Life by Keith Richards

Keith Richards. The Rolling Stones. There’s reverence in them there words. I’m the wrong generation to have grown up with them, but I was raised with their rhythms, riffs and lyrics in my ears (thanks Dad). They were (and still are) a thumping great band and man, have they had a rock’n’roll life. Life is Keith’s story.
There seem to be rules around writing an autobiography review. You give a timeline, crucial moments and important people. I’m more interested in a person’s character, as even someone with an exciting life can be an idiot. Rather than all the usual ‘inspiration’ talk, here are some things you might not know about Keith:
- He and Mick Jagger wrote almost all the Rolling Stones’ music.
- As a kid he once found a dead tramp in an old machine gun post.
- He hates it when someone takes the first piece of Shepherd’s Pie.
- He had a Bentley Continental called Blue Lena.
- He rescued a stray dog in Moscow and a teeny kitten from a storm drain in Jamaica.
It can be hard to keep up. Sometimes the point of the story changes part way through a sentence. New characters are introduced at a ferocious rate, with a colourful, blunt lowdown and sometimes a crazy story, then you’re back to where you left off. Other times you get a “more on that later,” like a gossipy housewife over the fence. Love it.
If you’re an idiot, Keith will tell you. He collects waifs and strays, tucking them under his wing and trusting them with his life. Don’t get me wrong; he’s as clear-eyed about people’s faults as he is accepting. He just has a lot of faith in the human spirit, and you really have to screw up for him to stop believing in you. If you do screw up, he’ll tell you to your face what an idiot you’ve been. Who doesn’t need friends like that?
If you know much about the Stones, you’ll know their reputation for sex, drugs and rock’n’roll. As Keith tells it, the reputation had nothing on reality. He is open about heroin addiction, stealing band members’ girls and mistakes along the way. No false modesty or piety, what you see is what you get.
Keith’s devotion to music is the thread of his life. From the Stones’ early days, squatting in a freezing flat with an amp but no heating, to homes in four countries, Keith will never stop being a guitar player in a rock’n’roll band. He’ll never stop looking for that new lick, that driving baseline. In his own words;
“I can rest on my laurels. I’ve stirred up enough crap in my time and I’ll live with it and see how somebody else deals with it. But then there’s that word ‘retiring'. I can’t retire until I croak.”
A promise: you’ll get to the end of Life and feel like you’ve had the longest late-night session of your life with a true storyteller. You know those nights: you’re sitting in the kitchen with a pack of cigarettes and an ashtray, there’s whiskey or beer (or both) on the table and no one wants to go to bed in case you miss something.
This is a rollicking great read Keith, and I like you. Nice one.
| Title: Life |
| Author: Keith Richards |
| Format: Hardcover, 547 pages |
| Publisher: Weidenfeld & Nicolson |
