The Rolling Stones remembered late blues guitarist BB King during a Twitter Q&A with fans earlier on Monday (May 18).
Jagger and co held their first-ever Q&A on the social networking site ahead next month’s re-release of their ‘Sticky Fingers’ LP. They were asked by fans for their memories of King, who passed away in his sleep last Thursday (May 14), after suffering a series of small strokes related to his type 2 diabetes.
“I was just looking at a picture of me and BB backstage at Madison Square Garden [in 1969],” Jagger told fans. “He played with us at a lot of gigs on that tour. We last played with him in a blues concert at the White House. It’s sad. He had such a huge, long career. It’s sad that we won’t be listening to him live anymore.”
Keith Richards added by describing King as “one of the greats”, continuing, “BB was a great guy. He was one of the true gentlemen, and I shall miss him a lot. At least we have his records. Farewell, BB.”
When asked for his favourite BB King song, Jagger said, “He had so many recordings. It’s difficult to choose.”
Since his passing last week, the likes of Eric Clapton, Ringo Starr, Wu-Tang Clan, Slash, President Barack Obama and more have paid tribute to King. U2 performed their BB King collaboration ‘When Love Comes To Town’ at their show in Vancouver last Friday (May 15) in honour of the late musician.
Elsewhere in the Twitter Q&A, The Rolling Stones previewed their ‘Sticky Fingers’ vinyl reissue. It was revealed that the record will come with a bonus live album, Eric Clapton’s cover of ‘Brown Sugar’ and a zipper on the album’s sleeve. Jagger also called Jay Z his favourite rapper, while drummer Charlie Watts vowed to never join Twitter.
Meanwhile, speaking last month, frontman Mick Jagger has said that he is keen to make a new record, either with the band or as a solo album instead.
The Rolling Stones will head on a North American tour from next week. Their upcoming dates will be their first since saxophone player Bobby Keys died in December aged 70.
The Rolling Stones will play:
San Diego CA Petco Park (May 24)
Columbus Ohio Stadium (30)
Minneapolis MN TCF Bank Stadium (June 3)
Dallas AT&T Stadium (6)
Atlanta Bobby Dodd Stadium (9)
Orlando Citrus Bowl (12)
Nashville LP Field (17)
Pittsburgh Heinz Field (20)
Milwaukee Summerfest/Marcus Amphitheater (23)
Kansas City Arrowhead Stadium (27)
Raleigh Carter-Finley Stadium (July 1)
Indianapolis Motor Speedway (4)
Detroit Comerica Park (8)
Buffalo Ralph Wilson Stadium (11)
Quebec Le Festival D’Été de Québec (15)