What would Keith Richards do_ - Jessica Pallington West [42]
—regarding the unwarranted bad
weather at a California concert
“The only thing about the in-his-own image thing is, who’d want to look like this?"
ON BEING GOOD and BAD
“The good die young … but hey, where does that leave me?"
“It’s funny, when you’ve done it all. I’m such a good boy these days."
“If I knew what the other original sin was, I would do it."
“After a show the wise man will take it easy, digest his food, then put himself to bed. But then there might be a knock on the door. And then, would the wise man really want to forgo a good party?"
GUILT, INNOCENCE, and the LAW
“I see. They pin it all on me."
—response to the sergeant in the Redlands
drug bust, who said that any drug-taking at
Keith’s home will be his responsibility
“I don’t think anyone who takes smack feels guilty about taking smack. What they’re really guilty about is something else. Some of them want to feel guilty. They need to feel guilty. And smack is the best thing to take if you want to feel guilty about anything. It’s the perfect excuse to feel guilty."
“I don’t like to regret heroin—because I learned a lot from it. It was a large part of my life. It is something I went through and dealt with."
“People hate themselves anyway. If it wasn’t smack, they’d hate themselves for eating carrots. You can bet on it."
“We’re still the only rock ’n’ roll band arrested for peeing on a wall."
“I just wondered if the uniform was with stripes or arrows."
—at the press conference following his
1978 court appearance for drugs, when
asked if he’d prepared for prison
“I could never think of music in terms of guilt. I’ve pled guilty twenty-five times in a row, but not to music."
—on being asked if he has any
guilty pleasures in music
THE GUITAR
“Three notes, two fingers, and an asshole, and you’ve got it! You can play the darned thing. That’s all it takes. What you do with it is another thing."
“They made me love them, but they beat me up bad."
—referring to the banged-up
condition of his hands
“It means I make the most noise."
—response to defense attorney’s question
of what it means to play guitar, 1977
“At some time during the day you’ve gotta stroke the baby."
“You look at it, and it’s a … tennis racquet, but the more you find out about it, the more you don’t know. Which is great because it means you’ve still got more to find out."
“Everybody should be born with a guitar—there’d be far less suicides."
“If I was suddenly stuck alone—I could probably stop myself from going mad as long as I had a guitar."
“The guitar, apart from its musical worth and versatility, also has a mystique about it … that is very central to rock ’n’ roll."
“The shape of the guitar is very feminine. There’s many times I’ve slept with that thing."
“The reason I play it is that the more you do, the more you learn. I found a new chord the other day. I was like, ‘Shit, if I had known that years ago …’ That’s what’s beautiful about the guitar. You think you know it all, but it keeps opening up new doors. I look at life as six strings and twelve frets. If I can’t figure out everything that’s in there, what chance do I have of figuring out anything else?"
HEALTH
“There’s only one fatal disease, I’ve concluded. It’s called hypochondria. And it’s deadly."
“My epitaph will be: ‘Fuckers! I told you I wasn’t feeling well!’ ”
“Tours develop their own strains of bacteria and bugs. They make their own diseases."
“There have been great strides made in medical science lately. That’s why I am able to say to you, ‘Good evening, ladies and gentlemen. Welcome to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.’ ”
“I’m free of hypochondria—although I’ve got everything else."
“The idea that life is a regime, of trying to be this way or this, is ludicrous. Everyone is different, and I think everybody should take their lives and bodies in their own hands and get to know it. Mine likes to be abused, preferably by myself."
“You’ve only got to have one broken tooth for everyone to think you’re a villain."
“You know the British Museum has one of those glass