The Rolling Stones guitarist Keith Richards is one of the prickliest men in rock music. Alongside being one of his generation’s most essential and notorious icons, he’s shown numerous times that he is a non-conformist in the true countercultural spirit. His attitude towards other artists is one area where this notion particularly comes to the fore.
Although Richards is just as famous for his hellraising with The Rolling Stones as he is for his artistic efforts, before all else, he reached his iconic status by being a fantastic musician. People might often forget this due to his caricature-like personality, but Richards is one of the greatest guitarists that emerged during the heady days of the 1960s.
Fusing his lifelong love of the blues and traditional Spanish music, Richards conceived a distinctive approach to the fretboard that weaponised finger-picking and open tunings. This unique style saw him establish a potent songwriting partnership with the British band’s swaggering frontman, Mick Jagger. From ‘Gimme Shelter’ to ‘(I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction’, the pair have written an extensive list of classics.
Due to The Rolling Stones’ general sound and the quality of his efforts, Keith Richards is one of the figures most closely associated with rock music, particularly that of the classic era. However, given his penchant for going against the grain and natural propensity for contempt, he has asserted that he is not a fan of rock music.
This thought emerged when Richards was commenting on one of the most influential bands the world has ever seen: Led Zeppelin. Here, he distinguished between rock ‘n’ roll, which he loves, and rock, which he decried as the lesser version of the original genre.
“Rock ‘n’ roll I never get tired of, but ‘rock’ is a white man’s version,” he said of Led Zeppelin’s sonic insurgency in the documentary Under the Influence, “And they turn it into a march, that’s [the modern] version of rock. Excuse me, I prefer the roll.”
When speaking on his website, Richards expanded on his distaste for Led Zeppelin’s rock music. He said: “As a band, I felt aptly named, it never took off for me musically. At the same time, Jimmy Page is one of the best guitar players I’ve ever known. Bonham was a hell of a powerhouse drummer although I think he’s kind of heavy-handed, myself — that’s when the ‘Led’ comes in.”
