Next year, it will have been 20 years since Bill left the Stones and 19 years since it was made official.
When the news broke officially in '93, how did you react; were you surprised, shocked? Did you think the Stones would end?

And how good a job do you think Darryl has done to fill his shoes? It's amazing to think that he's been in the band nearly 20 years yet he still isn't a ''member.'' What's even sadder is that since 1993 the band's only released 3 studio albums...That very much sucks.

StickyStones wrote on Feb 19^th, 2011 at 2:16am:

Next year, it will have been 20 years since Bill left the Stones and 19 years since it was made official. When the news broke officially in '93, how did you react; were you surprised, shocked? Did you think the Stones would end?

No. Bill had been talking about leaving since 1982, and when he brought out his autobiography in 1990 and then refused to go to NYC for the 'Sex Drive' video shoot a few months later it was clear the writing was on the wall. That was pretty much rubberstamped a few months later when they signed a $100 million deal with Virgin - but Bill opted out of doing so. There was no surprise at all that he had left, as the Stones had quite publicly been saying for a couple of years that they'd been trying to persuade him to stay - and there was absolutely no question that the band's future would be affected.


Quote:

And how good a job do you think Darryl has done to fill his shoes? It's amazing to think that he's been in the band nearly 20 years yet he still isn't a ''member.'' What's even sadder is that since 1993 the band's only released 3 studio albums...That very much sucks.

Darryl was NEVER going to be a member. There's no way at this stage someone was going to join the band and get a 20% cut. Technically speaking, Wyman was replaced by Ronnie Wood as he was only a salaried employee up until 1993.

:Youmakeagrownmancrylikejoey

It was a sad day. Glad he's on the Stu Tribute.


sc uk

No. Bill had been talking about leaving since 1982, and when he brought out his autobiography in 1990 and then refused to go to NYC for the 'Sex Drive' video shoot a few months later it was clear the writing was on the wall.

I did however once read an interview with Bill where he clearly stated he was pissed because they didn't wait for him to shoot the video for (I thought)  "Highwire". Now I'm not sure anymore, maybe it was "Sex Drive". So maybe he talked about leaving since 1982, but it took him ten years to think about it. Maybe to force Mick and Keith to meet his possible demands???

Tumbling Dijs wrote on Feb 19^th, 2011 at 3:20pm:

No. Bill had been talking about leaving since 1982, and when he brought out his autobiography in 1990 and then refused to go to NYC for the 'Sex Drive' video shoot a few months later it was clear the writing was on the wall. I did however once read an interview with Bill where he clearly stated he was pissed because they didn't wait for him to shoot the video for (I thought)  "Highwire". Now I'm not sure anymore, maybe it was "Sex Drive". So maybe he talked about leaving since 1982, but it took him ten years to think about it. Maybe to force Mick and Keith to meet his possible demands???

'High Wire'. Thats the one I meant. They flew to New York to film it and Bill refused to go (by this stage he had stopped flying)

Gazza wrote on Feb 19^th, 2011 at 6:47pm:

Tumbling Dijs wrote on Feb 19th, 2011 at 3:20pm: No. Bill had been talking about leaving since 1982, and when he brought out his autobiography in 1990 and then refused to go to NYC for the 'Sex Drive' video shoot a few months later it was clear the writing was on the wall. I did however once read an interview with Bill where he clearly stated he was pissed because they didn't wait for him to shoot the video for (I thought)  "Highwire". Now I'm not sure anymore, maybe it was "Sex Drive". So maybe he talked about leaving since 1982, but it took him ten years to think about it. Maybe to force Mick and Keith to meet his possible demands??? 'High Wire'. Thats the one I meant. They flew to New York to film it and Bill refused to go (by this stage he had stopped flying)

Is this when Bill had developed his fear of flying??
"Refusing" to fly and "unwilling" to fly are two different things...i don't know about the split up...the vidoe shoot...therefore i am willing to give Bill the benefit of the doubt.

Bill decided he was done with flying in 1990 after the Japanese tour.

For the European leg that followed it, he travelled between cities by car. Something which was quite doable back then as before the collapse of Communism, a European tour basically meant Western Europe.  Places like Prague, Vienna and Berlin would have been as far east as he would have had to go.

Bill finally took his amp and went home and Keith felt like he had deserted the band. meanwhile how many years had Bill stood by waiting for either keith to kick the drugs and show up in the studio...or be allowed to have some input into the bands song writing? And of course with the advent of the jumbo world tours flying was something he wasn't going to do. Bill owed the band nothing and Darryl while servicable is no Bill and the bands engine was turned from a roaring super 8 cylinder to today's light duty 6 and some nights 4.

Gazza wrote on Feb 20^th, 2011 at 5:06am:

Bill decided he was done with flying in 1990 after the Japanese tour. For the European leg that followed it, he travelled between cities by car. Something which was quite doable back then as before the collapse of Communism, a European tour basically meant Western Europe.  Places like Prague, Vienna and Berlin would have been as far east as he would have had to go.

He did fly to the States to promote The Rhythm Kings in '02.  I & a good friend caught them at the casino "Mohegan Sun" & we met Bill after at a meet & greet....

When I first found out Bill was quitting I was fvcking furious and mad, how dare he fvck up the band? There are other ways to travel as Gazza pointed out, the QEII ships from NY to London and it only takes 11 days or so, trains and cars, hell some bands use tour busses! They could of accomodated Bills travel requests if he asked for his own bus or mini-bus! It was the end of the road for Bill and used flying as his way out. SO when they brought in Darryl I thought oh no, this is gonna suck big time, he'll change up everything and in a way he did. But now after seeing him, hearing him and getting to know him, I like him alot and I think the Stones made a good choice. Darryl can never be a Stone because he isnt British anyway he is a hired hand who can be replaced! PS Bill can still tour with The Stones in Europe or at least in some cities London, Paris, etc if he wanted to. Fact is he said he didnt want to tour anymore, but then with The Rhythym Kings he tours anyway so it isnt the touring that he quit, it was the Stones. I'm still mad about it! I have no right to be mad, of course, it's his fvcking life and he can do as he damn well chooses.

Bitch wrote on Feb 20^th, 2011 at 11:49am:

When I first found out Bill was quitting I was fvcking furious and mad, how dare he fvck up the band? There are other ways to travel as Gazza pointed out, the QEII ships from NY to London and it only takes 11 days or so, trains and cars, hell some bands use tour busses! They could of accomodated Bills travel requests if he asked for his own bus or mini-bus! It was the end of the road for Bill and used flying as his way out. SO when they brought in Darryl I thought oh no, this is gonna suck big time, he'll change up everything and in a way he did. But now after seeing him, hearing him and getting to know him, I like him alot and I think the Stones made a good choice. Darryl can never be a Stone because he isnt British anyway he is a hired hand who can be replaced! PS Bill can still tour with The Stones in Europe or at least in some cities London, Paris, etc if he wanted to. Fact is he said he didnt want to tour anymore, but then with The Rhythym Kings he tours anyway so it isnt the touring that he quit, it was the Stones. I'm still mad about it! I have no right to be mad, of course, it's his fvcking life and he can do as he damn well chooses.

I think I read somewhere one of his reasons for quitting was he felt they had stopped being exciting and had turned into a greatest hits live act.

" When the news broke officially in '93, how did you react;  "



http://i40.tinypic.com/euk3ko.gif   !!!!!!

Joey wrote on Feb 20^th, 2011 at 7:22pm:

" When the news broke officially in '93, how did you react;  " http://i40.tinypic.com/euk3ko.gif   !!!!!!

OK....joey, this is the first mildly humorous thing you've posted since before the iraq war. keep it up.

Starbuck wrote on Feb 20^th, 2011 at 11:10pm:

Joey wrote on Feb 20th, 2011 at 7:22pm: " When the news broke officially in '93, how did you react;  " http://i40.tinypic.com/euk3ko.gif   !!!!!! OK....joey, this is the first mildly humorous thing you've posted since before the iraq war. keep it up.

It is? He's posted it 20 times in the last 2 days. :kissmyass

I wasnt too fussed. If anyone could be replaced, its the bass player.

Bitch wrote on Feb 20^th, 2011 at 11:49am:

When I first found out Bill was quitting I was fvcking furious and mad, how dare he fvck up the band? There are other ways to travel as Gazza pointed out, the QEII ships from NY to London and it only takes 11 days or so, trains and cars, hell some bands use tour busses! They could of accomodated Bills travel requests if he asked for his own bus or mini-bus! It was the end of the road for Bill and used flying as his way out. SO when they brought in Darryl I thought oh no, this is gonna suck big time, he'll change up everything and in a way he did. But now after seeing him, hearing him and getting to know him, I like him alot and I think the Stones made a good choice. Darryl can never be a Stone because he isnt British anyway he is a hired hand who can be replaced! PS Bill can still tour with The Stones in Europe or at least in some cities London, Paris, etc if he wanted to. Fact is he said he didnt want to tour anymore, but then with The Rhythym Kings he tours anyway so it isnt the touring that he quit, it was the Stones. I'm still mad about it! I have no right to be mad, of course, it's his fvcking life and he can do as he damn well chooses.

He fucked up the band less than certain other members have done in recent years when performing while shitfaced to fans who have paid a lot of money to see them.

There's nothing worse than staying in a band when you feel your time has passed and it doesnt motivate you anymore. Keith finally saw his way of thinking and respected his decision.

It wasnt just a fear of flying. He had spent a lot of 1989-90 on the road at a time when the new wife he had married in a blaze of publicity had developed a serious wasting illness, and he had been unable to spend hardly any time with her. His father also died when the band were in Tokyo.  Add that to the fact that he was a lot older than the rest of them, wasn't into the music anymore and was probably the biggest outsider in the whole band and its amazing he lasted as long as he did.

I actually respect him for quitting when he did. It would have been so easy to go through the motions and rake in millions. He has other interests, re-married and has three young daughters - if anything, he seems more content than the rest of them. I've never got the impression he's regretted his decision for a second.

At the time I thought he must be crazy to quit. Over time I've come to see it from his point of view - their best years where behind them and the "vegas" tours were the future.

I agree that he was always consistant, reliable and often inventive whilst in the Stones and if he was missing from a lot of studio cuts it was probably because he was sick of hanging around waiting for Keith to turn up. Exile is a prime example of this.


sc uk

Gazza what you say makes good sense.  I really thought Bill used the fear of flying as his reason for quitting. I didnt know about his wife or his dad. Seems he just wanted to set his own pace.  Still, l wish he would come back for the 50 year tour. Wasnt Bill at the last summit? Maybe he was asked to participate and temporarily un-quit!

Bitch wrote on Feb 21^st, 2011 at 9:27pm:

Gazza what you say makes good sense.  I really thought Bill used the fear of flying as his reason for quitting. I didnt know about his wife or his dad. Seems he just wanted to set his own pace.  Still, l wish he would come back for the 50 year tour. Wasnt Bill at the last summit? Maybe he was asked to participate and temporarily un-quit!

Well, he'd still be called upon for archive projects, and as we're getting a 'Some Girls' deluxe later this year, I'd guess that if he was at their recent meeting it would be more to do with that than anything else. There'll be an interview with him included as part of the '1971-2006 singles' boxed set thats due out soon.

He married Mandy Smith in May 1989. He took two weeks off from the Steel Wheels sessions for his honeymoon. She developed some kind of allergy and was in and out of clinics for much of the time that he was on the road with the Stones (August '89 - '90). hey split up in late 1990 and divorced the following year. Bill commented afterwards that from when they got married until the tour ended, they'd barely spent a few weeks together. Not exactly an ideal situation for a girl of 19 years of age. I'm sure it was a huge strain on him too, so its no wonder that since he remarried and had children again, that he's decided to give more priority to his family.

The way I look at is that these people dont owe us a note of music. They've stuck together for longer than anyone so we've done pretty well out of it so far and if their work doesnt inspire them anymore, then like anyone else, theyre perfectly within their rights to give it up. If we feel compelled to build our lives around them so much or feel shortchanged because they dont want to play until they drop, then thats our problem (and I include myself in that!), not theirs.

Are we certain of a Some Girls deluxe this year? possible song titles?

Some Guy wrote on Feb 22^nd, 2011 at 12:01pm:

Are we certain of a Some Girls deluxe this year? possible song titles?

Yep. Its earmarked for September.

http://rocksoff.org/messageboard/YaBB.pl?num=1297202937/0#0

Song titles? Way too early to say. Doubt the Stones would even know themselves at this stage.

I'd expect some 2011 'tweaking' to be done. Don Was will be producing it again, apparently.

Gazza wrote on Feb 22^nd, 2011 at 1:00pm:

Some Guy wrote on Feb 22nd, 2011 at 12:01pm: Are we certain of a Some Girls deluxe this year? possible song titles? Yep. Its earmarked for September. http://rocksoff.org/messageboard/YaBB.pl?num=1297202937/0#0 Song titles? Way too early to say. Doubt the Stones would even know themselves at this stage. I'd expect some 2011 'tweaking' to be done. Don Was will be producing it again, apparently.

Thanks Gazza

A rejigged SG for September?? A perfect birthday present for me!