Earlier this year, I published a Music-News.com article entitled: "
Mick Jagger is the Beethoven of Rock Music". The basic message of this Essay was that the name "Jagger", like "Beethoven", became the "Symbol", or "Trademark", for an era of music: Classic Rock, ca. 1960 -- today, or Classical Instrumental Music, ca. 1800--1860, respectively. As an evolutionary biologist and musician, I feel qualified to publish the present science-based "Birthday message", addressed to Sir Michael Philip Jagger, born July 26, 1943, and his partner, Melanie Hamrick, as well as his family, friends and fans.
What is so special to celebrate one's 82th anniversary of birth? We know that the average natural (biological) lifespan of humans and chimpanzees is ca. 38 to 42 years. Thereafter, in both human males and females, physiological and biochemical processes commence that lead to a gradual decline in body form and function. For instance, every dentist knows that, at this age, our teeth begin to deteriorate, so medical treatments are necessary.
However, with exercise and a disciplined lifestyle ,i.e., healthy food, enough sleep, no drugs, no smoking, no sugar-consumption etc., we can delay, or in part prevent, this natural reduction in body fitness, also called "biological ageing". In females, a few years later, menopause commences, which causes the end of fertility. Hence, 82 years corresponds to ca. twice the age we were designed for by evolution; hunter-gatherers reach, on average, about this biological age.
In 1962, Mick Jagger co-founded the Rolling Stones and, thereafter, dedicated his life to music. Over the past 62 years, this charismatic frontman kept the "Stones" alive, which was only possible with a strong "love for music", combined with self-discipline, hard work, exercise and a healthy lifestyle. As documented by the recent "Hackney Diamonds-US-Tour", the physical fitness of Jagger is well above average for his age-group, and his power to create new songs, often in collaboration with Keith Richards, is likewise outstanding. From an evolutionary perspective, Mick Jagger's Darwinian fitness is remarkable: 8 children with five different beautiful ladies has yielded a genetically diverse progeny that carries Jagger's "good genes" into the next generation and beyond!
However, one may ask: what caused the deep wrinkles in Jagger's face? In addition to genetic factors (heredity), and smoking, sun exposure is the single "biggest culprit" in creating wrinkles in our face as we age. Paradoxically, ultraviolet light, necessary to boost vitamin D levels for the maintenance of immunity, as well as bone- and muscle mass, damages the elastin fibers in the skin. As a result of this UV-dependent breakdown of elastin bundles, the skin develops more and more wrinkles that are, like skin cancer, a kind of natural "sun damage". Obviously, this "sunlight paradox" is a "design-error" of human evolution!
Numerous studies have shown that playing music, or listening to the performances of great musicians, from Beethoven's symphonies to Jaggers 's rock songs, boosts,-- like sunlight--, not only our mood, but also our immune system. Hence, health and longevity benefit from the "Power of Music". Mick Jagger is a living example of this bio-psychological fact of nature -- his music was, and still is, an essential part of his creative life and keeps him young!
To commemorate the 82th birthday of Mick Jagger, the "Beethoven of Classic Rock", I have produced the Piano-based, Neoclassical ProgRock-Single "
Jagger-Beeth Birthday March"; track 2 : "Mick-Forever Young", released on Spotify etc. on July 18, 2025, see the Link "Music Hub". On the cover, the young face of Mick Jagger is integrated into a drawing of a portrait of Ludwig van Beethoven (1770--1827). Track 1 is based on a theme adapted from his famous 9th Symphony.
Dear Mick -- I wish you all the best for the future, i.e., your third biological life: 82 plus many more healthy years to come! I want to remind you of the British naturalist Charles Darwin (1809--1882), who lived at Down House, in Kent-UK, not far away from Dartford, where you were born. In his 1871-book "The Descent of Man, and Selection in Relation to Sex", Darwin concluded that "Music is the Food of Love and Sex", and hence longevity; for more infos on this topic, see the Link "Love & Sex" below.
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Sex and Love
