What All Of Mick Jagger's Former Bandmates Have Said About Him

Not to demean long-standing and pivotal members of the Rolling Stones like Charlie Watts and Ronnie Wood, but when the Stones are the topic, guitarist Keith Richards and Mick Jagger come to mind first for most people. The duo's working partnership has been the source of some of the greatest rock music of all time. On the other hand, Richards and Jagger have had plenty of arguments over the decades, and the guitarist has been very open about them. He once told Men's Journal, "I've always found working with Mick is like a joy, it's a real pleasure. It's outside of the realm of work is where we tend to disagree."

Richards has also heavily criticized Jagger on several occasions, specifically for being self-absorbed, for altering his personality on behalf of popularity, and, maybe worst of all, for diverting attention from the Stones with his solo career. In his autobiography, "Life," Richards' descriptions of his bandmate's strange behavior included his assessment that "what somebody else was doing was far more interesting to him than what he was doing. He even began to act as if he wanted to be someone else." He added bluntly, "Why would you want to be anything else if you're Mick Jagger?"

The two spent so much time together that eventually the tensions beyond their music-making became too great, leading them into an almost strictly professional relationship. In an interview with Rolling Stone, Richards offered an especially sad remark: "I haven't gone to his dressing room in, I don't think, 20 years. Sometimes I miss my friend."