The Rolling Stones' 'Live by the Sword' on Hackney Diamonds features Charlie Watts' final drum performance and was chosen to honor his legacy

The closing track on Hackney Diamonds, “Live by the Sword,” is the last Rolling Stones song to feature Charlie Watts on drums. Watts recorded his parts back in 2019 during the same sessions that produced the album’s other tracks, but his death in 2021 gave the song an unexpected weight. The band intentionally held it back because they felt it captured Charlie at his most fiery and unguarded—a raw, swing-driven track that sounded like a throwback to their early 70s grit.

The choice to include it as the album’s final statement wasn’t accidental. Mick Jagger and Keith Richards have said they wanted a track that showed Watts not as a sideman but as the engine of the band, and “Live by the Sword” does exactly that: the drums are front and center, loose but locked. As an extra tribute, they brought in original bassist Bill Wyman to play on the same song, reuniting the classic rhythm section for the first time in over 30 years. It’s less a eulogy and more a handshake—Charlie’s