The 1960s bands Keith Richards always hated
The Rolling Stones’ Keith Richards has never been one to hold his tongue. When it comes to making his opinions known about musicians he hates, whether it’s his friends, enemies or colleagues, the guitarist doesn’t hold back.
The bands he hated throughout the 1960s and those he has talked poorly about in the past are a very interesting reflection of Richard’s mindset throughout the decade. There are many acts that you won’t be surprised to hear he doesn’t like, such as Guns N’ Roses, Oasis, and Sex Pistols; however, the ones he disliked from the ‘60s seem to be more a reflection of professional jealousy as opposed to informed opinion.
Artists like Bob Dylan, The Band and The Beatles all feature on the list of artists from that influential decade that rubbed Richards the wrong way. When you listen to his reasoning, it starts to become clear that he was more adverse to the experimentation of their music and how the public responded to it, as opposed to disliking their sound as a whole.
This provides great insight into the man as a musician as someone with high standards, no mercy and critical self-awareness. Here are the five bands and artists from the 1960s that Keith Richards couldn’t stand.
The 1960s artists that Keith Richards hated:
The Beatles
While there was a lot about The Beatles that Keith Richards was a fan of, there was also a lot of their work that he had little to no time for. When they started becoming more experimental with their music, such as on albums like Sgt Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band, he disconnected. He especially hated this album because the Rolling Stones felt compelled to try to emulate it on their album, Their Satanic Majesties Request.
“Chicks wore those guys out. They stopped touring in 1966; they were done already,” said Richards when discussing the band, “They were ready to go to India and shit.”
He also mentioned that he was a fan of Sgt Pepper, saying it was a “Mishmash of rubbish […] There’s not a lot of roots in that music. I think they got carried away.”
Bob Dylan
While Richards is a fan of Bob Dylan’s work, he doesn’t have many kind words about him as a person. It is alleged that he and Bob almost came to blows on a number of occasions when Bob Dylan criticised his writing skills, and also said that his backing band, The Band, were better musicians than The Rolling Stones.
“Bob’s a nasty little bugger. I remember him saying to me, ‘I could have written ‘Satisfaction’, Keith – but you couldn’t have written ‘Desolation Row’,” recalled Richards, “I said, ‘Well, you’re right there, Bob!’”
The Band
Richards never seemed to let go of the comment Dylan made about The Band being better than The Rolling Stones. When he was discussing Dylan’s performance at the Isle of Wight Festival, he said The Band were too strict and didn’t allow for spontaneity during the performance.
“I was disappointed. Dylan was beautiful, especially when he did the songs by himself,” he said, “The Band were just too strict. They’ve been playing together for a long, long time, and what I couldn’t understand was their lack of spontaneity. They sounded note for note like their records. … They just didn’t seem to come alive by themselves. I think that they’re essentially an accompanying band.”
Creedence Clearwater Revival
One thing that has to be said for The Rolling Stones is that while it’s evident their roots lie in the blues and R&B, none of their albums sound the same. The Rolling Stones have always been insistent on altering their sound as a reflection of themselves. Richards liked it when bands changed their style slightly, which is why he wasn’t too keen on Creedence Clearwater Revival.
“When I first heard [CCR], I was really knocked out,” he said. “But I became bored with them very quickly. After a few times, it started to annoy me. They’re so basic and simple that maybe it’s a little too much.”
The Bee Gees
There is no escaping the fact that The Bee Gees and the Rolling Stones are completely different from one another, and this had nothing to do with artistic integrity; it was more a result of the fact that Keith Richards hated how The Bee Gees sounded. Everything from their music to their attitude pissed him off, resulting in him being the whatever the furthest thing from a fan is.
“Well, they’re in their own little fantasy world,” he said. “You only have to read what they talk about in interviews. … How many suits they’ve got and that kind of crap. It’s all kid stuff, isn’t it?”
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