Sydney Recording Studio: Jagger, Richards and Taylor soon joined up with Jones, who wanted to start his own group. Pianist Ian Stewart was also an early member of what would become the Rolling Stones. By 1963, Charlie Watts had joined the band as its drummer and Taylor departed, replaced by Bill Wyman. Stewart, however, stayed on to serve as road manager, as well as playing and recording with the band. Under the direction of their manager Andrew Loog Oldham, the Rolling Stones were marketed as a group of wild and rough rockers. The group’s wild style helped them land a deal with Decca Records. Jagger was a key ingredient in the band’s growing success, attracting audiences with his stage antics and sex appeal.
At first, the group mostly recorded cover versions of other people’s songs, but Richards and Jagger, along with their bandmates, soon emerged as a powerful songwriting team—occasionally using the pseudonym “Nanker Phelge” for some of their early work. The Stones first made the British charts in 1964 with a cover version of Bobby Womack’s “It’s All Over Now.” That same year, the band released their debut album and toured the United States, having their first American hit with “That Girl Belongs to Yesterday.” More hits soon followed, including the chart-topping “(I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction” and “Paint It Black” along with albums like Out of Our Heads (1965) and Aftermath (1966).
Sydney Recording Studio: Tragedy Strikes
In 1967, Jagger’s personal life made headlines. He and his girlfriend, singer Marianne Faithfull, were among those arrested during a police raid of Richards’s country home in England. During their search, police officers found drug paraphernalia and illegal substances. Both Jagger and Richards were tried and convicted for drug-related offenses, but their sentences were dropped on appeal. Two years later, Jagger and Faithfull were arrested for drug possession after authorities raided Jagger’s London home.
