The Rolling Stones are an English rock band, formed in 1962 in London when multi-instrumentalist Brian Jones and pianist Ian Stewart were joined by vocalist Mick Jagger and guitarist Keith Richards. Bassist Bill Wyman and drummer Charlie Watts completed the early lineup. Stewart, deemed unsuitable as a teen idol, was removed from the official lineup in 1963 but continued as the band's road manager and occasional keyboardist until his death in 1985. After signing to Decca Records in 1963, the spelling of their name changed from "the Rollin' Stones" to "the Rolling Stones."
In 1963 Jagger and Richards formed a songwriting partnership and eventually took over leadership of the band as Jones became increasingly troubled and erratic. After recording mainly covers of American blues and R&B songs, every studio record since the 1966 album Aftermath has featured mainly Jagger/Richards songs. Mick Taylor replaced Jones shortly before Jones's death in 1969. Taylor quit in 1974, and was replaced in 1975 by Faces guitarist Ronnie Wood, who has remained with the band ever since. Wyman left the Rolling Stones in 1992, and Darryl Jones, who is not an official band member, has been the primary bassist since 1994.
First popular in the UK, The Rolling Stones toured the US repeatedly during the early 1960s "British Invasion". The Rolling Stones have released 22 studio albums in the UK (24 in the US), eight concert albums (nine in the US) and numerous compilations; and have album sales estimated at more than 200 million worldwide. Sticky Fingers (1971) began a string of eight consecutive studio albums reaching number one in the United States. Their latest album, A Bigger Bang, was released in 2005. In 1989 The Rolling Stones were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, and in 2004 they ranked number 4 in Rolling Stone magazine's 100 Greatest Artists of All Time. In 2008, Billboard magazine ranked The Rolling Stones at number ten on "The Billboard Hot 100 Top All-Time Artists", making them as the second most successful group in the history of Billboard Hot 100 chart.
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