Band of brothers: Rare photos capturing extraordinary bond between Mick Jagger and Keith Richards at height of Rolling Stones' Sixties fame to go on display 

• The images were taken by late photographer Michael Cooper, close friend of Keith Richards, in the Sixties 
• Collection includes the last picture taken of Brian Jones one week before he drowned in 1969
• Courting The Stones will exhibit at Proud Galleries in Chelsea from 16 October to 22 November

By Jo Rhodes For Mailonline

Published: 05:01 EST, 28 September 2015 | Updated: 08:36 EST, 28 September 2015

They're stage-strutting superstars who have married, divorced, had children, lost loved-ones and survived overdoses in the public eye, but a series of photographs being put on show gives an intimate glimpse into the Rolling Stones' private side.

Photographer Michael Cooper had unprecedented access to the band at the height of their fame in the Sixties, capturing the rockers in iconic posed shots, including the last picture taken of Brian Jones a week before he drowned in 1969 - and also snapping Mick Jagger and Keith Richards alone together at the piano, composing the band's much-loved music.

Now his natural, nonchalant style of photography is being displayed at the Courting The Stones exhibition at the Proud Galleries, Chelsea, from October 16 to November 22, which his son Adam Cooper tells FEMAIL will be a 'step back in time to the Sixties'.  

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Mick and Keith making music in LA in 1968 on a grand piano. Cooper was deeply rooted in the art and music scene of Sixties and Seventies London

Mick Jagger and Keith Richards pose at Stonehenge in 1967 in capes and fashion that reflects the psychedelic era

It is curated by Cooper's son Adam Cooper and captures moments that would normally have stayed hidden thanks to his late father's close friendship with guitarist Keith Richards.

Thanks to his relationship with Keith, who was also an occasional flatmate, Cooper was able to record every aspect of his life, revealing the man behind the rock legend and pin-up.

For the ten years up until his death, between 1963 and 1973, Cooper was a member of the Stones’ inner circle, even staying with his son at Keith's Sussex home.

The resulting collection of rare vintage photographs, hand printed by Cooper in his infamous Chelsea Manor Studio will be exhibited at Proud Chelsea - close to where the studio once stood.

Cooper produced some of the most celebrated images of the early British rock ‘n’ roll scene throughout his lifetime, and was closely involved with the social scenes that he captured, before he took his own life in 1973.

Keith and Mick are captured looking thoughtful in the back of a limousine in 1967

A self portrait of Mick Jagger and his famous pout will also form part of the exhibit at Proud Galleries in Chelsea, London from 16 October to 22 November

In one image Keith is pictured 'toking' a substance as he wears a fringed suede jacket, his shoulders draped in an Aztec print blanket in California in 1968.

Another intimate shot shows Mick Jagger posing on a bed with Anita Pallenberg in 1968. The Italian-born actress, model, and fashion designer was the girlfriend of guitarist Brian Jones and later Keith Richards from 1967 to 1979, by whom she has two children.

In the photograph she is wearing a sumptuous feather headdress as she reclines on a fur eiderdown. 

Mick and Keith are also captured at mythical site Stonehenge in 1967 shielding themselves from the cold with folk-inspired capes.

The collection also includes the last picture taken of Brian Jones, one week before he was found dead at the bottom of his swimming pool on July 2, 1969 at the age of just 27.

In the photograph Brian is seen smiling, dressed in a long fur-trimmed leather jacket and jeans, his ring-clad fingers held together in prayer.

Michael Cooper takes a picture of Mick Jagger alone at the piano by shooting into the mirror - a shot that also obscures his face

An intimate shot shows Mick Jagger posing on a bed with Anita Pallenberg in 1968. The Italian-born actress, model, and fashion designer was the girlfriend of guitarist Brian Jones and later Keith Richards from 1967 to 1979, by whom she has two children

Other rare glimpses include Keith standing on a craggy rock face at Joshua Tree National Park in California,1968, and a self portrait of Mick Jagger and his famous pout.

Speaking to FEMAIL, Adam Cooper said: 'The exhibition will be a step back in time to the Sixties and right there at Proud on the King's Road, the Sixties epicentre of the cultural coming together.'

He described the collection as 'fantastic intimate images of a band in the making and for me their most musically creative period'. A large selection of Michael Cooper's signed vintage prints will also be displayed.

In 1964 the photographer became deeply rooted n the art and music scene of Sixties and Seventies London.

The collection also includes the last picture taken of Brian Jones, taken one week before he drowned in 1973. In it he is dressed in a long fur-trimmed leather jacket, his ring-clad fingers poignantly held together in prayer

Thanks to his close friendship with guitarist Keith Richards, Michael Cooper acquired a unique position from which to photograph members of the band including this image of Keith standing on a craggy rock face at Joshua Tree National Park, 1968

Art dealer and gallery owner Robert Fraser, also known as ‘groovy Bob’ due to his influential position within London’s cultural scene, introduced him to many of the most renowned writers, artists and musicians of his time.

The young photographer quickly became immersed in the creative milieu of the era and Cooper’s studio in Chelsea became a hub of activity, attracting the members of the ‘Chelsea Set’.

The script writer, Donald Cammell, was also part of this group, resulting in Cooper being part of the scene portrayed in his film Performance. 

According to New York art director, Al Vandenberg, the energy in the studio was electric. 

The Rolling Stones pictured in 1968 (from left to right: Mick Jagger, Keith Richards, Charlie Watts, Bill Wyman and Brian Jones). A year earlier photographer Michael Cooper shot the front cover photo for their LP Their Satanic Majesties Request

Keith Richards is pictured 'toking' a substance as he wears a fringed suede jacket, his shoulders draped in an Aztec print blanket in California in 1968

Being part of Cooper and Fraser’s ‘set’ meant being aware of current developments in gallery art and in the contemporary cultural scene.

Cooper photographed artists such as Andy Warhol, Eric Clapton, Peter Blake and Jean Genet, and his approachable personality and unique talent allowed him to capture the tumultuous lives of the stars that surrounded him.

Cooper was one of the few people to develop relationships with both The Rolling Stones and The Beatles at the same time. 

He was responsible for the front cover photos of both the 1967 LP Sgt Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band by The Beatles and The Rolling Stones 1967 LP Their Satanic Majesties Request.

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