The perfect flowers for Mick and the boys: Keith, Ronnie, Charlie and Marty

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The perfect flowers for Mick and the boys: Keith, Ronnie, Charlie and Marty

April 04, 2008

If I knew where to send flowers to the Rolling Stones and Martin Scorsese, I’d do it in a heartbeat. Their concert movie “Shine a Light” shinealightmovie.com opens today at IMAX theaters around the country. “Shine a Light” is bound to be a hit with fans and I imagine that Scorsese and the band received a few bouquets today.

It’s nice to know that Mick Jagger is also fond of sending flowers. Jerry Hall, in her 1985 book, “Tall Tales,” describes how Mick wooed her with bouquets. “Mick was … calling up, from the studio, from here, from there, and always sending flowers.”

About a stint in Paris, she writes: “I started getting flowers from both Mick and Bryan [Ferry]. I’d also met Eric de Rothschild at a party and he sent me flowers. … I’d never had two suitors at the same time, and to have these three that were all so fabulous …”

(Jagger and Hall eventually divorced in 1999 after a lengthy relationship and nine-year marriage; they have four children together and are good friends. She is currently working on a new auto-bio book for HarperCollins.)

So, if I were to choose flowers for the band’s core members, here’s what I’d pick:

For Mick Jagger: Hibiscus, a vivid tropical bloom (shown above) that never fails to grab attention. Look at a hibiscus petal and tell me it doesn’t remind you a little of the Stones’ logo.

For Keith Richards: Snapdragon gets its name from its likeness to a dragon’s face. Nuff said. ;)

For Charlie Watts: Calla lily. For the former art student and elder statesman of the Stones, an elegant and slightly mysterious flower that has long captivated painters.

For Ron Wood: Dogwood, a tough old tree that just keeps on blooming (below). It evokes both the band’s native England and the American South, home of the Stones’ much-revered R&B.

Dogwood flowers

“Shine a Light” has been well received by critics (though some feel the need to point out that Mick’s still skinny & Keith’s as craggy as ever, well duh!). The best review I’ve seen is from a veteran of the flower-power era, Andrew Sarris. His full review is at observer.com/2008/it-s-only-rock-n-roll-documentary-i-it.

Scorsese assembled a team of stellar cinematographers to shoot the movie at New York’s Beacon Theatre in 2006; the Stones share the stage with Christina Aguilera, Buddy Guy and Jack White, among others.

It’ll be a treat to see their work. “I wanted to capture the music and their interaction on stage … the way they work off of each other and off of the audience,” says Scorsese, in the film’s publicity notes.

Capturing it is one thing, but defining their chemistry is tough.

Charlie Watts says of the Stones’ relationship on stage, “I have absolutely no idea how to describe it. But this thing happens when we get together. ... You can’t sit and analyze it really, but something definitely happens when we’re on stage together. We’re not the same without each other.”

Flower Fact of the Day: Maybe the Stones and Scorsese will show up in London at the Ivy restaurant’s new private club: The entrance is hidden in a flower shop! Read the full story at bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601088&sid=aQHsZyUoubB0&refer=muse.

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Comments

Mike | Reply
April 6, 2008

I strongly agree about both The Stones and "Shine a Light," which I just saw. A great band and a great movie! I've been a huge fan of Mick, Keith, Charlie and the guys ever since I first heard "Satisfaction" on a malt shop jukebox in my home town back in summer, 1965. How amazing that they're still around today, still rocking.
By the way, one of their '60s albums is called "Flowers," and the cover shows the original five Stones with their heads on flower stems.