The Rolling Stones were like many other British acts of the 1960s as they were heavily influenced by American rock ‘n’ roll and R&B. They were at the leading edge of the so-called British Invasion of the mid-1960s, as the Stones and contemporaries such as the Beatles, the Dave Clark Five, Gerry and the Pacemakers, the Kinks, the Animals, the Yardbirds, the Who, Herman’s Hermits and the Hollies all made at least a significant showing on the charts, both in America and at home in Britain. Out of all of those groups, the Beatles, in spite of breaking up in 1970, became and still remain the most successful act in music history in terms of sales and influence. The Rolling Stones became a constant presence that is still active today. In addition to their longevity, the Stones have had significant success on the charts in America, Britain, and around the world. There is little doubt that any act since the Beatles fails to meet the Beatles’ standards, however there are few acts that meet the standards of the Stones either. For the most part, comparing the Beatles to the Stones is like comparing apples to oranges as they have different styles, with the Beatles being more influenced by early rock ‘n’ roll while the Stones were not only influenced by early rock ‘n’ roll but also by American Blues.
As noted above, the Stones and their British contemporaries were indeed influenced by early American rock ‘n’ roll artists such as Chuck Berry, Elvis Presley, Buddy Holly the Everly Brothers and Jerry Lee Lewis, and therefore had a foundation deeply rooted in rock ‘n’ roll. Once again, what made the Stones stand out from the Beatles and all of their other contemporaries, save for maybe the Yardbirds, was the fact that they were also heavily influenced by American Blues and R&B artists such as Muddy Waters, Rev. Gary Davis, Bo Diddley, Sonny Boy Williamson, Howlin’ Wolf and Arthur Alexander. A significant majority of the Stones’ recordings from their first three years (1963-1965) showcased both their rock ‘n’ roll influences and their blues influences. As a matter of fact a great deal of their recordings from this period would be cover songs of the American Blues and R&B artists mentioned above.
As the years went on however, the Stones added and incorporated more genres into their blues and rock ‘n’ roll foundation such as country, folk, baroque pop, psychedelia, adult contemporary, reggae, dub, new wave, punk and disco too name a few.