Mick Jagger has confirmed Paul McCartney has collaborated on a track for The Rolling Stones’ new album.
On Tuesday, the iconic rock band – comprised of Jagger, Keith Richards, and Ronnie Wood – announced their twenty-fifth studio album, Foreign Tongues.
The project, set to be released on 10 July, was produced by Andrew Watt and features contributions from The Beatles legend McCartney, The Cure’s Robert Smith, and Red Hot Chili Peppers’ drummer, Chad Smith.
At the launch party in Brooklyn, New York later in the evening, Richards recounted how McCartney was working in a nearby recording studio in London when he popped in and made an offer to collaborate on a song.
“Paul really wanted to jump in there; he was next door at the studio. There was no intimidation from Paul,” recounted Jagger, while Wood joked: “He wanted to tick that box. He said, ‘Now I can say I’ve played with the Rolling Stones! Wow!'”
In a separate story, Jagger remembered bumping into punk artist Robert at the studio.
“I turned up one day to do my vocals in London, and there’s this bloke standing there with his back to me and this long gown on,” the 82-year-old continued. “When he turned around, it was covered in lipstick. I said, ‘I’ve never met you before, but you’re Robert Smith of The Cure.’ He said, ‘Yeah!’ I said, ‘While you’re here, we better go and do something.’ He sings a backing vocal.”
Later on, the bandmates shared that the album contains one of Charlie Watts’s final songs, Hit Me in the Head. The drummer died at the age of 80 in 2021.
“We did that in L.A. with Charlie,” added Jagger. “It’s a real fast punk rocker. It’s a super-fast song.”
Steve Jordan, who was recommended by Watts, plays drums on the other songs.
Foreign Tongues is now available to pre-order.
The Rolling Stones will continue promoting the album this week, with each artist to make a separate appearance on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon.
