Life  is a memoir by the Rolling Stones guitarist Keith Richards, written with the assistance of journalist James Fox.  Published in October 2010, in hardback, audio and e-book formats, the book chronicles Richards’ love of music, charting influences from his mother and maternal grandfather, through his discovery of blues music, the founding of the Rolling Stones, his often turbulent relationship with Mick Jagger, his involvement with drugs, and his relationships with women including Anita Pallenberg and his wife Patti Hansen.  Life was generally well received by critics and topped The New York Times non-fiction list in the first week of release.  (More from Wikipedia)

 

Guitarist and songwriter Keith Richards of the Rolling Stones wrote of the Elvis Presley classic in his 2010 memoir, Life:  “Good records just get better with age.  But the one that really turned me on, like an explosion one night, listening to Radio Luxembourg on my little radio when I was supposed to be in bed and asleep, was ‘Heartbreak Hotel’.  That was the stunner.  I’d never heard it before, or anything like it.  I’d never heard of Elvis before.  It was almost as if I’d been waiting for it to happen.  When I woke up the next day I was a different guy.” 

 

(June 2013/1)

 

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There is a great story in Keith Richards’ autobiography, Life about a chance meeting that he had with Mick Jagger; I saw something on TV about it also, probably on CBS Sunday Morning.  In a series called Letters of Note that was printed (or reprinted) in The Huffington Post is this section of a letter that Keith Richards wrote to his aunt about this meeting – I think the very next day: 

 

“You know I was keen on Chuck Berry and I thought I was the only fan for miles but one mornin’ on Dartford Stn. [that’s so I don’t have to write a long word like station] I was holding one of Chuck’s records when a guy I knew at primary school 7-11 yrs y’know came up to me.  He’s got every record Chuck Berry ever made and all his mates have too, they are all rhythm and blues fans, real R&B I mean (not this Dinah Shore, Brook Benton crap) Jimmy Reed, Muddy Waters, Chuck, Howlin’ Wolf, John Lee Hooker all the Chicago bluesmen real lowdown stuff, marvelous.  Bo Diddley he’s another great. 

 

“Anyways the guy on the station, he is called Mick Jagger and all the chicks and the boys meet every Saturday morning in the ‘Carousel’ some juke-joint.  Well one morning in Jan. I was walking past and decided to look him up.” 

I think I also remember Keith’s saying in that letter, or telling his mother or something, that Mick Jagger was going to be famous. 

 

(May 2015)