--- title: The Rolling Stones: Photos of Their Early Days description: A new book provides a look at the band's first taste of celebrity canonical: https://time.com/4270945/breaking-stones-book/ author: Lily Rothman article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2016-04-06T15:00:36.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-05-11T05:00:12.808Z article:section: History og:title: The Rolling Stones: Photos of Their Early Days og:description: A new book provides a look at the band's first taste of celebrity og:url: https://time.com/4270945/breaking-stones-book/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt2616d77246917453/69888c658e06014fd0465297/160324-rolling-stones-book-08.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 675 og:image:alt: The Rolling Stones og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: The Rolling Stones: Photos of Their Early Days twitter:description: A new book provides a look at the band's first taste of celebrity twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt2616d77246917453/69888c658e06014fd0465297/160324-rolling-stones-book-08.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # See Vintage Photos from the Early Days of The Rolling Stones  by [Lily Rothman](/author/lily-rothman/)  ## Lily Rothman Rothman is managing editor at TIME. Apr 6, 2016 3:00 PM CUT  The Rolling Stones posing with a group of women during rehearsals for ABC's 'Thank Your Lucky Stars' TV pop music show at Teddington Studios, London, November 11, 1964. The Rolling Stones posing with a group of women during rehearsals for ABC's 'Thank Your Lucky Stars' TV pop music show at Teddington Studios, London, November 11, 1964.Terry O'Neill—Iconic Images  by [Lily Rothman](/author/lily-rothman/)  ## Lily Rothman Rothman is managing editor at TIME. Apr 6, 2016 3:00 PM CUT When The Rolling Stones [played](http://www.rollingstone.com/music/live-reviews/rolling-stones-thrill-huge-crowd-at-historic-havana-show-20160326 "undefined") a historic concert in Havana in March, they appeared in Cuba as legendary ambassadors of rock. Back in the early 1960s, they were pretty much exactly the opposite: newcomers on a scene that was itself brand-new. They first performed in 1962, wearing a clean-cut look that matched the style of other fledgling groups. They would soon an embrace an edgier look and sound. A new book, [_Breaking Stones: 1963-1965 A Band on the Brink of Superstardom_](http://www.accdistribution.com/uk/store/pv/9781851498161/breaking-stones/terry-o-neill-and-gered-mankowitz-edited-by-robin-morgan "undefined")_,_ from which these pictures are drawn, features images made by Terry O’Neill and Gered Mankowitz during those formative years. It was in May of 1965, right at the end of that period, that TIME first [delved into t](http://time.com/vault/issue/1965-05-21/page/94/ "undefined")he Stones. “To distinguish themselves from the Beatles, Britain’s Rolling Stones have attempted to assume the image of Angry Young Men,” the magazine explained. “‘The Stones,’ their manager proudly explains, ‘are the group that parents love to hate.’ They sing Mersey-Mississippi rhythm and blues, backed by a quavering guitar and a chugging harmonica that smacks of cotton-pickin’ time down South.” One anonymous teenage girl interviewed in the story admitted that their appeal was sexual, then begged “but don’t print that; my mother would hit me.”  Studio portrait of The Rolling Stones, 1965. Gered Mankowitz  Rolling Stones singer Mick Jagger having a cigarette backstage; 1964. Terry O'Neill—Iconic Images  Keith Richards resting in an arm chair at the BBC studios before an appearance on 'Ready, Steady, Go', 23rd July 1964. Terry O'Neill—Iconic Images  Mick Jagger laughing during a rehearsal for a Rolling Stones appearance on ABC's 'Thank Your Lucky Stars' TV pop music show, 1964. Terry O'Neill—Iconic Images  Guitarist Brian Jones of the Rolling Stones has a glass of milk in a motorway cafe, 1964. Terry O'Neill—Iconic Images  Bill Wyman, bassist for The Rolling Stones backstage in 1964. Terry O'Neill—Iconic Images  Charlie Watts, drummer for the Rolling Stones, 1965. Gered Mankowitz  The Rolling Stones posing with a group of women during rehearsals for ABC's 'Thank Your Lucky Stars' TV pop music show at Teddington Studios, London, November 11, 1964. 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