Mick Jagger has revealed how The Cure's Robert Smith became one of the special guests featured on the new Rolling Stones album, Foreign Tongues.
The revelation that Smith appears on the band's 25th studio album, the Stones' follow-up to 2023's Hackney Diamonds, came as something of a surprise to music fans when the details of the record were announced earlier this week. But then Smith's inclusion on the record probably came as a surprise to him too.
At a press event in New York on May 5, Jagger explained how the collaboration came about at Metropolis Studios in London.
"I turned up one day to do my vocals in London, and there's this bloke standing there with his back to me with this long gown on," Jagger said. "And when he turned around, he was covered in lipstick. And I said - I'd never met him before - You're Robert Smith of The Cure! He said, ‘Yeah!’ And I said, Well, while you’re here then, you better go and do something."
"That's how collaborations work sometimes," Jagger admitted. "Go out and sing the backing vocal!”
Hosting the press event, Conan O’Brien joked that perhaps the man in question might not have been Robert Smith.
"So what if it hadn't been Robert Smith?" he asked. "And you said, 'Let's do a track', and you found out later on that they were there to fix the air conditioning?"
As with its predecessor, Foreign Tongues was produced by Andrew Watt (Ozzy Osbourne, Pearl Jam). It alsi features cameo appearances by Paul McCartney, Steve Winwood and Red Hot Chili Peppers drummer Chad Smith. It was recorded in less than one month at Metropolis Studios, with four tracks coming from previous studio sessions. It will be released on July 10 via Polydor/Universal Music.
"I love doing these recording sessions in London at Metropolis," Mick Jagger says in a statement. "It was a very intense few weeks recording Foreign Tongues. We had 14 great tracks and we went as fast as we could. I like the room there as it’s not too big so you can feel the passion in the room from everyone."
The album's first official single, In The Stars, is out now, as is a second track from the album, Rough And Twisted.
At present, there are no live shows planned to accompany the album release.
“The Rolling Stones will play when they decide to, not before," a spokesman for the band said earlier this year.
