For much of their 50 years, the Rolling Stones have actually lived up to the hyped-up moniker "greatest rock and roll band in the world", a feat as remarkable as their longevity under the pressures of intense fame, endless touring, substance abuse, death threatd, and extreme brushes with the law. The series of essays in this book highlights their key artistic achievements, including significant singles, landmark albums, and spectacular tours. Under a variety of guises - bad boys, jet setters, exiles, junkies, old guard, and the team to beat - the Stones have faced every obstacle, self-made or not, and always delivered. AUTHOR: Valeria Manferto De Fabianis is an expert on photographic editing and image creation and has also written the texts of numerous photographic volumes. In 1984, together with Marcello Bertinetti, she founded Edizioni White Star where she took on the position of Editorial Director. Howard Kramer has been the curatorial director at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum in Cleveland, Ohio, since 1996. A co-host of VH1 Rock Collectors, he has contributed to Rolling Stone, The Cleveland Plain Dealer, The Cambridge Companion to the Beatles, and a forthcoming Bruce Springsteen compendium. ILLUSTRATIONS: 180 colour photographs