Keith Richards - Part 2

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After the death of major star Brian Jones in 1969, the Rolling Stones changed their sound to become more of a hard rock band, and Richards' guitar playing was brought to the forefront. During the late 1960's and early 70's, Richards dropped the "s" on his name and was going by Keith Richard because he believed it to be more distinctive. His private life, along with the private lives of his other bandmates were becoming more destructive, and Richards own heroin addiction had a profound affect on the quality of recordings during this time and produced many more legal issues for him. Still, in 1976 and 1977, Richards decided to record some solo work, but none of it was really viable due to physical and mental problems caused by his drug abuse, and only a Christmas single "Run Rudolph Run" was released. A lack of productivity during this time for Richards can be directly attributed to it being a very difficult time for him in his life personally.

In 1976, Richards lost his third child in infancy. While the official cause of death was SIDS, some feel that his drug abuse along with Pallenberg's could have contributed. In 1977, he was convicted of heroin possession in Toronto, and escaped jail time by agreeing to perform a charity concert and to enter a rehabilitation program in the U.S. This drug conviction worked to change Richards' life, and when the Stones released "Some Girls" in 1978, it was hailed as a triumphant, focused success that is hailed still as an arena rock classic.

In 1983, Richards married Patti Hansen to continue the reshaping of his personal life for the better. At the same time, Jagger announced he wanted to take a turn towards contemporary pop. When Richards refused to change directions, Jagger tried his hand at a solo career that was so time-consuming that it began to be more important to him than the Stones. Richards and Jagger got into a heated dispute and the band was rumored to be splitting. In response to Jagger's refusal to support the work of the Stones fully, Richards formed a solo project of his own with a backing band the Xpensive Winos.

His first solo album, "Talk is Cheap," released in 1988 was critically acclaimed and enjoyed great commercial success. In fact, it far outsold Jagger's "Primitive Cool" album. It was heralded as a solid rock and roll record and supported by MTV when the gold single "Take it So Hard" was played often on the network. Richards even went on a supporting tour, which offered up the live album "Live at the Hollywood Palladium" in 1991. Richards' solo success coaxed Jagger to return to The Rolling Stones and, though both continued to work on solo projects, they made an agreement that The Rolling Stones would forever be their main priority. Since Richards' last album, "Main Offender" in 1992, he has devoted all his time to The Rolling Stones.

Richards has over 1000 guitars, some of which he has never played but were gifts from admirers and friends. He is most attached to his Fender Telecaster, although in recent years has begun playing a black Gibson ES-355. On "Satisfaction" and other early Stones recordings, he was one of the first to play a fuzz box guitar, a sound that informed and generated garage rock. At home, he prefers the gentler sounds of acoustic guitar.

Richards' backing vocals appear on every Stones album, and ever since "Some Girls," every record has had at least one song featuring his lead vocal stylings. He also plays bass, keyboard and slide guitar on some recordings and enjoys a side job as a record producer both for the Stones and for himself.

SOLO DISCOGRAPHY

"Talk is Cheap," October 3, 1988
"Live at the Hollywood Palladium, December 15, 1988," December 10, 1991
"Main Offfender," October 19, 1992