New Podcast Explores the Rolling Stones’ Backstory and Legacy
‘Lip Service’ features interviews with key figures from the band’s history, starting with Andrew Loog Oldham.
The Rolling Stones boast one of the most storied histories in all of modern music, with more than half a century of iconic moments and an influence that extends across the rock ‘n’ roll landscape and beyond. A new podcast is set to explore that legacy one in-depth interview at a time.
For his new series Lip Service, journalist Simon Harper is interviewing key figures from Rolling Stones history. Each episode of the pod will feature a wide-ranging conversation with someone from the band’s world, starting with the debut episode, available now wherever you get your podcasts.
The series’ inaugural chat belongs to Andrew Loog Oldham, the band’s original manager and producer. Oldham signed on to manage the Stones in 1963, when he was just 19, after witnessing a fiery performance at Richmond’s Crawdaddy Club. In an hour-long sitdown with Harper, he elaborates on his early vision for the band, his role in shaping their image, the business deals he struck, and the mental health struggles that took a toll on him during those whirlwind years. Oldham also discusses his experience helping to create the Stones’ early classics—despite no prior experience as a music producer, he produced all of the band’s music from 1963 to 1967—and the personal impact of being replaced by American business manager Allen Klein.
New episodes of Lip Service will premiere every two weeks. Harper intends to feature a broad cast of characters, from producers and photographers to current members of the touring band. Taken together, these perspectives promise to cohere into a vivid portrait of one of music’s most accomplished, formidable units.
Harper is a lifelong Stones fan and a veteran music journalist. He founded Clash Magazine in 2004 and served as its editor-in-chief until 2020, while also landing bylines in publications such as GQ, The Telegraph, Classic Rock, Radio Times, and Creative Review. He says he created Lip Service in hopes of presenting a definitive, nuanced look at the Rolling Stones’ legacy fueled by inside information from those who were closest to the story.
