Keith Richards Is Still Chasing the Next Great Riff — And the Rolling Stones Aren't Finished Yet

For more than six decades, Keith Richards has been one of rock's greatest riff architects. From the swagger of 'Brown Sugar' to the hypnotic groove of 'Start Me Up,' his songwriting has shaped generations of guitar players. And somehow, in 2026, he and the Rolling Stones are proving they still have something left to say.

Their upcoming album, Foreign Tongues, isn't being treated as a nostalgic farewell tour or a victory lap. Instead, it feels like another genuine chapter in one of the most improbable creative runs in music history. Rather than relying on legacy alone, Mick Jagger, Keith Richards, and Ronnie Wood have once again stepped into the studio with producer Andrew Watt, continuing the momentum that began with Hackney Diamonds.

Two Songs, Two Sides of the Stones

Early previews suggest that spirit is alive and well. The first two songs already released — 'In The Stars' and 'Rough and Twisted' — showcase two different sides of what has always made the Stones special.

'In The Stars' leans into a huge, melodic, modern production while still carrying Richards' unmistakable guitar DNA underneath it all. The riffs are confident without trying too hard, proving that tasteful playing never goes out of style.

'Rough and Twisted,' on the other hand, sounds like the Stones getting their hands dirty again. It's raw, bluesy, loose, and full of the kind of attitude that made so many players fall in love with Keith Richards in the first place. Rather than chasing trends, it doubles down on everything that has defined the band's identity for decades.

A Songwriting Partnership That Refuses to Stop Evolving

Perhaps the most remarkable part isn't the songs themselves — it's that the songwriting partnership continues to evolve after all these years. Keith Richards has always spoken about songs as something you discover rather than manufacture, and that philosophy still seems to fuel the band's creative process.

For guitar players, there's another lesson hidden in all of this. Keith Richards has never been about technical perfection. His greatness comes from feel, groove, timing, and the ability to create unforgettable riffs with incredible economy. While countless players spend years chasing speed, Richards continues to demonstrate that the right five notes can outlive a thousand flashy solos.

The Open-G Blueprint Is Still the Engine

Strip a Stones riff back and you almost always find the same machinery underneath: a five-string guitar in open G, the low sixth string removed, and a right hand that treats rhythm playing as a percussion instrument. That tuning is why 'Start Me Up,' 'Brown Sugar,' 'Honky Tonk Women' and 'Can't You Hear Me Knocking' all sound related without sounding identical — the open strings ring against the fretted notes, creating drones that a standard-tuned guitar simply can't produce with the same effortlessness.

It also explains why so many players struggle to cover him accurately. The notes are easy. The placement isn't. Richards plays slightly behind the beat, leaves holes where a busier guitarist would add fills, and lets Charlie Watts' snare land in the gap. On the new material, that space is still audible, which suggests the band's internal clock survived the loss of its most important timekeeper intact.

“The right five notes can outlive a thousand flashy solos.”

What Andrew Watt Brings to the Room

Watt's production job on Hackney Diamonds was widely credited with pushing the band to record fast, live, and in the same room rather than assembling parts across months. Foreign Tongues appears to continue that method. For a guitarist, this is the difference between hearing a performance and hearing an edit: string noise, slightly imperfect chord voicings, and the small timing rubs between two guitars are all left in.

That approach also frames Ronnie Wood's role properly. The Stones have always worked on the 'ancient art of weaving' — two guitars trading rhythm and lead duties within a single part rather than splitting into rhythm player and lead player. It's one of the most copied and least understood ideas in rock guitar, and it only works when neither player is trying to dominate the arrangement.

Curiosity Is the Real Secret

At a time when many legendary acts have slowed down, the Rolling Stones are still writing, recording, experimenting, and releasing new music. That's inspiring not just because of their age — but because their curiosity hasn't disappeared.

There's a practical version of that lesson for anyone reading this with a guitar within reach. Richards' catalogue wasn't built by practising scales; it was built by keeping a recorder running, playing with other people constantly, and treating half-formed ideas as worth chasing. 'Satisfaction' famously arrived on a tape machine left on overnight. Six decades later, the working method hasn't changed much.

The message is simple: great musicians never stop creating. If Keith Richards is still looking for the next riff after sixty years, maybe none of us should ever stop looking either.

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