John Lennon's scathing nickname for The Rolling Stones: 'He would get really angry'
(Credits: Far Out / Alamy)
Mon 13 October 2025 14:00, UK
Behold the enigma of John Lennon: a man of peace, love, and drunken revelry, an avant-garde radical with a keen eye on the charts, a bespectacled puzzle who remains as enigmatic four decades after his death. Lennon's legacy is filled with great ironies, one of which is his declaration that The Beatles were 'more popular' than Jesus, yet he also worried about his star fading. Despite being a pop culture hero, Lennon's position was always precarious.
You might expect him to be indifferent to such accolades, but when Elliot Mintz befriended him in the 1970s, Lennon expressed his frustration over The Rolling Stones' perceived dominance in critical acclaim. Mintz recalled Lennon's anger at the Stones' adulation and respect, contrasting it with the 'Mop Tops' (The Beatles).
"He felt the Rolling Stones got the kind of adulation and respect that 'The Mop Tops' didn't, and that the Stones were seen as revolutionaries because of their 'Street Fighting Man' compared to 'I Want To Hold Your Hand,'" Mintz told Spin. This perception of Lennon's softness was further emphasized by Ian Anderson's comment that Lennon was the only one who could handle a fight, while Mick Jagger always appeared too self-conscious to be considered tough.
Despite their friendly relationship, Lennon privately resented the narrative that the Stones were the tougher band. Mintz revealed, 'He loved Mick Jagger, and they spent countless nights together in London. But when he got angry, he called them 'the Rolling Pebbles.'"
Ironically, around this time, critics were claiming that the Stones had gone too far. After the tragic Altamont incident, fans and magazines turned against the group, viewing them as a misstep away from the 1960s idealism that The Beatles had helped define. Lennon's envy of Bob Dylan's perception and his insistence on being a better writer than Dylan added to his complex psyche, driving him to write music with a point to prove.
When already hailed as an unimpeachable pinnacle, what's the point? The scorned artist striving to dethrone his idols or the man with everything, wondering what's left? Lennon's internal struggles and his unique perspective on The Rolling Stones' success and popularity continue to captivate and intrigue, leaving us with a legacy that remains as enigmatic as the man himself.
