The rolling stone They are one of those eternal groups whose music has become the soundtrack of everyone’s life for 60 years. Yes, 60 years. It would be a bit unlikely to say at this point in life that someone hasn’t heard yet Sympathy for the devil, Angie, start me upor the unmistakable I Can’t Get No Satisfaction.
That’s why a new documentary film wishes to celebrate not only his trajectorybut influence that this British group, which emerged in London in 1962keeps its audience nourished with all generations possible.
This is the docuseries titled My Life as a Rolling Stone (My life like a Rolling Stone), composed by four feature filmsas extended episodes, narrated in the first person by each of the members: Mick Jagger, Keith Richards, Ronnie Wood and charlie wattswho passed away last yearin August, when the recordings began.
The show not only promises exclusive interviews with the members, but with an all-star cast of artists from all walks of life, whose work has been influenced by English musicians such as Andy Summers (ThePolice), Sheryl Crowe, Lars Ulrich (Metallic), Tina Turner and more. In addition, exclusive material from the band is presented, such as videos and other records from the time never seen before.
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The documentary, produced by Mercury Studios, premiered the first two parts on Thursday, August 4and deliveries the last two this Thursday 11. It is available on pay TV service DirecTVthrough the channel OnDirectvand through its platform DirectvGo.
It was directed by filmmakers Sam Anthony, Oliver Murray, and Clare Tavernor (IMDB info). The production also has the work of the executive producer Steve Condie (Keeler, Profumo, Ward and Me, Thatcher: A Very British Revolution, Skinhead), who answered a round of questions from Latin American media, including the newspaper EL UNIVERSO on behalf of Ecuador, about the development of this work.
How was the first time you heard the Rolling Stones?
My father was a huge Rolling Stone fan, so music was part of our home. The first record I bought was when I was nine years old, TE Echo de menos, which came out in the late ’70s. I remember going out to the record store with my quarters. I have a very longstanding emotional connection to the music of the Rolling Stones, as do most of the crew that worked on the show. Also, if you grow up in the UK the Rolling Stones are part of the soundtrack of your life. The wonderful thing really is that wherever you live, because you can find his music on the internet, it is the soundtrack of everyone’s life.
Photo: CLEMENS BILAN
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It can be hard to find something new to say about such a famous band. How does this documentary stand out from others?
It is absolutely correct. That’s why we decided to make movies about each member, instead of telling the story of the band over the years. In this way we could delve into the personalities, character and musical gift of each one and give audiences a deeper insight into them. The films of the four together will allow us to understand their history as a band and the chemistry that has made them work over the years. From the beginning we were very aware that it is difficult to find new things to see, so we focused on them as individuals.
Are there parts of the history of the Rolling Stones that can still surprise us?
I hope this isn’t taken the wrong way, but I think they lived through an era of excess, which we’ve seen as acceptable in some ways, because it was part of the fabric of what music was. Maybe today we’re much more aware of those things, because there are certain aspects of the rock and roll lifestyle that contemporary culture looks back on and wonders, how did they get away with it? I do think there are still aspects of his story that are somewhat shocking and surprising. Everyone knows that the Rolling Stones, especially Keith and Ronnie, had a very strong association with drugs. We tried to get them to be honest about it and to reflect on those years when drugs were a very central part of their life.
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Did you fear that those parts might lead to ‘cancel culture’ from viewers?
No, not really. That’s because I think they’re pretty honest about it. Now we’re in a cultural moment where we look back at bands like the Rolling Stones and for example we can talk about the relationship between white British musicians and black artists and the music of African-American culture. They always knew that this was absolutely fundamental to what they did. And they are also very honest about this.
Another thing that we found when we were doing the show, as we were very interested in having interviews with outsiders, was making sure that we had women and men of color, and not just some kind of club of rock stars talking to each other.
In the case of each member, what did you find new?
With Mick, I was amazed at how early his career happened, how young he was and at the same time very smart about how the music industry worked and how to project his and the Stones’ image using television, for example, understanding how that would work. medium in your favor. In the documentary we see him at the age of 19 studying how to position himself to communicate with the audience. We can see very early how astute Mick Jagger was as an artist and as a communicator.
About Keith, the surprising thing is that many people have an image of him as a rebel, when in reality he is very quiet, reserved and very few know how nervous he felt to be in the Rolling Stones. His path to drugs was something that happened because he realized that being in this band was very hard, because of the pressure and all the attention they received.
With Ronnie, people will realize that he saved the Rolling Stones. If there was no Ronnie Wood there would be no Rolling Stones. Because when he joined the band he gave them a shot of fun and energy that they desperately needed in the 1970s. But the beauty of his story is that after he saved the band, the band saved him. Ronnie had a terrible addiction to cocaine. The gang along with Ronnie’s family took him out to clean up and saved his life.
You know the most amazing thing about Charlie? He spent 60 years in a gang that he loved to run away from. He never loved being a part of rock and roll, he always kept his distance from it, even though he played it every night when they were on tour. But he didn’t go out to parties or do what everyone else did. He is the antithesis of the rock and roll lifestyle, he was an English gentleman in a rock and roll band.
How was the experience to create this documentary, in the emotional sense?
We were literally starting the project when Charlie died. And that was a big shock. We weren’t sure if we would continue, but we found it was a commitment to do so, in part because we wanted to create a tribute to Charlie. He didn’t do a lot of interviews, but we went through every interview clip we could find, so he has a presence in the film. We were also very happy to be able to meet all his friends, they are not very well known people, but they remember his childhood.
What would you say is the legacy of the Rolling Stones?
They are a very important part of the history of music and the history of rock and roll. I think musically they have been the most creative. If you think about the music that they’ve made, they started out making some kind of pretty basic blues music and then moved on to the most amazing pop music that you’ve ever heard. They made funk and soul influenced music before morphing into a rock stable. I think it’s a really powerful legacy.
What is the key lesson that the documentary will leave us?
Two lessons. Sometimes the brilliance of their music gets overlooked a little bit and I hope people learn from them on these shows, how talented they are as artists, they’re not just a bunch of artists who had crazy lifestyles. The second is a kind of life lesson. Something that very few people achieve in their lives, unless they are related by blood, is staying together for so many years. They are a testament to the friendship and bonds they share thanks to a creative vision and love of music.
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“The Rolling Stones are the soundtrack to everyone’s life,” says Steve Condie, executive producer of documentary ‘My life as Rolling Stone’ | Television | Entertainment