LIFE The Rolling Stones: 50 Years of Rock 'n' Roll

It was the early 1960s, and England's youth, inspired by American rock 'n' roll and rhythm and blues, was finding its own sound. Bands were forming throughout the land. Some would endure in memory, legacy or influence-the Yardbirds, the Kinks, even the Beatles-but one would go on and on and on to become the self-proclaimed (and generally acclaimed) Greatest Rock and Roll Band in the World.

The Rolling Stones formed precisely a half century ago, and are still at work-or, rather, at play…