‘Stones From the Inside’: Intimate Photos From Bill Wyman

Rolling Stones alumnus Bill Wyman has been an avid photographer in addition to his musical interests. “I took photos long before I was a musician. I started out using an old Brownie box camera my uncle Jack Jeffrey gave me as a boy,” he said in an interview with Rolling Stone.

Just as the band’s career was skyrocketing to stardom, Wyman followed up with shots of his bandmates and famous friends. He has now compiled these rare images into the Stones From The Inside: Rare and Unseen Images, which is published by ACC Art Books. The photos span the period of the ’60s to the late ’80s.

Shots of Mick Jagger, Keith Richards, and the other Stones were candidly shot from various moments like studio recordings, filmings, and tour dates.  “I always found that a subject could be captured more naturally if they were not aware of the camera,” Wyman shared.

Wyman left the band in 1993 and now has his own music career at the age of 83 with his very own Bill Wyman’s Rhythm Kings, which released a record in 2018. Wyman’s last solo record, Back To Basics, was released in 2015, and he hopes to released new material soon. “I have lots of song demos on the shelf, some pretty much finished. Also, I have plans to produce other artists,” he said.

If this particular book becomes a success, he expressed plans to follow it up with a similar one. “I’m hoping with the success of this, my 10th book, that the next one will be another photography book, Stones II From the Inside, or a book of my nature photos. My brain still buzzes nonstop with projects,” Wyman said.