Keith Richards: A Life Full of Close Calls

Keith Richards, the legendary guitarist of the Rolling Stones, has had such a tumultuous life that one could say he has more lives than a cat—maybe even ninety-nine. His experiences with danger seem almost endless.

A particularly harrowing incident took place back in December 1965 during a concert in Sacramento. At that show, Richards, now 82, unknowingly faced a serious threat when his microphone wasn’t properly grounded.

According to Bob Spitz in his upcoming book, *The Rolling Stones: The Biography*, a guitar string connected with the metal microphone stand, causing a powerful electric shock to surge through Richards’s body. A photographer present recalled that Richards was “unconscious for a long time.” In a similar case years later, another guitarist, Leslie Harvey, tragically passed away from a similar mishap.

Richards likely evaded serious injury that night because he happened to be wearing thick rubber-soled shoes, which may have insulated him from the current.

As the 1960s wore on, his personal life began to spiral, especially after his bandmate Brian Jones started dating model Anita Pallenberg in 1967. Their relationship was troubled and, despite producing three children—one of whom died of sudden infant death syndrome—was heavily fueled by drugs.

Richards had always dabbled in substances, but his discovery of speedball—a mix of heroin and cocaine—increased his drug use significantly. “Heroin made everything possible,” he once said. He described it as a “great leveler,” suggesting that once accustomed, nothing felt out of reach.

Budding into the early 1970s, Richards’s addiction turned into a massive challenge for the Rolling Stones, making his behavior unpredictable and erratic. Bassist Bill Wyman noted he became so frustrated with him that he stopped speaking to Richards entirely, only trusting him to be reliable while on stage.

In an attempt to detox, Richards and friend Gram Parsons tried a method that involved putting their drug use on pause—essentially “sleeping” it off for a week. Yet, it didn’t last long, and a week later, they were back to using again. Parsons, however, died of an overdose in 1973 at just 26 years old.

Richards and Pallenberg relocated to Villa Nercourt, a stunning mansion in France, in 1971. This move attracted numerous drug dealers, turning the villa into a hotspot for substance abuse. “Keith became a full-time junkie,” Spitz explains, as he struggled to balance his chaotic lifestyle, sometimes even nodding off while putting his son Marlon to bed.

Richards’s recklessness didn’t stop there. He drove his Jaguar around France carelessly, even partaking in a go-kart race while under the influence, which resulted in a dangerous crash that left him bruised.

Attempts to get clean were often thwarted. There was a detox attempt in Switzerland in 1972 that barely worked, leading friends to call an ambulance due to worries he wouldn’t survive. During a notorious 1972 American tour, drugs were rampant, administered by a tour doctor. It was during this tour that he met Freddie Sessler, a Holocaust survivor who generously provided drugs without payment.

During the 1976 tour, Richards’s health continued to deteriorate. The band’s tour manager remarked that Richards was “so unwell” at points that he even fell asleep on stage. His blatant disregard for hiding his drug use intensified, as he began openly snorting cocaine in public spaces.

In one alarming incident, he nodded off while driving back from a concert with his son and friends, leading to a close call. Luckily, everyone escaped uninjured, but police later discovered substances in his car, resulting in another arrest.

Between 1967 and 1978, Richards would face multiple drug-related arrests, with the first resulting in just a night in jail. By 1977, he was living with Pallenberg and their children in upstate New York, attempting to stay sober. However, that endeavor was readily derailed by his association with musician John Phillips, who reintroduced him to drugs.

Compounding his struggles, Pallenberg also faced her demons, leading to an event that spiraled into tragedy when her young lover committed suicide. This proved to be the breaking point for Richards, and the couple ended their relationship in 1979.

After separating, Richards met Patti Hansen, and despite feeling deeply downcast, they eventually wed four years later and had two daughters. While he successfully kicked hard drugs, he admitted in 2018 to still consuming alcohol and cannabis occasionally. He quit smoking in 2020.

Remarkably, after all he’s been through, Richards still performs, most recently cherishing a concert honoring his friend Bruce Willis last November.

Attempts to reach Richards’s representatives for comment went unanswered.