeks on bass, Kenney Jones on drums, and David Bowie singing a background vocal. Mick wrote it with Ronnie, though it was credited to Mick and Keith. Jagger wrote in the liner notes for the compilation Jump Back, “the idea of the song has to do with our public persona at the time. I was getting a bit tired of people having a go, all that, ‘oh, it’s not as good as their last one’ business. The single sleeve had a picture of me with a pen digging into me as if it were a sword. It was a lighthearted, anti-journalistic sort of thing.”

Mick knew it was the band’s next single when he wrote it, and Keith agreed. Richards claimed there had been some resistance from Atlantic to releasing it as a single, but the band fought for it. Keith said it had to be a single. “That song is a classic. The title alone is a classic and that’s the whole thing about it.” In case you haven’t figured it out yet:

Let It Be director Michael Lindsey-Hogg directed the video. Mick said the filming was completely unpleasant. The band wore the sailor suits because they didn’t want their own clothes ruined by the soap suds that would be fed into the tent. The camera and lights couldn’t be in the tent over the chances of electrocution, which required the band to be insured for the shoot. Keith later said “Poor old Charlie nearly drowned. We forgot he was sitting down.”

Today’s Playlist is a SomethingIsHappening compendium of songs about the music business, in honor of Mick turning 81 and “It’s Only Rock and Roll (But I Like It)” turning 50:

#MickJagger #RollingStones #KeithRichards #CharlieWatts #RonnieWood