Paul McCartney and Mick Jagger, often portrayed as arch rivals from The Beatles and The Rolling Stones, came close to forming a supergroup dubbed the Rolling Beatles, according to a new book by music journalist Bob Spitz. The World’s Greatest Rock n Roll Band reveals that the two music legends planned to dominate the British music industry with a joint venture.
Business Minds Behind the Bands
Spitz explains that McCartney and Jagger were the business minds of their respective bands. After Rolling Stones manager Andrew Oldham resigned in 1967, the band never had another manager, leaving Jagger in charge. McCartney and Jagger sensed they had a stranglehold on the music scene and wanted to create a business empire together.
They planned to establish a joint headquarters, one company, and one record label. However, John Lennon and George Harrison from The Beatles were not on board with the idea. McCartney even scouted a disused brewery in Camden, north London, as a potential HQ and envisioned a heliport for flying bands in and out. Jagger was intrigued but ultimately considered the plan too fantastical.
What Might Have Been
Spitz notes that while the supergroup never materialized, Jagger and Keith Richards' songwriting prowess propelled The Rolling Stones to sell over 250 million albums worldwide and gross $2.9 billion from touring. The duo's relationship has been fraught at times, particularly over Richards' drug abuse and Jagger's solo ambitions, but they have always reconciled.
Richards' drug use spiraled out of control in the 1970s. In 1976, he fell asleep at the wheel of his Bentley on the M1 motorway, crashing into a farmer's field. He was arrested after police found a coke spoon and LSD. Richards was fined £750. Spitz describes Richards as "seriously f*cked up" during that period.
Ronnie Wood's Struggles
Ronnie Wood, who joined The Stones in 1975, also battled drug addiction. Jagger threatened to sack him in the early 1980s, but Richards defended him. Wood eventually cleaned up and has now been sober for 16 years. Richards stopped drinking in 2018 and quit smoking in 2020. Jagger, who had heart valve replacement surgery in 2019, trains five to six days a week with ballet and yoga.
The surviving Stones are preparing to release their 25th studio album, Foreign Tongues, which features Paul McCartney. Spitz's book, The Rolling Stones: The Biography, is released on May 28 in the UK, and the album drops on July 10.
