Mick Jagger says Paul McCartney “really rocked out” on new Rolling Stones collaboration
Ahead of The Rolling Stones‘ forthcoming album Hackney Diamonds, Mick Jagger has teased the track ‘Bite My Head Off’ featuring Paul McCartney.
The upcoming LP, which is the first album to consist of new material by The Rolling Stones since 2005’s A Bigger Bang, is set to be released on October 20th. Last week, The Stones officially announced details of the record and shared the lead single ‘Angry’ which arrived with a video starring Euphoria’s Sydney Sweeney.
Across Hackney Diamonds, The Stones have collaborated with Lady Gaga, Elton John, Stevie Wonder and McCartney. Despite being friends for several decades, ‘Bite My Head Off’ marks the former Beatles member’s first time playing bass for the group. It was also revealed that he recorded another song for the band which will appear on a future release.
In a new interview with Rolling Stone, Wood recalled how they were initially struggling to get the album off the ground, and McCartney offered him advice regarding hiring a producer. The guitarist explained: “The whole thing was getting a little bit out of hand, and I said, ‘We need a referee’. I was at dinner with Paul McCartney, and he was saying, ‘How’s it all going?’ And I said we need someone to boss us around. And he said, ‘Well, there’s this young New York boy, Andrew Watt. Give him a try.’”
Jagger had already contacted Watt to produce the album, and once the official process began, McCartney popped by their studio to lay down some bass. “I’d sung with Paul before and I’d hung out with Paul a lot, but I’ve never played with him,” Jagger said.
He continued: “I didn’t know what song to do. Should we do ‘Depending on You,’ like a ballad? Or something else? And Andy said, ‘Well, let’s try him on your punk song, on “Bite My Head Off.”‘ Paul seemed very happy to play in a band where he didn’t have all the responsibility; he was just the bass player. And he really rocked out. He fitted straight in. It was like we’d been playing with him for years. It was a really good feeling.”
Meanwhile, Wood explained how McCartney was thrilled to appear on a track with The Rolling Stones, recalling:“Paul said to me, ‘Can you believe, here we are in the studio together?’ He said, ‘I have a dream come true: I’m playing with the Rolling Stones. And guess who is producing? Andrew, like we said.’ He was loving it, like a kid in a toy shop.”
Hackney Diamonds is set for release on October 20th.
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