History of The Rolling Stones

The Rolling Stones are an English rock band, formed in London in April 1962 by Brian Jones (guitar  and harmonica), Ian Stewart (piano), Mick Jagger (lead vocals, harmonica, and guitar) and Keith Richards (guitar and vocals). Bassist Bill Wyman and drummer Charlie Watts completed the early line-up. R&B and bluescover songs dominated the Rolling Stones early material, but their repertoire has always included rock and roll. Critic and musicologist Robert Palmer attributes The Rolling Stones endurance and relevance to having been rooted in traditional verities, in rhythm and blues and soul music while more ephemeral pop fashions have come and gone. The Rolling Stones have been credited for the greater international popularity of the primitive urban blues typified by Chess Records artists such as Muddy Waters, who wrote "Rolling Stone" the from which the band got it's name.

Jones first led the band until Jagger and Richards assumed leadership after teaming as songwriters. By 1969 Jones diminishing contributions to the band and his inability to tour led to him leaving the band three weeks before he drowned in his swimming pool. His replacement Mick Taylor stayed with the band until 1974, and was replaced by Ronnie Wood. Wyman retired from the band in 1993, his replacement Darryl Jones has not been made a full member. Stewart was taken from the official line-up in 1963 and continued as the band's road manager and occasional pianist until his death in 1985. Since 1982, Chuck Leavell has been the band's primary keyboardist.

First popular in Europe, the Rolling Stones quickly became successful in North America during the British Invasion of the mid 1960s. Having released 22 studio albums in the United Kingdom (24 in the United States), nine live albums (ten in the US), and numerous compilations, their worldwide sales are estimated at more than 200 million albums. Sticky Fingers (1971) began a string of eight consecutive studio albums reaching number one in the United States. Their most recent album of entirely new material, A bigger Bang, was released in 2005. In 1989, The Rolling Stones were inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame, and in 2004, they ranked number 4 in Rolling Stones magazine's 100 Greatest Artists of All Time. In 2008, Billboard magazine ranked the Rolling Stones at number ten on "The Billboard Hot 100 Top All-Time Artists" and as the second most successful group in the Billboard Hot 100 chart.