The Rolling Stones

The Rolling Stones are an English rock band formed in London in 1962. Their early mission was to share their enthusiasm for rhythm and blues, but they were received as symbols and leaders of rebellious youth. The first settled line-up had Brian Jones on guitar and harmonica, Ian Stewart on piano, Mick Jagger on lead vocals and harmonica, Keith Richards on guitar and backing vocals, Bill Wyman on bass and Charlie Watts on drums. Jones founded and led the band, but after teaming as co-writers Jagger and Richards assumed leadership of the band. Jones' increasing physical and mental troubles forced his departure from the band two weeks prior to his drowning death in 1969. Since Wyman left in 1993, the full band members have been Jagger, Richards, Watts and guitarist Ronnie Wood who joined in 1975, replacing Mick Taylor (who had followed Jones). Estimated album sales are above 200 million, with 15 gold, 17 platinum and 11 mult-platinum selling albums in the US alone.

The Rolling Stones were in the vanguard of the "British Invasion" of English bands that became popular in the U.S. in the mid-sixties. When they originally came to international prominence in the mid-1960s, they were portrayed as the "Anti-Beatles", displaying a rawer sound, and seen as more anti-establishment than many of their contemporaries. 1968-1972 is seen as the band's "golden years", recording four landmark albums, Beggars Banquet (1968), Let It Bleed (1969), Sticky Fingers (1971) and Exile on Main St. (1972), the latter of which is now generally considered their greatest ever album. Throughout the 1970s and into the early 1980s they had a string of eight consecutive number one studio albums in the United States, beginning with Sticky Fingers (1971), through to Tattoo You (1981). Their output became somewhat scattered during the remainder of the 1980s as the much publicised Jagger-Richards feuding spiralled out of control, and members of the group began to embark on solo careers. The band is seen to have lost it's major commercial appeal during this time. Despite this, they have still continued to record together and embark on hugely successful worldwide tours. They have released twenty-four studio albums, eleven live albums and numerous compilations. Billboard magazine ranked the Rolling Stones at number ten on "The Billboard Top All-Time Artists" and as the second most successful group in the Billboard Hot 100 chart.

The Rolling Stones were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1989, their first year of eligibility, and the UK Music Hall of Fame in 2004. Rolling Stone magazine ranked them fourth on the "100 Greatest Artists of All Time" list. The band has received two lifetime achievement awards, one at the Grammys in 1987, and another was received at the MTV Video Music Awards in 1994. The advent of the Rolling Stones brought international popularity to the primitive urban blues typified by Chess Records' artist Muddy Waters, writer of "Rollin' Stone", the song after which the band is named. Robert Palmer said the Rolling Stones' endurance and relevance stems from being "rooted in traditional verities, in rhythm-and-blues and soul music" while "more ephemeral pop fashions have come and gone". In 2012 the band celebrated their 50th anniversary.

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