Paul McCartney being featured on a Rolling Stones album is exciting in general terms, but when you think of the significance it has on musical history, it's even more impressive considering the Stones and The Beatles have always had a perceived rivalry. In a recent interview, Mick Jagger touched on the significance of Macca's contribution to Hackney Diamonds.

“Yeah, it does,” Jagger said, referring to the meaningfulness of the collaboration. “And it’s fun. But it seems so natural, you know?”

“Paul was so natural and relaxed and he enjoyed it." he added. "We knocked it out really quick.”

He also explained how the collab came to be. “Paul was in LA when we were recording, and he was supposed to work with Andy [producer Andrew Watt] one week,” he recalled. “Andy said, ‘I’m working on this record [Hackney Diamonds], and if it takes six months I’m gonna do nothing else.’ Suddenly we get to this one week and he says, ‘I forgot to tell you – I’m supposed to work with Paul this week.’ So we worked out the schedule and [Watt] said, ‘Why don’t we get Paul to come in and play on something?'”

“So I said, ‘On what?’ I’ve never played bass with Paul – I’ve sung with him but I haven’t played bass," Jagger continued. “We suggested he played on this punk tune. I didn’t know how it was gonna work out, but he really rocked it and he loved doing it. He said, ‘It’s great playing with a band! Really enjoyable playing with a band.’”

They were all in the same room for the session, too. “I’m playing guitar, Keith’s playing guitar, Paul’s playing bass, Ronnie’s playing guitar,” Jagger divulged.

McCartney plays bass on a song called "Bite My Head Off." Hackney Diamonds is the Stones' first album of new material in nearly 20 years and first since drummer Charlie Watts' death. Last week, Ronnie Wood confirmed that Watts recorded drums for "Live By The Sword" and "Mess It Up" before passing away in 2021.

Hackney Diamonds is slated for an October 20 release. Watch the full interview above.

Eric Paulsen