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(#1) That Time He Snorted His Father
Richards made international headlines in 2007 after he was asked by NME magazine about the strangest thing he ever snorted. The answer? “My father. I snorted my father. He was cremated and I couldn’t resist grinding him up with a little bit of blow. My dad wouldn’t have cared. It went down pretty well, and I’m still alive.”
The comment shocked the journalist and the story instantly took the media by storm. Richards’s manager issued a statement saying the anecdote had been a joke, but many feel the story is true.
Source: The Guardian
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(#2) That Time Someone Put Strychnine In His Pot
It's no secret that Richards has done a lot of hard substances. But what was his worst experience? When asked in the 1970s, he shared this terrifying anecdote:
Someone put strychnine (pesticide) in my dope. It was in Switzerland. I was totally comatose, but I was totally awake. I could listen to everyone, and they were like, he’s dead, he’s dead, waving their fingers and pushing me about. I was thinking I’m not dead. I was number one on the Who’s list of people who were likely to die for 10 years. I mean, I was really disappointed when I fell off the list.
Source: Listverse
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(#3) That Time The Mayor Of Boston Released Him From Prison So He Could Make A Concert
On July 18,1972, a Rolling Stones concert was scheduled in Boston, MA. But there was one tiny problem. Keith Richards and Mick Jagger had been arrested for scuffling with a photographer in Rhode Island. So Mayor Kevin White did what any good politician would, and had the bad boys released into his personal custody so the show could go on.
He told the Boston Garden crowd, "The Stones have been busted, but I have sprung them!” and probably became the most loved mayor in the history of the city.
Source: Ultimate Classic Rock
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(#4) That Concert At Altamont
That Altamont show was famously quite an experience. In 1969, when the band arrived for the free show, Mick Jagger was punched in the head. Violence took over and a fan was even killed after pulling a gun on a Hells Angel. The Grateful Dead said a resounding "no thank you" to taking the stage, and three other accidental deaths occurred.
However, Richards said of the show, "on the whole, a good concert."
Source: Ultimate Classic Rock
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(#5) That Time He Fell Out Of A Palm Tree In Fiji
In 2006 (at age 62) Richards fell out of a palm tree he and Ronnie Wood were climbing (as they do, apparently) while vacationing with their families Fiji. He was then airlifted to the hospital, in order to have surgery on a blood clot in his brain. Yeah, at age 62.
He spent three weeks at the hospital in New Zealand and six weeks after the fall he was back on tour with the Stones.
Source: Daily Mail
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(#6) That Time He Was Nearly Electrocuted Onstage
In one of Richards's earliest brushes with the end, the guitarist was almost wiped out on stage in Sacramento in 1965. Stepping to the mic for his backup vocals on "The Last Time," he noticed it was facing the wrong way and went to knock it with the neck of his guitar. This was a dangerous move. The shock knocked Richards unconscious and burned his guitar strings.
He later referred to the incident as his “most spectacular” moment and credited his salvation to his brand new rubber soled boots.
Source: Ultimate Classic Rock
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(#7) That Time His Bed Caught Fire At Nellcote
In 1971 Richards and his girlfriend, Anita Pallenberg, were renting villa Nellcote in the south of France whilre recording Exile on Main St. They were also really, really into heroin at the time. It was not uncommon for Richards to pass out with a needle in his arm or a lit cigarette in his hand.
The latter became especially problematic when his bed went up in flames. The couple fortunately had just enough time to escape.
Source: Ultimate Classic Rock
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(#8) That Time He Was In Town During The London Bombings
Richards and his mother were evacuated during the London Bombings in 1944. Upon returning to their home, they found some of their neighbors were killed and Richards's cot had been destroyed. Richards took this personally, later saying, "Hitler dumped one of his V-1s on my bed! He was after my a**, you know that!"
Source: Ultimate Classic Rock
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(#9) That Time He Almost Stabbed Donald Trump
In 1989, the Rolling Stones decided they'd like to end their Steel Wheels tour with a big pay-per-view broadcast show. However, the only viable location happened to be Donald Trump's Plaza Hotel and Casino in Atlantic City. The band was not pleased, wishing to not be associated with Trump. Their tour manager, Michael Cohl, said he would "control Donald Trump," and finally the band agreed, signing a contract with the hotel.
Prior to the show, the Stones had wanted to give an interview at a specific time. But who did they find in the pressroom when they arrived? That's right - Trump. Cohl argued with him for a bit, attempting to get him to back down, before going to the band in their dressing room. At this point (as Cohl tells it)... "Keith pulls out his knife and slams it on the table and says, 'What the hell do I have you for? Do I have to go over there and fire him myself? One of us is leaving the building – either him, or us.' I said, 'No. I'll go do it. Don't you worry." -
(#10) That Time He Was Interviewed By Hunter S. Thompson
Words can't do it justice. Even before the interview begins, Richards defensively greets Hunter at the door with a cattle prod and it only gets weirder from there. -
(#11) That Time He Reportedly Got A Full Body Blood Swap
Did Keith Richards really go to Switzerland during the Stones' 1973 European tour in order to have all his blood swapped out to get cleaned up? Probably not. He has even said that he was "just fooling around" by spreading the story.
Source: Snopes
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(#12) That Time He Avoided Life In Canadian Prison
In February 1977 Keith Richards was in Canada, apparently doing a lot of heroin. He was detained after police found his stash in his hotel room, and charged with "possession... for the purpose of trafficking." The charge can come with a prison sentence of seven years to life.
His passport was confiscated and he was held in the country until the following April, when he received a medical visa for treatment for addiction and returned to the US. In the end, the charges were dropped to possession; he pleaded guilty and was granted a suspended sentence.
Source: Ultimate Classic Rock
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(#13) That Time His Library Got The Upper Hand
Like any good creative type, Richards has a home library. But who would have ever thought that his books would turn on him? In 1998, at home in his library, he was standing on a chair to get down a book about Leonardo da Vinci's study of anatomy. Of course, he slipped and fell, with books tumbling down around him.
Richards broke three ribs and resulted in the postponement of a Rolling Stones tour. His thoughts on the incident? "It was one of those moments where you have to make a decision: take it in the ribs or take a shot in the temple on the desk. All part of life's rich pageant."
Source: Ultimate Classic Rock
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(#14) That Time The Redlands Estate Caught Fire
Richards really does have a penchant for falling asleep mid-smoke. In 1973 he took a little snooze at his Redlands estate, accidentally setting it on fire. In Life, he claimed that the fire was the result of a mouse eating through some wires, not a cigarette, but in any case, the flames saw Richards, Pallenberg, and their children running to safety.
Source: Ultimate Classic Rock
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(#15) That Time He Avoided A Year In Jail Because Of His Sudden Fame
Though the Stones have had run ins with the law throughout their career, the first came in 1967, when someone tipped off the police about drug use at Richards's home. He and Jagger were arrested and sentenced: Jagger to three months in prison, Richards to a full year. However, on appeal, their sentences were completely dismissed.
Source: Ultimate Classic Rock -
(#16) That Time He Somehow Avoided Jail Time For Possession
In 1973, Richards was charged with possession, including a stash made up of grass, cannabis resin, Chinese heroin, Mandrax tablets, burnt spoons, syringes, pipes, and a loaded handgun, rifle, and 110 rounds of ammo.
He claimed the bust was a police set up and said the handguns belonged to his tenant, getting himself out of another incident.
Source: Ultimate Classic Rock
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(#17) That Time He Was Pulled Over In Fordyce, AR
The fact that Richards and Ronnie Wood were arrested in Fordyce, AR, is apparently legendary within the town. After leaving lunch, Richards, who was driving an Impala, was pulled over for reckless driving. Officers thought they smelled pot on the pair and searched the car. Instead of finding pot, cops found less than two grams of coke in a briefcase supposedly belonging to passenger Fred Sessler.
Richards passed the sobriety test, but was cited for carrying a hunting knife, which was considered an illegal weapon.
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