The Rolling Stones are gearing up to release their new album Foreign Tongues, their 25th LP arriving on Friday, and ahead of its release, Mick Jagger and Ronnie Wood appeared at an event in London where they previewed “Ringing Hollow” live.
In the clip the band shared on Instagram, Jagger, Wood, and keyboardist Matt Clifford perform the song acoustically in what looked to be an intimate gathering. “So this just happened in London…,” reads the caption to the clip. “Mick and Ronnie have surprised guests at a special event, with a performance of Ringing Hollow, from the new album Foreign Tongues – out this Friday!,” It’s unclear where the event took place in London or why Keith Richards is not performing in the video, but Jagger and Wood were photographed at an album launch event at St. Clement Hotel in London on Wednesday, where their performance likely took place.
“’Ringing Hollow,’ a loping country rocker that recalls Gram Parsons’ influence on the Stones, is Jagger and Keith Richards‘ kiss-off letter to the U.S.,” Rolling Stone’s review, which praised the record, reads. “’Well, I was madly in love with you/Before we ever met,’ Jagger sings. ‘I saw all your movies/I smoked your cigarettes.’ But now, Jagger sings, ‘Lady Liberty is wearing a frown.’”
Ahead of the album, the band released “Jealous Lover” and “Divine Intervention,” which features additional guitar played by the Cure‘s Robert Smith, preceded by singles “In the Stars” and “Rough and Twisted.”
Alongside the album release, they launched a podcast called Speaking in Tongues, which is hosted by Norah Jones. The podcast will feature six episodes, and Episode Two is available now.
Richards recently suggested that the band may not tour. “I don’t know if tours are possible,” he said. “It’s the traveling that takes it out of you. But I do see the possibility of us doing residency somewhere. Wherever it is, London, New York, Paris, anywhere. I’ll play Rome! But I don’t see why they shouldn’t be able to throw some shows together in a new format.”
