The Musicians Keith Richards Criticized for Sounding ‘Too Perfect’

Keith Richards has spent much of his career insulting his fellow musicians. He rolls his eyes at competing acts and has even turned his scorn on his bandmates in The Rolling Stones. Richards found many things to criticize, including, in one instance, a band sounding too perfect. He shared why he didn’t like Bob Dylan’s backing group, The Band.

Keith Richards thought fellow musicians The Band sounded too clean

In the 1960s, The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, and Dylan were some of the biggest musical acts in the world. Richards liked Dylan and The Beatles, but he thought Dylan’s backing band, The Band, left something to be desired.

“I saw them at the Dylan gig on the Isle of Wight and I was disappointed,” he told Rolling Stone in 1969. “Dylan was beautiful, especially when he did the songs by himself. He has a unique rhythm which only seems to come off when he’s performing solo.”

Richards appreciated a sense of spontaneity in live performances. He believed The Band lacked this entirely.

“The Band were just too strict,” he said. “They’ve been playing together for a long, long time, and what I couldn’t understand was their lack of spontaneity. They sounded note for note like their records. It was like they were just playing the records on stage and at a fairly low volume, with very clear sound. I personally like some distortion, especially if something starts happening on stage. But they just didn’t seem to come alive by themselves. I think that they’re essentially an accompanying band. When they were backing up Dylan, there was a couple of times when they did get off. But they were just a little too perfect for me.”

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Keith Richards has insulted far more musicians than The Band

Richards’ criticism of The Band was not nearly as harsh as it could have been. Over the years, the guitarist has proved that he has no qualms about insulting other musicians. He called Elton John inauthentic, didn’t think George Harrison and Paul McCartney added much to The Beatles, and found Robert Plant’s singing over the top. He has reserved many of his insults for his longtime bandmate Mick Jagger, though.

“Mick got very big ideas,” Richards wrote in his book Life. “All lead singers do. It’s a known affliction called LVS, lead vocalist syndrome.”

Richards has slung insults at his bandmate for decades. While he has picked at Jagger over the years, they are still able to work together in The Rolling Stones. 

The Rolling Stones’ Ronnie Wood joined The Band onstage during ‘The Last Waltz’

While Richards didn’t appreciate The Band, his bandmate, Ronnie Wood, was more of a fan. In 1976, The Band put on a farewell concert, The Last Waltz. A number of musicians joined the group onstage to perform their songs. 

The closing number was “I Shall Be Released,” and Wood, who had not yet been onstage, joined the band on guitar.