08/19/2026
Things you find in a record shop…
Monkey Grip (1974) was Bill Wyman’s debut solo album, released May 10, 1974 on Rolling Stones Records — notably making him the first Rolling Stone to put out a solo record, beating Jagger and Richards to it.
Key details:
• Recorded November 1973–February 1974 at Record Plant in Sausalito, California, while Wyman was still fully active in the Stones (the band had just wrapped their European tour behind Goats Head Soup)
• Wyman produced it himself and sang lead on every track — a striking contrast to his Stones role, where he’d only sung lead once (on “In Another Land” in 1967)
• Session players included an impressive lineup: Lowell George, Dr. John, Leon Russell, Danny Kortchmar, Dallas Taylor, and guitarist Wayne Perkins (who later auditioned for the Stones’ Mick Taylor slot)
• Singles: “White Lightnin’” and “Monkey Grip Glue”