Mostly boilerplate, but mentions solo album due in September (sorry, Ian!). He also addresses the Taylor issue. Amazing. Shades of Keith's isolation during Exile reissue:

Keith Richards: 'I Want to See How Far the Stones Can Go'
The Stones guitarist on their summer tour, playing 'Sticky Fingers' and his upcoming solo album
By Andy Greene April 9, 2015

  The Rolling Stones' Keith Richards tells us about 'Sticky Fingers' and his new solo album in a new interview.

If everything goes according to plan, the next year is going to be a busy time for Keith Richards. He's about to begin rehearsals for a 15-date North American stadium tour with the Rolling Stones, he's got a new solo album roughly slated for September and he may even support it with his first solo tour since 1993. We spoke about all this and more with Richards, who phoned up Rolling Stone after our talk

I just spoke to Mick and he said you guys were thinking about playing Sticky Fingers straight through on this tour. What's your take on that?

Well, it wasn't my idea. It was kicked around. I don't know if that would be every night. We might do it in places. First off, we've got to rehearse it all. When it came up, I said, "Yeah, it's not Exile on Main St. We could do that."

Mick was worried there were too many ballads for a stadium audience.

I don't know. It was just an idea. When we get to rehearsals, we'll give it a try.

I'd love to hear "Moonlight Mile" and "Sister Morphine."

It's very rare we play them. Playing them in order is an interesting idea. We'll see how it goes. I'd like to give it a try.

When do rehearsals begin?

I think by the end of April we'll go down to Los Angeles for a couple of weeks and then take it down to San Diego to work on the stage.

Do you think they'll be any sort of public rehearsal show?

I've seen no plans for that yet. Usually, those things happen much closer to the event, so I don't know nothing about that yet.

From your perspective, is playing a stadium much different than an arena?

Not drastically. It's just a lot bigger. And with stadiums you've always got the weather to deal with. God joins the band in one form or another.

Your tours used to last about two years followed by long breaks. Why has this one been so different?

I think everybody's really been enjoying the last few years on the road. The last break was really long; about five years. I think everybody really missed it because we came back energized.

Do these shows feel different to you than previous tours?

It's really difficult to say. Once you're up onstage, it's very familiar ground to me. All audiences are different slightly, but what I go up onstage for is the fact that things are not different. Things stay the same.

Beyond the Sticky Fingers stuff, are there any rare songs you hope to bring back on this tour?

It's early days. We'll be talking about it. I guess I'm going to be seeing Mick next week. I have no doubt the subject will come up.

Are you bringing Mick Taylor on the tour?

Um, I'm not sure. The last I heard…I'm not sure if he's
available or what his condition is at the moment. I'm waiting to hear about that.

That's a shame because he's all over Sticky Fingers.

Yeah, it's just one of those things. I'm not sure. I just haven't gotten into that thing, but I heard he was sick. [Through a representative, Taylor says he is not sick and was not invited onto the tour.]

Do you see Sticky Fingers as a pivotal record in the band's evolution?

Well, it was one of them. Beggars Banquet was another. But with Sticky Fingers, we were working very much with [producer] Jimmy Miller, which was a very fruitful period.

And you were on a new label and thus had a little more freedom, right?

Yeah, yeah. That was the first one on the label. So we did pretty much whatever we wanted to do. Mind you, we always did anyway. What happened after Sticky Fingers? Was it

It was Exile.

Of course. I'm getting them mixed up. Sticky Fingers was the last one we made in England at our old haunt, Olympic Studios. Right after that, we moved.

I imagine this tour will be bittersweet since it's the first one since Bobby Keys passed away.

Man, he'll certainly be missed, especially backstage. He was a good, good friend of mine. But he would be the first to say, "The show must go on."

Do you think they'll be a new Stones album at some point?

We're talking about doing some recording after this tour, but there's nothing definite. We just threw out the idea. I'd like to get the boys back in the studio again, yeah. Anything can happen.

What's the status of your solo album?

I think that's coming out in September.

Is it totally done?

Just done, yeah. We're looking for the right time slot to bring it out. The Stones have been working so much lately that I've been holding off until we could find a reasonable time. I think it's September, but I don't know for sure.

Who plays on it?

[Drummer] Steve Jordan and me. We're joined here and there by [guitarist] Waddy Wachtel and [Rolling Stones backup singer] Bernard Fowler. Steve and I put it together.

Are you thinking about doing solo shows to promote it?

That's being kicked around. At the moment, I'm just getting my head into the Stones and I haven't really thought about what I'm going to do afterwards. But usually if I put a record out, I do some road work. So, it's possible.

Is the thrill of playing live the same as it always was for you?

Yeah. It's a unique feeling, really, and you kind of miss it. I'm ready to get up there. I've been looking forward to it.

I know you've been asked this a million times, but do you see a point in the future when the band will stop touring?

No, I never think about that. I leave that to other people.

I guess if Chuck Berry is nearly 90 and still doing this…

Exactly. As long as I feel like it and there's people to listen to it, we'll do it.

What do you hope to see The Stones accomplish before you guys wrap it up?

That's a good question. I'd like to see just how far they can evolve. I have no demands or particular visions for them, but you're just part of this thing and I want to see how far it will go.

I'm always so impressed by Charlie. He just seems to get better and better.

Yeah, man. He's an incredible drummer, man. A very, very cool customer.

I remember a few years ago, Johnny Depp was shooting a documentary about you. There was even some sort of performance he filmed. What happened with that?

We shot some stuff, but I don't think there's anything in the cards about it. I don't think he's going to use the footage and I don't think I've seen Johnny for a couple of years.

To wrap up here, I just want to ask again about "Moonlight Mile" since I've always wanted to see that live. Do you think you guys are going to do it?

Yeah, I think we'll give it a bash, yeah. I'll tell you what: I'll play it for you right now. [Laughs]

Read more: http://www.rollingstone.com/music/features/keith-richards-i-want-to-see-how-far-...
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Those comments by Keith about Taylor in the 'Rolling Stone' interview are unreal. Classic Pontius Pilate stuff. Does he think people are so frigging dumb they cant check this kind of stuff out with Taylor himself?

If he's going to tour behind a newly released solo album (which has been the plan all along), that means there is highly unlikely to be Stones shows later this year.

It might be a feasible alternative if South America falls through (Mick didnt seem overly confident about it in his interview) and then the Stones can resume touring in 2016.

They aint gonna play 'Sticky Fingers' in full. Not in stadiums anyway.

Dammit

Keith is clearly using heroin again.
This ain't good.

It means I gotta go back to Lite beer

Richards is full of shit. Has been for quite some time.

All this 'oh, he's the soul of the Stones' bullshit.

Nope - nasty greed-head that Jagger is, it's Mick and Charlie who are the soul of the band. Woody's comic relief and musical grounding (i.e. reminding everyone how the songs go), and Keith is baggage. Propped up as an icon. I'm sorry - the guy used to at least be a fun interview; now he's clearly tired and tired of his own bullshit.

Gazza wrote on Apr 10^th, 2015 at 4:20am:


I see your point Gazza, but hey, much as we read the interviews and all, we know next to zero about what their actual relationships are like. I mean, we've all fallen out and back in with people we've known for ten or five years, can't even imagine what it must be like to work and be friends with and travel around the world a thousand times with people you've known almost all your life. And these guys always lived an insulated kind of life since their twenties!

Gazza wrote on Apr 10^th, 2015 at 7:14am:


It's embarrassing that either Stones, Inc. doesn't distribute talking points on pretty easily anticipated media questions, or Keith neglects and/or refuses to follow the script.

Regardless, I'm speculating heavily that Mick Taylor may be his own worst enemy. He may have moaned to play on more songs outside of the occasional CYHMK/Sway/Silver Train as well as ridiculously playing acoustic on Satisfaction and joining in on Slipping Away a few times. You can't blame the guy at all, and we all want much more of him, but the original agreement following the 50th Anniversary London shows may have been to play only on Rambler. Money, of course, plays into it.

I also recall that on a least one of the CYHMK performances, Taylor gloriously extended his solo, perhaps to the irritation of Mick Jagger. Remember this? It's on Youtube. In addition, another (or the same?) CYHMK had him getting right in Keith's face after the 1st chorus to ensure Keith didn't miss the riff coming out of the chorus. Keith looked annoyed and certainly allows only 1 Mick to get in his face: Jagger. Taylor should have merely enjoyed the ride and be a Ron Wood-type sycophant. All speculation, but egos are egos and Taylor may have forgotten to remain in his proper place. Poor Mick Taylor decisions . . .similar to quitting on them in '74.

Gazza wrote on Apr 10^th, 2015 at 7:14am:


Especially since they are out promoting Sticky Fingers, really their first studio album where they turned MT loose with pretty amazing results...to not have him  along for this is a slap in the face to MT and makes the Stones a bad joke for me!

patioaintdry wrote on Apr 10^th, 2015 at 1:25pm:



Even if Mick T WAS sick - which doesnt appear to be the case - its not really Keith's place to put something as private as that in the public domain.

The Stones operate in another world. They just do. It's who they are.

I've been in the collaborative arts for many years. Egos, attitudes, clashing of ideas, personal dislike...all things crop up. I was working with a group of 6 for a long time. I liked 5 of them, the other I hated. Three had the power and the means to get stuff done. We each brought something to the table and made great stuff, but it wasn't like we were brothers, which is what people lay on bands for some reason.

We worked well together, but individually not so much.

Right now I'm working with someone I'm not crazy about. I could care less about them personally but the end results are good, so it works.

Sorry for the ramble.

Keith didn't handle the MT question well at all.  But knowing how he and Jagger tend to get into a war of words it could be Keith's weirdass way of calling bullshit on Jagger.  MT isn't in, it's Jagger's decision, I had no say so - isn't the best answer either.  Neither is - Ask Brenda - which he would have said in the past.

In any case MT is out and we take it or leave it.

Whats his solo work got to do with anything? If you used that yardstick for Mick and Keith, the Stones would barely be filling theatres - and for Charlie and Ronnie, it would be clubs.

All I know is Bill Wyman must be feeling a little weird about all the MT love 

Steel Wheels wrote on Apr 11^th, 2015 at 7:42am:


It's good that you put a "most" qualifier in there because I do attend his shows whenever they are close to me and I have his solo work.

Move on? It's more like move back to putting on warhorse displays with very little heart and charging ridiculous amounts for it. The best show of the last American leg and probably the entire series of shows anywhere was the LA show where there were no guests and Mick Taylor came out for Sway, CYHMK, and MR (I'm not including that crap where they bring him out on acoustic for Satisfaction and turn off his sound). I was there and the crowd's favorite moments were when Mick Taylor came out. It was one of the best Stones shows that I've ever been to, if not the best and it was because he gave the band some new heart and made the Stones fresh again.

If they are going to charge an arm and a leg, maybe, just maybe, the fans should be taken into consideration and, therefore, if they were, I would pay that large bit extra for their consideration. However, like always, they really don't give a toss.

I said this before, if this is truly for his own sake because of some health issue, good on them and I hope they are helping him get better, but it doesn't appear so. Also, it's disgusting for Keith to act like such a prick and put it out there for the world. Furthermore, Mick may simply not like how it sounds musically, which is fine, but don't charge and arm and a leg for the same boring set lists and pretend that you're offering anything new.

MT was a nice thing on the 50th. The 50th is over and it's time for stadium shows. It seems nobody was really happy with the limited use of MT on those shows. On every board, people complained.

Now MT is free to do what he wants, on his terms, without being limited by Stones, Inc. He can get back in the studio,  create new albums, go on tour, do whatever he feels like he needs to do.

KR needs to pipe down about MT and move on.

The fans that are grumpy about no MT, need to move on.

Be lucky we have Mick and Keef and enjoy the summer shows. And who knows. Maybe MT will play with the band again at some point.

Defending Stones Inc. these days is kind of like defending Coco Cola or the Vatican.

Just a thought: they've been here for the last half a century. I don't mind being able to still go to their gigs and listen to Start me Up one thousand times over. I like that. Sure, I'd love a new album, but the nostalgia thing doesn't bug me one bit. I haven't cought them live enough times to grow tired of them just yet.

Sometimes I think that if the Stones did all the things we'd like them to do (e.g. bring MT back, play more clubs instead of stadiums, release an album full of blues and what more) they'd be playing for a much more limited audience and world tours would be what we'd be nostalgic about.

Please don't hate this post but all this discussion makes me think that we don't ever give these guys a break. I've yet to go to a Stones gig and leave feeling disappointed cause of warhorses played or the lack of Mick Taylor. We can't bring the seventies back and they'll never be as inspired or relevant again, but still, hey... Let's enjoy this while it lasts!

Gazza wrote on Apr 12^th, 2015 at 1:00pm:


Yeah Gazza, I agree with that too myself. But I don't know if there's really any other option at this time for them. Who knows, maybe they'll surprise us with one final good album, but I think it's the combination of having achieved fantastic artistic results in the past plus the fact they can still be great live (often) that sort of gives them a carte blanche in my head as to what they choose to do at this point in time in their career. I mean, they've already hit all the milestones, the rise, the peak, the whole eighties and onwards downfall, and everything seems like an added bonus at this time.

Gazza wrote on Apr 11^th, 2015 at 5:43pm:

The fact that Keith denied knowing why Taylor wasn't invited on the tour and hinted that he may be ill. While clearly knowing that he wasn't asked, is fucking sickening.

Ian Billen wrote on Apr 16^th, 2015 at 4:41pm:



If he didnt want to make it publicly known, mentioning it in an interview is a pretty unique way of  keeping it quiet!

Mr. Yeats wrote on Apr 10^th, 2015 at 2:31am:


Very true and very sad (imho).

I recall about 500 years ago when I first read the '71 Greenfield interview with Keith. It cemented my opinion of him as the coolest man on the planet. It showed his humour , his humility and not least his intelligence which completely defied the popular image of him as some moron spaced out on junk.

As you say, now and for the last 20 years or so it's mostly bullshit and braggadocio (much of it re-cycled ad infinitum) with almost zero insight into anything.

Has anyone thought Mick Taylor may not want to go back on the road again with the Stones?  He may not voice his opinion publicly but he did leave the Stones originally because he was dissatisfied and I can totally understand it iif he feels this way now.

The Stones have missed a lot of opportunities over the years.

They missed Heard It Through The Grapevine with John Fogerty, for an example of a small missed opportunity.

They missed it with Mick Taylor on the last tour -- seeing him with an acoustic during Satisfaction was perhaps the most idiotic image ever in the history of live performances.

Agree that dropping Taylor now does not seem to make any sense -- but generally when something doesn't make sense, it's because you don't have all the facts.

We probably don't have all the facts on this.

Oh, and of course, the biggest missed opportunity of all time...their failure to open a show with Sympathy.  That can be cured fellas.

   

I think you are. Anything about his health or pride is speculation at best, or invention at worst. The bit about the Stones choosing not to invite him however is fact.  He simply wasnt given the choice to accept or decline the offer because none existed.

Gazza wrote on Apr 17^th, 2015 at 7:19pm:



_______________________________________________


Oh I missed that part. I see now ... yeah ... by the way he responded he wasn't trying to hide anything entirely either lol ... I was thinking he simply replied in saying he was not sure if MT was asked on this leg.

Ian