Rolling Stones rocker Keith Richards revealed he has cut back his drinking.
The guitarist is notorious for his hedonistic lifestyle, even in the hardcore world of rock ‘n’ roll.
But Richards, who will turn 75 later this month, revealed he made a decision about 12 months ago to slow down and reduce his alcohol intake.
He told Rolling Stone magazine: “I pulled the plug on it. I got fed up with it.”
Richards admits he still indulges in “a glass of wine occasionally, and a beer”, but not to the levels he used to.
He added: “It was time to quit. Just like all the other stuff.”
Asked if it was an adjustment, he said: “You can call it that, yeah. But I don’t notice any difference really – except for I don’t drink. I wasn’t feeling (right). I’ve done it. I didn’t want that anymore.”
Richards’s Rolling Stones band mate Ronnie Wood, 71, got sober in 2010 after decades of battling substance abuse issues.
He welcomed his friend’s decision.
In the same interview, he said: “He’s a pleasure to work with. Much more mellow. He’s open to more ideas, whereas before I’d kind of grit my teeth and go, ‘He’s gonna give me some shit for saying this’. Now, he’ll say, ‘That’s cool, man’.”
Richards founded The Rolling Stones in 1962 alongside Brian Jones, Mick Jagger, Bill Wyman, Charlie Watts and Ian Stewart.
Wood joined in 1975. The band’s current line-up is Richards, Jagger, Wood and Watts.
They are due to set off on the North American leg of their No Filter tour, which kicks off in Miami in April next year.
The Rolling Stones are considered one of the most successful and influential musical acts ever.