The Rolling Stones at 62: How Mick and Keith Defied Decades of Breakup Predictions

When the Rolling Stones released their U.S. debut album‘England’s Newest Hit Makers’in 1964, nobody could have predicted they’d still be making music 62 years later. Back then, they were scrappy rock and roll kids competing directly with The Beatles for chart dominance and cultural relevance. They had eight No. 1 hits, released 25 albums, and cycled through three guitarists while constantly evolving their sound. The band’s longevity in itself is remarkable, but what’s even more wild is the sheer number of times music critics and industry insiders predicted the end.

Billboard literally started calling the Stones’breakup in 1978. Not as a one-time prediction, but as an ongoing tradition that lasted more than 45 years. Every era change, every lineup shift, every moment of tension between Mick Jagger and Keith Richards sparked new“is this finally it?”think pieces. Spoiler alert: it never was. The band’s 1989 Steel Wheels tour even changed touring forever, introducing sponsorship and national promotion arrangements that became the blueprint for modern rock tours. These weren’t nostalgia merchants coasting on past glory—they were innovators constantly redefining what a legacy band could be.

The real weight came when drummer Charlie Watts passed away in 2021 at age 80. For the first time, the Stones weren’t just dealing with creative tension or lineup drama—they were confronting actual mortality. Mick and Keith were forced to look at each other and acknowledge that they were the only two surviving original members. Instead of retiring, they went back into the studio and created‘Foreign Tongues,’an album that proves they still have vital, gutsy rock and roll in them. So here’s the question for you: which Rolling Stones era means the most to you, and do you think they’ll ever actually call it quits?