The Rolling Stones miss the “chaos and quirkiness” of their late drummer Charlie Watts.
The rock legends kicked off their ‘Hackney Diamonds Tour’ at the NRG Stadium in Houston, Texas, on Sunday (28.04.24), marking their second tour without Charlie, who passed away in June 2021 aged 80.
Although the band are impressed by Steven Jordan’s drumming skills – the musician who has taken Charlie’s place since he died – they still miss the intense energy he brought to their performances.
According to the Daily Star newspaper’s Wired column, 63-year-old bassist Darryl Jones said: “You can have Steve Jordan – who is playing in his place now – who you would consider to be a more educated and learned musician.
“But he can’t create the same kind of chaos or quirkiness that Charlie did. Charlie really was an enigma.”
Singer Sir Mick Jagger, 80, admits that it has been strange to perform without Charlie, as the sticksman has been playing behind him on stage since he was 19 years old.
Speaking to the Daily Mirror newspaper, Mick said: “Of course, it’s hard. I mean, it’s all my life ever since I was 19 or whatever, it’s always been Charlie.
“Of course, it’s emotional, but you have to get past that in life. I love Charlie and all the things, but I still want to carry on making music.”
Guitarist Keith Richards, 80, added: “It was because of Charlie’s demise that we felt that if the Stones were going to continue, then we better make a mark of what the Stones are now.”
At the NRG Stadium, The Rolling Stones – who also include Ronnie Wood on guitar – wowed the sell-out crowd with a two-hour set that included new songs ‘Angry’ and ‘Sweet Sounds of Heaven’ and a host of their greatest hits that included ‘Sympathy for the Devil’, ‘Gimmer Shelter’, ‘Start Me Up’, ‘Honky Tonk Women’, ‘Miss You’ and more.
The group will play in 16 cities across the US and Canada on the ‘Hackney Diamonds Tour’.