Keith Richards on That Time He Hit a Fan With His Guitar: “I’d Do the Same Thing”

Six decades into his career and still going strong, Keith Richards has no shortage of crazy stories. There was the time that the legendary Rolling Stones guitarist did (or didn’t) snort his late father’s ashes. There’s also the time he almost died onstage (somehow drugs were not involved this time.) Oh, and there was the time he dealt with an unruly fan by simply clubbing the man over the head with his guitar—and he’d do it again.

Keith Richards Once Attacked a Fan With His Guitar

It’s Dec. 18, 1981. The Rolling Stones are playing the final show of the American leg of their Tattoo You tour at the Coliseum in Hampton, Virginia. With their time onstage drawing to a close, the British rockers leave the crowd with a lively rendition of their 1965 hit “(I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction.”

Out of nowhere, a fan appears onstage, uninvited. Keith Richards springs into action, wielding his Telecaster as a weapon. Balloons rain down onstage in unison with the blows. Vocalist Mick Jagger struts around in a combination Union Jack/Star-Spangled Banner cloak. Having subdued the intruder, Richards calmly resumes playing his guitar. Presumably, the audience collectively wonders if this was all just a bad trip.

“I’m Watching Mick’s Back”

The Rock and Roll Hall of Famer elaborated on the incident in a video posted to his website circa 2004. “No, I’d do the same thing. The only reason I did it was because security was not there,” Keith Richards said. “They were two steps behind. I’m watching Mick’s back. I don’t know where this guy’s going to go, and a Telecaster is a damn good club.”

Richards said his primary concern at the time was interfering with Charlie Watts’ drumming. “But I didn’t, and the guitar was still in tune,” he said.

“It’s kind of an automatic, instinctive thing, you know?” added the iconic guitarist. “I could see security running up but I know he’s going to get to Mick or get to the center of the stage before any of them. So what, I watched my man’s back, you know?”

[RELATED: 3 Songs You Didn’t Know Keith Richards and Mick Jagger Wrote Together for Other Artists]

Apparently, the fan didn’t suffer any lasting damage. He didn’t even have to spend the night behind bars—because Richards bailed him out.

“He still owes me 200 bucks,” cracked the Brit, now 80.

Featured image by Timothy Hiatt/Shutterstock