8 Maniacal Musicians Who Exemplified The Word Rockstar

Cutting an almost mild mannered figure these days, legendary Rolling Stones guitarist Keith Richards was the epitome of the word rockstar in his younger days.

Regarded as one the greatest guitar players to ever live and a songwriter with multiple global hits to his name, Richards endured a turbulent relationship with songwriting partner and iconic Stones frontman Mick Jagger. In spite of this the Rolling Stones have gone down as one the most enduring and successful groups to ever hit the stage, with Richards proving an indispensable member of the celebrated group.

Richards' adventures are the stuff of music legend. His properties were raided multiple times by the police, who usually found a staggering amount of narcotics and drug paraphernalia. Richards was arrested in New York when police found an ounce of heroin in his hotel room. Let that sink in, an OUNCE of heroin.

The musician, who imbibed astronomical amounts of drugs before the majority of his live performances was nearly killed in 1965 by an electrical surge from a microphone, the force of which blew him clean off his feet. Richards awoke laughing in the hospital and was back on stage the very next night.

His other pastimes included learning to ski while out of his mind on drugs and nearly burning down Hugh Hefner's Playboy mansion in 1972. When an NME journalist asked him what the strangest thing he had ever snorted was, Richards casually confided that he had once snorted cocaine mixed with his dead father's ashes.