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Keith Richards admitted that he’s been taking his time dealing with the full weight of losing his lifelong friend and Rolling Stones drummer Charlie Watts. Watts died of cancer on August 24th at the age of 80 and had already announced he would be sitting out of the band’s North American tour. Richards’ longtime collaborator and Stones insider, music veteran Steve Jordan, is filling the drum duties during the current trek.

Richards was asked about performing without Watts this time around and admitted to Apple Music that it’s almost too much to bear: “Man, I’m going to miss the man forever. And at the moment, I’m still, sort of, doing it in small increments — because otherwise it would be too difficult. But, I can almost feel Charlie smiling down on us every night and for the moment, that’ll have to do, y’know?”

When pressed about the 40th anniversary of the band’s legendary Tattoo You set — which was comprised almost entirely of unfinished ideas and outtakes — the guitarist was amazed at how well the album stands up today: “Tattoo You is, like, a beautiful leftovers (album), which turned out to be in its own way, a beautifully flexible album — maybe because it wasn’t so. . . planned. Eh, it’s what the Stones do, y’know? There’s. . . ‘Got so much stuff leftover. This is what happens, y’know, when you’re in a band for 60 years.”