Rolling Stones First London Home

The Story

In May 1962, Brian Jones and Mick Jagger rented this first-floor apartment at 102 Edith Grove in Chelsea. Months later, Keith Richards joined them. The apartment was, in the words of those who visited, a squalid place with dirty dishes, empty bottles, and clothes strewn across the floor. Bill Wyman and Charlie Watts visited but refused to enter. Jones slept in the living room, while Jagger and Richards shared the only bedroom with James Phelge, a friend and club regular who became a permanent fixture of the group. It was here that the three spent their nights listening to Chuck Berry, Muddy Waters, Jimmy Reed, and Elmore James, learning chords and trying to replicate the blues guitar sounds that defined the band.

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