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Originally Posted by Chi-Town
True about The Beatles being the biggest seller. They just got better and better. But the Stones are still alive and performing which is amazing on both counts.
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In the case of Keith Richards, "alive" is questionable. Their performances as of late are nothing at all like the Rolling Stones that I saw in 1965.
Ron Wood really doesn't add much to the line up. When they got rid of Brian (understandable under the circumstances) they lost the heart and soul of the original group. They then picked up Mick Taylor who is a brilliant guitarist. Taylor added something new to the group, but also changed the original feeling and concept. When he quit they picked up Wood who was mostly a bassist and is a mediocre guitarist. These days Keef tries to play some of the lead parts that Brian and Mick Taylor played, but it's obvious that he is a rhythm guitarist. Same thing for Woody. Much of the music in their live shows is being played by professional hired guns and back up singers. They have a hired bass player, keyboardist, a horn section, back up singers and I think a guitar player or two that you may or may not see.
Today, Wyman is no longer with them. Charlie mostly tours Europe with his jazz band and shows up for a paycheck. Mick is desperately trying to hold onto his youth with all that idiotic dancing and Keith wanders around like a zombie.
Their musicianship is terrible these days, not that it was ever all that great. They're not really a band as much as they are an event. Kind of like a carnival sideshow. People go to see them to say that they've seen the Rolling Stones. Rolling Stones tribute bands to a better job of performing their material than the originals do.
Now I suppose that Paul and Ringo could find a couple of other guys and perform Beatles songs under the name the Beatles, but it really wouldn't be The Beatles then, would it?