The most important member of The Rolling Stones, according to Bob Dylan
It is fair to say that, in his six decades at the heart of the songwriting realm, Bob Dylan has seen it all, from emerging sounds and scenes to the countless iconic stars that have come and gone over the course of his tenure. One of the very few constants during that illustrious career, however, has been The Rolling Stones.
If rock and roll truly is a young man’s game, then nobody seems to have informed Mick Jagger and the gang. Having once occupied a reputation as the poster boys of rock and roll rebellion, completely changing the spirit of Britain’s post-war youth back in the 1960s, The Stones are now weathered billionaires continuing to tour the globe through colossal sports arenas and stadiums. At this point, after all, the band members would likely feel out of place if they weren’t on a stage, tour bus, or private jet.
Nevertheless, it isn’t overly contentious to suggest that The Stones, by and large, probably should have thrown in the towel quite a few years ago. Even the most ardent of fans must surely admit that the band’s golden age has long since passed – it isn’t as though a band of blokes in their 80s can reproduce the transformative genius of albums like Exile On Main Street, after all.
Ironically, though, Bob Dylan is in that same camp, affirming that The Rolling Stones should have gone their separate ways decades ago. During one 2009 interview with Bill Flanagan, when asked about the rock icons, Dylan retorted, “They’re pretty much finished, aren’t they?”
Expanding, “I’m not saying they don’t keep going, but they need Bill [Wyman]. Without him, they’re a funk band. They’ll be the real Rolling Stones when they get Bill back.” In that case, The Rolling Stones haven’t been complete since 1993, when the long-standing bassist’s resignation from the band was finally accepted by his fellow performers.
Although Dylan, perhaps in the interest of fairness, quickly retracted his scathing assessment of the band, saying, “They’re far from finished. The Rolling Stones are truly the greatest rock and roll band in the world and always will be,” his affirmation that the band haven’t been the same since Wyman left is difficult to dispute.
Inevitably, Wyman’s departure changed the fabric of the band forevermore, given that he had been with them since their very earliest days back in 1962, when The Rolling Stones were little more than an R&B cover band. What’s more, his bass contributions formed a core element of virtually every masterpiece record The Stones ever recorded.
Then again, he wasn’t the only key member of the group to depart from the line-up over the years, and aside from anything else, Wyman had a hand in a fair few of the group’s flops, too. His final record with the band, Steel Wheels, for instance, is certainly not as offensively bad as some of their more recent efforts, but it is never considered among The Stones’ greatest contributions.
Regardless, if – as Dylan suggests – The Rolling Stones haven’t been the same band since Wyman left, then the present-day situation, with the tragic passing of Charlie Watts in 2021, would surely suggest that the band are much closer to being “finished” than when the folk singer first gave that interview. There is, of course, an argument to be had over whether Dylan himself is finished, too.
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