March 2, 2012

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Fifty years to the day after the Rolling Stones first took to the stage, the veteran rockers will publish a photographic record of their rise to fame and lasting success.

The Rolling Stones: 50 will hit the shelves on July 12, the date in 1962 when the band debuted at the Marquee Club in London's Oxford Street.

The book, published by Thames & Hudson in Britain, is part of the 50th anniversary celebrations for one of rock and roll's biggest acts, but what fans are calling for most is another world tour.

While some members of the group have said a tour was likely, no announcement has been made and questions remain about the relationship between lead singer Mick Jagger and guitarist Keith Richards.

Ties were strained, according to accounts in the music press, after Richards portrayed Jagger in an unflattering light in his 2010 memoir Life.

The new book will feature 700 illustrations, 300 of them in color and many taken from the archive of the Daily Mirror tabloid, which contains the largest newspaper collection of Rolling Stones photography.

"This is our story of 50 fantastic years," Jagger, Richards, bass player Ronnie Wood and drummer Charlie Watts said in a joint statement. "We started out as a blues band playing the clubs and more recently we've filled the largest stadiums in the world with the kind of show that none of us could have imagined all those years ago. Curated by us, it features the very best photographs and ephemera from and beyond our archives."

The photographic autobiography, which will also feature words from the band, includes images taken by Philip Townsend, the photographer for the band's first ever shoot.

The 352-page hardback edition will retail at 29.95 pounds ($48) in Britain.