_Photo: Phillipe Ruel_

In a particularly revealing interview with Esquire, The Rolling Stones guitarist Keith Richards dished on his thoughts about The Beatles’ music when compared to that of the Stones. “The Beatles sounded great when they were the Beatles,” Richards said. “But there’s not a lot of roots in that music. I think they got carried away.”

He went on to add, “If you’re the Beatles in the ’60s, you just get carried away—you forget what it is you wanted to do. You’re starting to do Sgt. Pepper. Some people think it’s a genius album, but I think it’s a mishmash of rubbish, kind of like Satanic Majesties—‘Oh, if you can make a load of shit, so can we.’”

Richards also evaluated the Stones’ “Zip Code” tour, saying, “When we start rehearsing, I always find this incredible enthusiasm among them all—especially this tour. It’s been a great feeling from show one.”