Mick Jagger prevented The Rolling Stones from being introduced as ‘greatest band’ for one reason

Though many, including legendary songwriter Bob Dylan, consider The Rolling Stones the “greatest” of all time, Mick Jagger prevented them from being introduced as such.

Jagger confirmed he did not allow the use of the announcement whenever the band was introduced, irrespective of the occasion. The Rolling Stones’ frontman dubbed it a “stupid epithet,” though he seemed to appreciate being called the “greatest band” in history by Dylan and other peers. Jagger also ruled out the use of the epithet because he did not know what the context of the comment was, questioning whether people meant “long-lasting” or “biggest” in the world. His dislike for the name was shared during a lengthy interview where the frontman broke down his decades-long career.

Speaking to Jann Wenner, founder of Rolling Stone Magazine, Jagger shared: “It’s just a stupid epithet. It just seems too Barnum and Bailey to me – like it’s some sort of circus act. The first time we heard it said was to introduce us every night.

“So I used to say, ‘Will you please not use that as your announcement? It’s so embarrassing. And what does that mean? Does it mean the best, the biggest, the most long-lasting?’ You know?”

Even though Jagger may not be a fan of The Rolling Stones being called the “greatest” in rock and roll history, he would be hard-pressed to disagree with music veteran Bob Dylan. The Mr. Tambourine Man songwriter had high praise for the band, which also features Keith Richards and Ronnie Wood.

Dylan said: “The Rolling Stones are truly the greatest rock and roll band in the world and always will be. The last too. Everything that came after them, metal, rap, punk, new wave, pop-rock, you name it… you can trace it all back to the Rolling Stones. They were the first and the last, and no one’s ever done it better.”

Jagger and the band would reciprocate Dylan’s love for the group by covering his song, Like a Rolling Stone, for their live album, Stripped. Dylan was not as keen on the cover as he was on their originals, with the veteran songwriter questioning why the group had Jagger jumping around the stage while he delivered the lyrics.

Fellow UK legends The Beatles were also keen on the Jagger-fronted group, giving them I Wanna Be Your Man. Jagger recalled: “We knew [the Beatles] by then, and we were rehearsing, and Andrew [Oldham] brought Paul and John down to the rehearsal.

“They said they had this tune, they were really hustlers then. I mean, the way they used to hustle tunes was great, ‘Hey Mick, we’ve got this great song.’ So they played it, and we thought it sounded pretty commercial, which is what we were looking for, so we did it like Elmore James or something.

“I haven’t heard it for ages, but it must be pretty freaky ’cause nobody really produced it. It was completely crackers, but it was a hit and sounded great onstage.”