Keith Richards mocks John Lennon for ‘tatty’ post-Beatles song: ‘It’s a shame’

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While there may be a mutual respect between The Rolling Stones and The Beatles, the members of each group didn’t always see eye to eye.

Keith Richards would be extremely critical of John Lennon, while Lennon would put Mick Jagger down in a series of interviews given before his death in December 1980. The once-friendly relationship between the two bands, from sharing singles with one another to shifting album release dates so as not to compete with one another, soured somewhat once The Beatles’ split. Just a year after The Beatles had fully split, Richards was already taking aim at the band, but more specifically, Lennon.

While it was clear that Richards had respect for Lennon and what he did as a member of the Fab Four, that didn’t appear to extend to his solo efforts. Richards would praise the influence of Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band and the psychedelic scene on The Rolling Stones’ Their Satanic Majesties Request, as well as The Beatles’ tours of the United States, but believes The Rolling Stones were better placed for longevity than The Beatles.

Back in 1971, Richards said that the Lennon-featuring band “were perfect for opening doors” and helped The Rolling Stones plant their flag Stateside. He said: “When they went to America they made it wide open for us. We could never have gone there without them. They’re so fucking good at what they did.”

But the problem for Richards is that The Beatles couldn’t keep it together and instead split into solo musicians. Lennon received the harshest critique from the veteran guitarist, with Richards singling out Power to the People as a “tatty” song.

He said: “If they’d kept it together and realised what they were doing, instead of now doing Power to the People and disintegrating like that in such a tatty way. It’s a shame. The Stones seem to have done much better in just handling success.”

Despite the dislike for Lennon’s solo music, The Beatles were instrumental in the forming and future success of The Rolling Stones. Richards would admit as much to journalist Hunter S. Thompson, saying that there was little difference between The Beatles and The Rolling Stones.

He said: “There was very little difference between The Beatles and ourselves. There would be no Stones without The Beatles. Have to take my hat off to John, he was the strong one. If they hadn’t kicked the door in there wouldn’t be a way through the door.”

Despite The Beatles paving the way to success for The Rolling Stones, Jagger would find himself somewhat jealous of their success. He told Jann Wenner: ““Super, highly competitive – but friendly. Because when you’re very young, it’s very hard. Looking back, thinking of all that competition, I hate it. But I suppose it’s all right, because I won out.

“But it wasn’t only between us and the Beatles but us and all the other bands. I remember one time playing in Philadelphia, and Herman’s Hermits were top of the bill, and we were second, and there was some argument about the dressing rooms. [Peter Noone] was complaining because he was top of the bill and his dressing room wasn’t good enough.”