Shmatta, Shmatta, Shmatta

The Rolling Stones : Shattered

[Purchase]

On October 24, 1978 Keith Richards showed the world he wasn't just another drug addict, when a Canadian judge gave him a one-year suspended sentence and placed Richards on a year’s probation after he pled guilty to a reduced charge of possession of heroin. Charges of possession of cocaine and possession of heroin with intent to traffic, which could have resulted in a life sentence for Richards. The judge also ordered Richards to continue treatment for his heroin addiction and that he perform a benefit concert — by himself or with a group — for Toronto’s Canadian National Institute for the Blind within six months. 

Looking back on the verdict, Richards writes in Life that he had a blind angel in his corner, Rita Bedard.

Despite her blindness, she hitchhiked to our shows. The chick was absolutely fearless. I'd heard about her backstage, and the idea of her thumbing in the  darkness was too much for me. I hooked her up with the truck drivers, made sure she got a safe lift and made sure she got fed. And when I was busted, she actually found her way to the judge's house and told him this story. And this is how he arrived at the concert for the blind. The love and devotion of people like Rita is something that still amazes me. So aha! A way was found.

Keef Arrested

On February 27, 1977 Royal Canadian Mounted police arrested Keith Richards after finding 5 grams of cocaine and 22 grams of heroin in his room at the Harbour Castle Hotel. Before they could cuff the lead guitarist for the Rolling Stones, they had to wake Richards up. By law, a suspect has to be conscious to be arrested.

In his memoir Life, Richards writes

It took them forty-five minutes --I'd been up for five days and I'd had a heavy-duty shot and I was out. This was my last rehearsal day, and I'd been asleep for about two hours. My memory of it is waking up and then going slap slap, two Mounties dragging me about the room slapping me. Trying to get me "conscious". Band bang bang bang bang . Who are you? What's your name? Do you know where you are  and do you know why we're here? "My name's Keith Richards, and I'm in the Harbour Hotel. What you're doing here I have no idea." Meanwhile they found my stash. And it was about an ounce. Quite a lot. More than a man needs. I mean it wouldn't feed the city. But obviously they knew their shit, like I knew my shit, and it was clearly not the Canada smack. It had come from England. I'd put it in the flight case.

The amount was enough for the police to charge Richards with trafficking, which meant a minimum seven year sentence. Richards has other things on his mind. He needed his next fix. It was Bill Wyman, of all people, who tracked down a connection.

Richards would avoid jail time by playing a benefit concert for the Canadian National Institute for the Blind in 1979 with Ron Wood.

6 Songs with Alan White: #1 "Cold Turkey" live in Toronto 1969

Best known as the drummer of Yes for more than 30 years, Alan White has also played on some of the greatest recordings in rock history. 1001Songs asked Alan to talk about six of those recordings, beginning with the concert that helped John Lennon decide he didn't need The Beatles anymore.

Alan was only twenty years old when he heard John and Yoko had seen one of his London gigs with his band, Blue Chips.

I got a call the next day saying "I saw you playing last night."
He said "You're really good".
He said "I got a gig for you.Do you want to come and jump into it 'cuz we wont have any time for rehearsals?"
I thought it was a friend of mine just making a joke on me so I put the phone down. I got a call about ten minutes later. He said "No! It's really me." And at that time I almost fell off my chair.


The next day Alan walked into a room and met John and Yoko and bass player Klaus Voorman ( from Manfred Mann. He also designed The Beatles Revolver album)

John said "I forgot to tell you. Eric Clapton's playing guitar and I went (surprised facial expression) "Oh really?"

That day they boarded the plane from London to Toronto.

We went to the back of the plane. There was nobody on the plane
at the back. So two acoustic guitars ( Eric and John). He gave me a set of drumsticks and I played on the back of the seat in front of me and that was the rehearsal for the show.

They landed and got to the Toronto gig with just 45 minutes to spare.

I didn't get any nerves at all about any of that. And I was flung right into this, and it's called "Rising to the Occasion". You just deal with it.
The only thing that perturbed me a little bit is when we got there, Little Richard was on stage, which was incredible, and Gene Vincent was walking around backstage.

The stage crew helped build a drum set for Alan.

John went 1-2-3-4 and that was it.

The set contained a number of rock standards John and Eric knew. "Blue Suede Shoes", "Money" and "Dizzy Miss Lizzy". Then Yoko began singing.



That's the other thing I found very strange because we were in the middle of a number and she got in a bag and laid on the floor at John's feet and was screaming into the microphone. I kept thinking it the feedback coming back from the speakers.

Alan is second from the left, between Klaus and Yoko.

Alan on far left, EC, Klaus and John & Yoko



TOMORROW: "Instant Karma"