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Charlie Watts and Bill Wyman reunite one final time on new Rolling Stones album Hackney Diamonds
Wyman features on one track which was also recorded with Charlie Watts before he passed away in 2021.
Image: Michael Ward / Getty
The Rolling Stones have confirmed that former member Bill Wyman has played on one track of their newly announced album, Hackney Diamonds.
The news was confirmed during a livestream for the announcement of the new record, where the rock ‘n’ roll legends sat down with host Jimmy Fallon for an interview at the Hackney Empire in London, UK.
The band have already released the first single, titled Angry, from the album which is set to arrive on 20 October 2023. It will mark their first record in 18 years.
Bassist Wyman retired from the Stones in 1993 and hasn’t been featured on one of their records since 1989’s Steel Wheels. Wyman is confirmed to perform on the track Live By The Sword, which just so happens to be one of the two songs that late Stone drummer Charlie Watts recorded in 2019 before he passed away.
Yep, that’s right – the original Stones rhythm section is reunited for the first and last time since 1993 on the brand new record. “Bill’s creeped in!” Jokes Keith Richards during the live event.
“We asked Bill to come into the studio, and he came and did one track – so the original Rolling Stones rhythm section is one one track,” confirms frontman Mick Jagger.
The band also of course spoke of Watts, with Richards stating, “Ever since Charlie’s gone, it’s different, of course. He’s ‘number four’ – he’s missing. He’s missed incredibly, but thanks to Charlie Watts also, we have Steve Jordan [the drummer featured on the new album] – who was Charlie’s recommendation for if anything should happen to him, ‘Steve Jordan’s your man!’ That was way, way back.
“It would have been a lot harder without Charlie’s blessing on that, but at the same time it’s a hard thing, y’know?”
Jagger adds, “There are 10 tracks we recorded with Steve, but there are also two that we recorded in 2019 with Charlie.”
Watch the full video here:
Find out more about Hackney Diamonds on the band’s official website.