Mick Jagger is best known as the frontman for the Rolling Stones, a position he has not so much held as invented. With a rebellious attitude and lightning-fast stage moves, Jagger has been dazzling crowds for decades — the poster child for showmanship.
But the Stones have not defined him entirely. There have been plenty of instances in which Jagger has ventured outside the band to participate in not only in his own solo projects, but also to contribute to other artists’ work.
Below, in no particular oder apart from chronological, we’re taking a look at 18 external endeavors Jagger took part in.
1. ‘Memo From Turner’ With Ry Cooder (1970)
Jagger’s very first solo single, “Memo From Turner,” arrived in 1970, featuring some superb slide guitar work by Ry Cooder. It was included on the soundtrack to Performance, a film in which Jagger played the role of — what else? — a rock star. (Although it should be noted that songwriting credits were given to both Jagger and Keith Richards.)
2. ‘You’re So Vain’ With Carly Simon (1972)
Of all the people Carly Simon could have selected to sing backing vocals on a 1972 song called “You’re So Vain,” there was something perfectly fitting about her choosing Jagger, one of world’s most well-known womanizers back in the day. In the studio, Simon would later describe the feeling in the room with Jagger as one of “raw electricity” and mutual attraction such that “having sex would have actually cooled things off.”
3. ‘(You Gotta Walk and) Don’t Look Back’ With Peter Tosh (1978)
In 1978 — the same year the Rolling Stones’ released Some Girls — Jagger lent his vocal talents to a reggae version of “(You Gotta Walk and) Don’t Look Back” recorded by Peter Tosh of Bob Marley‘s Wailers. The duo performed on Saturday Night Live that year, and also a few times when Tosh opened for the Stones on their 1978 U.S. tour.
4. ‘State of Shock’ With the Jacksons (1984)
“State of Shock,” written by Michael Jackson and Randy Hansen, was originally going to be included on 1982’s Thriller as a duet with Jackson and Freddie Mercury. Plans changed, however, and the song was instead cut with the Jacksons and Jagger. It was released as a single in 1984 and went to No. 3 on the Billboard Hot 100.
5. ‘Dancing in the Street’ With David Bowie (1985)
However you might feel about the song’s production, there is no denying the power of two of the most charismatic performers of all time collaborating on “Dancing in the Street.” Jagger and David Bowie‘s 1985 version of the song — which came accompanied by a highly entertaining music video — went to No. 1 in the U.K. and No. 7 in the U.S.
6. Mick Jagger and Company on ‘She’s the Boss’ (1985)
When Jagger decided to pursue a career outside of the Stones, one thing was for certain: he would not struggle to find musicians who wanted to play with him. On his first solo album, 1985’s She’s the Boss, collaborators included Pete Townshend, Jeff Beck, Carlos Alomar, Herbie Hancock, Nile Rodgers, Sly and Robbie and more.
7. Performing With Tina Turner at Live Aid (1985)
The Rolling Stones did not play at Live Aid as a band, but instead participated in separate performances. Keith Richards and Ronnie Wood joined forces with Bob Dylan, while Jagger teamed up with an equally stunning performer, Tina Turner, for renditions of “State of Shock” and “It’s Only Rock ‘n Roll (But I Like It).”
8. ‘Primitive Cool’ (1987)
Two years later, with tensions between himself and Keith Richards at an uncomfortably high level, Jagger went ahead and made another solo album, Primitive Cool. Once again, the guest list was awfully impressive: Jeff Beck, Bill Evans, David Sanborn, Vernon Reid and Dave Stewart (who co-wrote the album’s lead single “Let’s Work”), to name a few.
9. Living Colour, ‘Vivid’ (1988)
They say it’s not what you know, it’s who you know. In the late ’80s, Living Colour was lucky enough to call Jagger one of those people they knew. Guitarist Vernon Reid had contributed to Jagger’s Primitive Cool, and Jagger has also seen the band perform live. He was so impressed that he launched himself into helping them produce some demos, which in turn got them the attention of a record label, Epic. Living Colour’s debut album, Vivid, arrived in 1988, with Jagger contributing to two of its songs: “Broken Hearts” and “Glamour Boys.”
10. The Red Devils Blues Album That Never Was (1992)
Technically, Jagger’s collaboration with the Red Devils, a Los Angeles-based blues rock band he met through producer Rick Rubin, never came to fruition. But they did work together in the early ’90s on what was supposed to be a blues album, and the recordings that have leaked over the years are awfully impressive.
11. Mixing Veterans and Rookies on ‘Wandering Spirit’ (1993)
Jagger released just one solo album in the ’90s, Wandering Spirit, but he did something quite interesting with its personnel. Instead of using only members of the old guard, Jagger enlisted some veteran recording artists — people like Billy Preston, Jim Keltner and Benmont Tench — as well as more contemporary stars like Lenny Kravitz and Flea.
12. ‘Goddess in the Doorway’ (2001)
Jagger’s most recent solo album, Goddess in the Doorway, came out way back in 2001. Again, the credits featured some incredibly high profile names: Rob Thomas, Pete Townshend, Joe Perry, Lenny Kravitz and Bono, among others.
13. ‘Alfie’ With Dave Stewart (2004)
In 2004, Jagger reconvened with Dave Stewart to co-produce the soundtrack album to Alfie, a remake of the 1966 film about a womanizing chauffeur in London. Sheryl Crow, Joss Stone and Nadirah “Nadz” Seid also contributed to the album. One of its tracks, “Old Habits Die Hard,” ended up winning a Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song.
14. ‘Stuck in a Moment You Can’t Get Out Of’ With U2 (2009)
“This man will make this a special song,” Bono said in 2009 just before U2 launched into “Stuck in a Moment You Can’t Get Out Of,” referring to Jagger standing by his side. This was at one of the 25th anniversary Rock and Roll Hall of Fame concerts at Madison Square Garden.
15. ‘Dead Flowers’ With Jerry Lee Lewis (2010)
For his 40th studio album, Mean Old Man, Jerry Lee Lewis recruited a whole company of collaborators to sing duets with, including Jagger for a rendition of the Rolling Stones’ “Dead Flowers.” (Others included Eric Clapton, John Fogerty, Willie Nelson, Robbie Robertson, Ringo Starr and many more.)
16. ‘Bramble Rose’ With Don Henley and Miranda Lambert (2015)
“I can truthfully say that I enjoyed making this record more than any record I’ve made in my career. And a lot of the reason is because of the people who participated,” Don Henley said to Rolling Stone in 2015, speaking about his album Cass County, on which Jagger lent his vocals (along with Miranda Lambert) to a song called “Bramble Rose.” “There’s some amazing musicians here and the best thing about it is, most of them are funny. So it was a real pleasure.”
17. ‘You Did the Crime’ With Buddy Guy (2018)
Buddy Guy managed to get not one but two Rolling Stones to play on his 2018 album, The Blues Is Alive and Well. Keith Richards — and Jeff Beck — played on a song called “Cognac,” while Jagger contributed to a song called “You Did the Crime.” “Feel like I owed the British the respect they gave Muddy [Waters],” Guy told Billboard at the time. “In the ’60s, when our music was dying, the Stones and their English buddies woke up the world to the blues.”
18. ‘Easy Sleazy’ With Dave Grohl (2021)
When the COVID-19 pandemic hit in early 2020, people suddenly had a lot more time at home on their hands, and Jagger was no different. So he wrote up a new song called “Easy Sleazy” and contacted someone he thought would make a great recording partner for it. “I phoned Dave [Grohl] up and said, ‘Dave, would you be interested?’ He said [puts on American accent], ‘Yeah, I’m really bored!'” Jagger explained to Rolling Stone in 2021, when the song came out. “Dave likes it ’cause it rocks hard. I like to rock hard, too, so it feels good in that way.”
Allison Rapp is a New York City-based music and culture journalist. Her work has appeared in Brooklyn Magazine, Insider, Rock Cellar, City Limits and more. She is also the host of Big Yellow Podcast, a show about Joni Mitchell. She tweets at @allisonrapp22.
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The iconic lead singer has been turning heads for 60 years.
Gallery Credit: Ultimate Classic Rock Staff