Keith Richards in Delos

August 1993

Never mind who you are!

What was Keith Richards of the Rolling Stones doing on Delos? Good question! Minas took him there. One evening in August, Keith arrived on Mykonos with his wife Patti Hansen and his daughters Theodora and Alexandra. He had been invited to stay at a house designed by Minas next to his own residence. The ever-hospitable Minas took a bowl of fruit for the children and immediately hit it off with Keith. After that, Keith would go to Minas’ house where they exchanged stories over Jack Daniels and cigarettes. Keith had come to the island because he had heard in Dublin, where he had been previously, that there was going to be a meteorite storm. He asked for the lights to be switched off and every so often, gazing at the sky, he would say “Come in God, give us some, come in.”

Keith was quick to understand Minas and his work since he too had studied fine art before getting involved with music, but as he himself stated with a heavy dose of irony, from that experience he kept only what he had learned about PR and marketing. On one occasion, feeling great enthusiasm for Minas, he said: “I know what you do. You make music with shapes”, before leaving his pocket knife on the table as a token of friendship.

One day, Keith saw some photos of Delos and already deeply impressed by the dazzling white marble sundial set in the rugged landscape at Minas’ house, he asked his friend to take him to the sacred island. It was 15 August. They went to Delos in a rented fishing boat skippered by one of the villagers who had no idea who the foreigner was.

When they reached the island and went to the museum, the employees immediately recognized Keith and gave him a tour. What impressed him most however was the ancient theatre, where the photos were taken. After being photographed everywhere and after sitting for a while in every possible place to feel the energy, he said to Minas: “The ancients built theatres specifically for their plays and music and we’re still performing concerts in football stadiums!”

He didn’t want to leave Delos at all and when they finally managed to get him back to the boat, he turned one last time, looked at the island’s smoothly rounded rocks and – clearly influenced by the high winds – said: “The ecologists tell us that the earth is fragile. The earth isn’t fragile. We are.”