Hope I die before I get old. Live fast, die young.
Rock and roll is full of such sentiments. But many rockers don’t adhere to them and just carry on misbehaving into their dotage. Here we salute (kind of) those who don’t know when to stop.
And that's the thing: some of these senior rockers have provided us with inspiring examples of how to keep the creative fires burning. Others, not so much. But the unifying factor is that they're each, in their own way, raging against the dying of the light.
1. Keith Richards
The granddaddy of all badly behaved rock stars, Keef once described himself as an 'amateur chemist' on account of his extra-curricular enthusiasms. Many friends (most notably Gram Parsons) have fallen by the wayside as a result of their association with Richards and his prodigious drug intake, and he's had plenty of a run-ins with the long arm of the law.
Most notably, in 1977 he was arrested by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and charged with 'possession of heroin for the purposes of trafficking', which carried a potential life sentence. He got off with a suspended sentence and a year’s probation after the Stones agreed to play a benefit for the Canadian National Institute for the Blind.
Keef's recklessness seemed to continue into the new millennium. In 2007, he fell out of a coconut tree in Fiji and had to undergo surgery. Those of a sensitive disposition may wish to look away now, but Richards finally seems to have cleaned up altogether and – shock horror – has even given up smoking.
2. Steven Tyler
Back in the 1970s, Steven Tyler and Joe Perry of Aerosmith were given the nicknames 'the toxic twins' on account of their prodigious drug intake. This took its inevitable toll, and the band dissolved briefly. Tyler, who had repeatedly collapsed onstage, underwent successful rehab in 1986 and the following year’s Permanent Vacation album was a huge comeback success.
But in 2003, Tyler contracted hepatitis. He has also continued to struggle with drug and alcohol addiction, having suffered injuries after falling off stage. In 2022, he relapsed after undergoing surgery and was back in rehab again.
3. Ted Nugent
He might have released (with the Amboy Dukes) an album entitled Journey to the Centre of the Mind, but Ted is a famous opponent of mind-altering substances. You might want to steer clear of him if you’re a liberal, an underage girl or a small furry animal, however. He’s vociferously pro-hunting and opposed to gun control and once likened Democrats to 'rabid coyotes' who should be shot.
Republicans have been nervous of being associated with the views of the so-called 'Motor City Madman', however, until Donald Trump came along. He performed at pro-Trump rallies and was even a guest at the White House. This despite Ted’s somewhat, ahem, unfortunate history with underage girls.
In 1981, when he was 32 years old, he released his most 'problematic' single, ‘Jailbait’, which describes having sex with a 13-year-old. And Courtney Love has alleged performing oral sex on him when she was 14. Yeech.
4. Arthur Brown
Kudos to Arthur, he’s still out there still playing ‘Fire’ in his eighties, and probably doesn’t get up to any chemical naughtiness any more. But in 1970, he was a young man, albeit pushing 30, at the centre of a commune at Ilsington Farmhouse, Dorset. Drugs were in abundance.
'Rustic' Rod Goodway, guitarist/vocalist with Bristol band Magic Muscle, went to live there with Arthur and former Bonzo Dog Band vocalist Vivian Stanshall until things got just too weird. 'Once they woke me up at five in the morning to try a special vocal effect,' he recalled. 'What this actually meant was that I had to stick my head in a bucket of water and try to sing. Needless to say, it didn't work.' Young Rod soon fled back to Bristol.
5. Madonna
Madonna has made it her life’s work to actively defy the ageist and misogynistic constraints placed upon older female artists. Rather than adopting the modesty or 'motherly' roles often expected in the entertainment industry, she has tirelessly maintained her provocative, sexualized persona well into her sixties and beyond.
Her continuous cycles of reinvention – from her fashion and music to her physical stamina – are a testament to her uncompromising discipline and rebellion. She embraces controversy and uses explicit themes and visuals, such as those seen on her recent tours, as a direct challenge to anyone who suggests she should 'act her age'.
6. Lemmy
Until his death, Lemmy was the undisputed champion of growing old without sacrificing one ounce of authenticity or hedonism. He maintained the same rugged look – the cowboy hat, the heavy mutton chops, the bandolier – and the uncompromising lifestyle for over four decades, famously addicted to the high-volume, aggressive sounds of Motörhead.
He openly rejected any conventional notions of retirement or 'cleaning up' for his health, famously stating, 'I don't do mellow'. His life was a continuous loop of Jack and Coke, chain-smoking, and relentless touring. Lemmy grew old disgracefully by refusing to compromise his persona or his music for comfort or longevity, dying as the ultimate leather-clad, authentic voice of rock and roll.
7. Joe Walsh
They might be famous for inducing a 'peaceful easy feeling', but the Eagles have harboured crazy ol’ Joe Walsh for two stints during his eventful career. His 1978 solo hit ‘Life’s Been Good’ recounts all manner of rock star misbehaviour (sample lyric: 'My Maserati does 185/I lost my license, now I don’t drive') and Walsh has confirmed that it is largely autobiographical. Married five times, he struggled with drug and alcohol addiction for much of his career and has been in recovery since 1993.
8. Neil Young
Not content with feuding with Lynyrd Skynyrd in song, ornery old Neil later fell foul of Geffen Records, to whom his signed in the early 1980s. His atypical Trans album saw him use vocoders and synths. This was followed in 1983 by the even more atypical, if mercifully brief, rockabilly album Everybody’s Rockin’. By this time, Geffen had had enough and sued Young for making music which was ‘unrepresentative’ of himself.
He returned to more conventional Neil Young territory after that but this unhappy period in his recording career came to an end in 1987 with the ‘Life’ album, which remains his all-time lowest selling release. To add to the impression of a man committing commercial suicide, the poster boy for hippies everywhere expressed support for President Ronald Reagan.
9. Iggy Pop
Iggy's early career with The Stooges was defined by primal, self-destructive performances, substance abuse, and raw chaos, embodying rock’s most dangerous id. While he survived the excesses of the 70s—a feat many of his contemporaries did not—he retained his uncompromising, confrontational swagger and famously athletic, bare-chested stage persona well into his 70s.
Rather than mellowing into retirement, he has maintained a fierce artistic integrity and physical vitality, making him a living, thriving monument to rock’s refusal to age quietly or conform to respectable expectations.
10. Cher
Cher embodies the power of spectacle, growing old disgracefully by continuing to embrace the over-the-top theatricality that defined her youth. Rather than retreating to a safe repertoire, she remains an explosive, genre-defying performer well into her later years.
She continually pushes boundaries through audacious fashion (often involving daring Bob Mackie creations), bold self-expression, and famously defying age with both her physique and her willingness to utilize modern musical trends. Her continuous commitment to lavish, high-energy tours proves she refuses to be relegated to mere nostalgia.
11. Richie Sambora
You’re right - Bon Jovi are not a band commonly associated with rock’n’roll misbehaviour. The exception here is guitarist Richie Sambora, who has struggled with alcohol addiction, entering rehab twice: in 2007 and 2011. He has also been convicted of drunk driving. Sambora left Bon Jovi in 2013.
12. Vince Neil
The Motley Crue frontman with the, ahem, distinctive voice has a rap sheet as long as your arm. In addition to being at the wheel of the car that crashed killing Hanoi Rocks drummer Razzle in 1984, he’s been arrested multiple times for assault. In 2016, he was restrained by actor Nicolas Cage after assaulting a woman who had asked for an autograph outside a casino in Las Vegas.
13. Alice Cooper
Naughty old Alice was a real caner until he cleaned up in the 1980s. By his own admission, during that first flush of success he didn’t know where Vincent Furnier (his real name) ended and Alice Cooper began. Only by successfully separating the two was he able to become sober. But almost uniquely among cleaned-up rockers, this process didn’t make him boring.
His 1989 album Trash, proved to be one of the biggest hits of his career and he’s followed this with a string of creditable LPs, including Detroit Stories (2021) and 2023's Road. This year, he got the surviving members of the original Alice Cooper band back together for The Revenge of Alice Cooper. Hooray for Alice!
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