"Some doctor told me I had six months to live and I went to their funeral."
No one stays in the game as long as The Rolling Stones and doesn’t encounter a few bumps along the way.
As much as Mick Jagger and Keith Richards could write beautiful music whenever they got together, there were times when some of their best work either got left on the cutting room floor or got royally screwed up when it came time to mix everything.
There are still some pieces that stick out more than others, and for the guitar gunslinger, he felt that two albums could have easily said it all for his career.
As much as The Stones have a great track record for licks, though, Richards always seemed to get away clean on their more questionable material. Even though a record like Dirty Work is marred by being too many times and often hard to listen to, a song like ‘Had It With You’ is still one of Richards’s best moments on the record.
So it’s really no surprise that Richards needed some sort of outlet during the 1980s. Between Stones records, Richards’s wilderness period outside the band is still some of the most eye-opening moments of his career, like finding the time to work his magic with Tom Waits on the album Rain Dogs.
We all have to go some time. If that is breaking news to you, and I am sure it isn't, then I am sorry. Still, we are all music lovers, right? How many times has it crossed your mind, "When they hold my funeral, these are the songs I want to be played"?
Keith Richards is seemingly immortal. But when he does go, he wants this song played at his funeral.
The question was proposed to iconic Rolling Stones guitarist Keith Richards in an interview with GQ far back in 2008. His answer was "Tumbling Dice," a track of gambling and love. Richards said that "Tumbling Dice" best represented his philosophy of life. The lyrics are about the freedom of not being tied down. Not trying to keep from falling in love, but being in control of one's emotions if that does happen."
He said when asked about the tune being played, "I hope so. Just as long as I’m not there.
And despite being in The Stones for life, Richards said that his first two solo albums are worthy of saying it all for him a lot better than some records by his main outfit, saying, “There’s nothing on those two (solo) albums that I wouldn’t proudly display at my funeral.” But that’s probably because there’s not as much room he had to compromise on these records, either.
