Like what you see? Help keep it going! This site runs on the support of readers like you. Your donation helps cover costs and keeps fresh Rolling Stones content coming your way every day. Thank you!
January 16 pops up again and again in Rolling Stones history like a recurring riff—sometimes loud, sometimes subtle, but never boring. From the raw confidence of The Rolling Stones No. 2 in 1965 to massive concerts, Hollywood premieres, personal headlines, and even Golden Globe glory, this single date captures the band’s restless evolution. It’s blues-soaked beginnings, global stadium power, celebrity culture, controversy, and recognition all rolled into one timeline. Following January 16 through the decades is like watching the Stones grow up without ever growing tame—constantly shifting shape, yet always unmistakably themselves.
January 16, 1964: McIlroys Ballroom, Swindon, England (extracurricular gig)
January 16, 1965: UK release of The Rolling Stones No. 2, the band’s second British album and a clear step forward in confidence and attitude. Still rooted in Chicago blues and R&B, the record mixed gritty covers with growing original material, showing Jagger and Richards beginning to assert their songwriting identity. Darker, tougher, and less polite than most British pop of the time, the album helped cement the Stones’ reputation as the rough-edged alternative to their peers—and confirmed they were evolving fast, not just riding the wave of early success.
SIDE A: 1. Everybody Needs Somebody To Love/ 2. Down Home Girl/ 3. You Can’t Catch Me/ 4. Time Is On My Side/ 5. What A Shame/ 6. Grown Up Wrong SIDE B: 1. Down The Road Apiece/ 2. Under The Boardwalk/ 3. I Can’t Be Satisfied/ 4. Pain In My Heart/ 5. Off The Hook/ 6. Susie Q
Jan. 16, 1984: Shooting of Bette Midler’s video for her version of Beast of Burden took place at the Peppermint Lounge in New York City, with Mick Jagger appearing as a special guest. The clip leaned into playful chemistry rather than rock bravado, showing Mick trading swagger for charm alongside Midler’s theatrical flair.
January 16, 1992: Premiere of the sci-fi action film Freejack, starring Mick Jagger at the Mann’s Chinese Theater in Los Angeles. Jagger, cast against type as the icy, futuristic villain Vacendak, drew plenty of attention for stepping so far outside his rock ’n’ roll persona. The red-carpet event underlined his growing interest in acting during the early ’90s, with fans and press curious to see how the Stones frontman would translate his onstage charisma to the big screen. While the film itself divided critics, the premiere was very much a star-studded Hollywood moment, cementing Jagger’s brief but memorable crossover into mainstream cinema.
Jan. 16, 1993: Bill Wyman and Suzanne Accosta got engaged in England, marking a high-profile moment in the Stones bassist’s personal life. The news quickly made the rounds in the music press, adding another chapter to Wyman’s long history of attracting attention both on and off stage. At the time, Wyman was still an active member of the Rolling Stones, and the engagement highlighted the contrast between his low-key musical presence and the constant public interest surrounding his private affairs.
January 16, 1995: Autódromo Hermanos Rodriguez, México DF, México Not Fade Away/Tumbling Dice/You Got Me Rocking/Rocks Off/Satisfaction/ Beast Of Burden/Angie/You Can’t Always Get What You Want/Just My Imagination/Rock And A Hard Place/Love Is Strong/I Go Wild/Miss You/ Band introduction/Honky Tonk Women/Happy/The Worst/Sympathy For The Devil/Gimme Shelter/Street Fighting Man/Start Me Up/It’s Only Rock’n Roll/Brown Sugar/Jumpin’ Jack Flash
January 16, 1998: Madison Square Garden, NYC, NY, USA Satisfaction/Let’s Spend The Night Together/Flip The Switch/Gimme Shelter/ Respectable/Already Over Me/Bitch/Saint Of Me/Out Of Control/ Miss You/ Band introduction/All About You/You Don’t Have To Mean It/ Little Queenie/ Let It Bleed/Like A Rolling Stone/Sympathy For The Devil/ Tumbling Dice/Honky Tonk Women/Start Me Up/Jumpin’ Jack Flash/You Can’t Always Get What You Want/Brown Sugar
January 16, 2000: It was reported at the time that Mick Jagger had lost his chance of receiving a knighthood due to his famously errant ways. British Prime Minister Tony Blair was said to have doubts, questioning the message it might send about family values if the Rolling Stones frontman were honored. The idea of Britain’s most notorious rock rebel becoming “Sir Mick” clearly didn’t sit well with everyone.
In the end, history had the last laugh. On December 12, 2003, the decision was reversed and Jagger was made a Knight Bachelor by the Prince of Wales for services to music, officially becoming Sir Michael Jagger. True to form, Mick took it in stride—half amused, half defiant—proving that even rock ’n’ roll excess doesn’t necessarily disqualify you from the establishment forever.
January 16, 2003: Madison Square Garden, NYC, NY, USA Street Fighting Man/Start Me Up/If You Can’t Rock Me/Don’t Stop/Monkey Man/Angie/Let It Bleed*/Live With Me/Midnight Rambler/Tumbling Dice/Band introduction/Slipping Away/Before They Make Me Run/ Gimme Shelter/You Got Me Rocking/Can’t You Hear Me Knocking/Honky Tonk Women/Satisfaction/It’s Only Rock’n Roll/When The Whip Comes Down/Brown Sugar/Sympathy For The Devil/Jumpin’ Jack Flash *With special guest Hubert Sumlin
January 16, 2005: At the Golden Globe Awards at the Beverly Hilton Hotel in Los Angeles, Mick Jagger and Dave Stewart were honored with the Best Original Song award for Old Habits Die Hard, written for the film Alfie. The win was a rare awards-season moment for Jagger as a songwriter outside the Rolling Stones, highlighting his successful collaboration with Stewart. The song’s sleek, modern feel matched the film’s tone, and the award recognized Jagger’s ability to move effortlessly between rock icon status and contemporary film music. It was another reminder that, decades into his career, Mick was still collecting firsts—and trophies—well beyond the Stones’ core catalogue.
Like what you see? Help keep it going! This site runs on the support of readers like you. Your donation helps cover costs and keeps fresh Rolling Stones content coming your way every day. Thank you!
