10 Things You Didn’t Know About the Rolling Stones’ ‘Beggars Banquet’.
Turns out 'Beggars Banquet' actually could have been better
As consistently great as 'Beggars
Banquet' no doubt is, the album didn't include the huge hit single
'Jumping Jack Flash,' recorded during an inspired two weeks that also
produced 'Street Fighting Man,' 'Jigsaw Puzzle' and "Parachute Woman.' Sensing what they had, the Rolling Stones
rushed out 'Flash' as a single, though it was at one point slotted to
be a centerpiece of their forthcoming album. The gambit paid off
handsomely when 'Flash' topped the charts in the U.K. and went to No. 3
in the U.S.
There was a late edit to one of its most famous songs
'Sympathy for the Devil' works as a
kind of overview for destructive moments in human history, with
mentions of the crucifixion of Christ, World War II, JFK's assassination
and the Russian Revolution, in which the entire family of Tsar Nicholas II, save for daughter Anastasia, was murdered at the hands of the Bolsheviks. But a signature line had to be updated when Robert Kennedy was killed after 'Sympathy' had been written. Jagger changed the lyric to "the Kennedys."
Keith Richards' muse was sparked by a breakthough on guitar
In his endlessly fascinating
autobiography 'Life,' Richards reveals that a chance discovery of open
five-string tuning "really reinvigorated me," beginning with the
sessions for 'Beggars Banquet': "It transformed my life," he writes. "I
had hit a kind of buffer. I just really thought I was not getting
anywhere from straight concert tuning." Richards would use the technique
for 'Jumping Jack Flash,' then on 'Brown Sugar,' 'Honky Tonky Women,'
'Start Me Up' and others.
A promotional TV special went unseen for nearly three decades
The plan was to produce an all-star television event to promote 'Beggars Banquet,' so invites went out to John Lennon, Eric Clapton, the Who, Jethro Tull
and others -- all of whom gave incendiary performances. The problem:
The Stones hated their own set, so the 'Rock and Roll Circus' special
would go unreleased until 1996. It would be Brian Jones' final appearance -- and future Black Sabbath guitarist Tony Iommi's only date with Jethro Tull.
There was a deep connection with the album's only cover song
The only song not written by Jagger
and Richards that appeared on 'Beggars Banquet,' 'Prodigal Son,' was
originally done by Robert Wilkins in 1929 as 'That Ain't No Way to Get
Along.' This completed a circle of sorts, since a year earlier Wilkins
is said to have recorded the first known song titled 'Rolling Stone.'
And, in another sign of their return to straightforward fare, this was
the Rolling Stones' first blues cover since their 1964 take on Willie
Dixon's 'Little Red Rooster.'
A new producer heralded the Rolling Stones' classic period
No small amount of credit for the Stones' rebound from what Richards called the "flimflam" of 1967's 'Their Satanic Majesties Request'
goes to their new producer. The late Jimmy Miller (a drummer himself)
would oversee a period into the early 1970s marked by gritty songs and
exciting rhythmic experiments -- beginning with the African-laced
cadences of 'Beggars Banquet''s 'Sympathy for the Devil.'
There was an all-star element to the sessions - sort of
The mandolin to the country-fried 'Factory Girl' was reportedly played
by a then-unknown virtuoso named Ry Cooder. He also apparently recorded
a slide part for the bluesy 'No Expectations,' although Mick Jagger
says Brian Jones' take was used instead. Elsewhere, Dave Mason (who had
worked with producer Jimmy Miller as part of Traffic)
and Nicky Hopkins made important contributions, as well. Hopkins would
become a de facto member of the Stones over the next few years.
20th-century technology ended up playing a key role
Keith Richards
couldn't get the sound he wanted for 'Street Fighting Man' until he
came up with an ingeniously old-school idea: "I was fascinated by the
possibilities of playing an acoustic guitar through a cassette recorder,
using it as a pick-up." Charlie Watts
took a turn on this antique snare drum and cymbal, and the basic track
was finally created. Brian Jones later added tamboura, his last
signature moment with the group.
The original cover was shot in an L.A. car dealership's bathroom
Photographer Barry Feinstein was
responsible for the original cover image for 'Beggars Banquet,' which
was quickly pulled by the Rolling Stones' label after a torrent of
complaints. He found the dirty toilet in a graffiti-covered bathroom
(comments include "Wot, No Paper?") at a Porsche repair shop in Los
Angeles. In its place -- at least for a while -- went a bland
invitation-style cover, with the band name, album title and an RSVP
request in cursive over a snoozy white background. Feinstein's original
image has since been restored.
The replacement has been the subject of many tributes
Oddly enough, the second cover of
'Beggars Banquet' has turned into something of a talisman for
generations of subsequent groups. The stark design has been referenced,
or blatantly replicated, on a series of records including John Waite's 'Temple Bar,' Poco's 'A Good Feelin' to Know' and the Afghan Whigs' 'What Jail Is Like,' among others.
