Let It Bleed
Let It Bleed | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | 28 November 1969 | |||
Recorded | November 1968 – November 1969 | |||
Studio | ||||
Genre | ||||
Length | 42:21 | |||
Label |
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Producer | Jimmy Miller | |||
The Rolling Stones chronology | ||||
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Singles from Let It Bleed | ||||
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Let It Bleed is a studio album by the English rock band
The album was recorded during a period of turmoil in the band; Brian Jones, the band's founder and original leader, had become increasingly unreliable in the studio due to heavy drug use, and during most recording sessions was either absent, or so incapacitated that he was unable to contribute meaningfully. He was fired in the midst of recording sessions for this album, and replaced by Mick Taylor. Jones died within a month of being fired (at the age of 27); he contributed to only two songs, playing backing instruments.
Taylor had been hired after principal recording was complete on many of the tracks, and appears on two songs, having recorded some guitar overdubs. Keith Richards was the band's sole guitarist during most of the recording sessions, being responsible for nearly all of the rhythm and lead parts. The other Stones members (vocalist Mick Jagger, bassist Bill Wyman, and drummer Charlie Watts) appear on nearly every track, with contributions by percussionist Jimmy Miller (who also produced the album), keyboardists Nicky Hopkins and Ian Stewart (himself a former member of the band), and guest musicians including Ry Cooder.
The album reached top ten positions in several markets, including reaching number one in the UK and number three in the US. While no high-charting singles were released from the album, many of its songs became staples of Rolling Stones live shows and on rock radio stations, including "
Recording
Although the Rolling Stones had begun the recording of "You Can't Always Get What You Want" in November 1968, before Beggars Banquet had been released, recording for Let It Bleed began in earnest in February 1969 and continued sporadically until early November.[4] Brian Jones, the band's original leader and founder, had, over the course of the recording of the previous two albums, become increasingly detached from the group. Though present in the studio, he was frequently too intoxicated to contribute meaningfully, and after a motorcycle accident in May 1969, missed several recording sessions whilst recovering. Always a talented multi-instrumentalist, Jones had previously contributed extensively on guitar, forming an integral part of the dual-guitar sound that was central to the band's chemistry. He was fired from the band during the recording of Let It Bleed, having performed on only two tracks: playing autoharp on "You Got the Silver", and percussion on "Midnight Rambler". A month after being fired, Jones was found at the bottom of his swimming pool at his home. The coroner's report stated this was a drowning, later revised to "death by misadventure".
As with the previous album, most of the guitar parts were recorded instead by the band's other guitarist,
Richards sang his first solo lead vocal on a Rolling Stones recording with "You Got the Silver",
Let It Bleed was originally scheduled for release in July 1969. Although "Honky Tonk Women" was released as a single that month, the album itself was delayed and eventually released in December 1969, after the band's US tour had completed.[citation needed] The majority of the album was recorded at Olympic Studios in London, with further work taking place at Elektra Sound Recorders Studios in Los Angeles, California, while the Stones prepared for the tour.[7] The Los Angeles-recorded portions included overdubs by guest musicians Merry Clayton (on "Gimme Shelter"), Byron Berline (on "Country Honk"),[8] and Bobby Keys and Leon Russell (on "Live with Me").[9]
Musical style
As with Beggars Banquet the previous year, the album marks a return to the group's more
Don Heckman, writing in The New York Times, felt that Let It Bleed was a "heavy" and "passionately erotic" album of hard rock and blues, influenced by African-American music.[12] Richie Unterberger, writing for AllMusic, said it "extends the rock and blues feel of Beggars Banquet into slightly harder-rocking, more demonically sexual territory".[13] Mojo magazine's James McNair felt the record had an emphasis on "earthy" country blues.[14]
Through their experimentation during the mid-1960s, the band had developed an eclectic approach to arrangements. Slide guitar playing is prominent (played entirely by Richards, except "Country Honk", which was performed by Taylor), and is featured on all songs except "Gimme Shelter", "Live with Me" and "You Can't Always Get What You Want", giving the album an authentic blues feel throughout. In addition, an array of session musicians embellish the songs with various instruments. Alongside the piano performances (Ian Stewart, Nicky Hopkins), the record included fiddle (Byron Berline),[10] mandolin (Ry Cooder),[15] organ and French horn (Al Kooper),[16] as well as vibes (Wyman)[17] and autoharp (Wyman and Jones).[18][19] Of more importance, however, was the debut of both renowned saxophonist Bobby Keys on "Live with Me", a musician who was integral at giving the group's arrangements a soul/jazz background, and Taylor, who took on lead guitar duties with technically proficient playing, giving the band a harder rock sound during the late 1960s and early 1970s.[20]
Lyrics
Jann Wenner, in a 1995 Rolling Stone interview with Jagger, describes the album's songs as "disturbing" and the scenery as "ugly". When asked if the Vietnam War played a role in the album's worldview, Jagger said: "I think so. Even though I was living in America only part time, I was influenced. All those images were on television. Plus, the spill out onto campuses".[21]
Packaging
Jagger asked artist M. C. Escher to design a cover for the album, but he declined.[22][23] Robert Brownjohn then designed the cover, which displays a surreal sculpture. The image consists of the Let It Bleed record being played by the tone-arm of an antique phonograph, and a record-changer spindle supporting several items stacked on a plate in place of a stack of records: a film canister labelled Stones – Let It Bleed, a clock dial, a pizza, a bicycle tire and a cake with elaborate icing topped by figurines representing the band. The cake parts of the construction were prepared by then-unknown cookery writer Delia Smith.[24] The reverse of the LP sleeve shows the same "record-stack" melange in a state of disarray.[25] The artwork was inspired by the working title of the album, which was Automatic Changer.[26]
The album cover was among the ten chosen by the
Release and reception
Retrospective reviews | |
---|---|
Review scores | |
Source | Rating |
The Great Rock Discography | 9/10[citation needed] |
Music Story | [citation needed] |
MusicHound Rock | 5/5[32] |
NME | 9/10[33] |
Rolling Stone | [34] |
The Rolling Stone Album Guide | [35] |
Released in December, Let It Bleed reached number 1 on the
The album was released in the US as an
In a retrospective review, NME magazine said that the album "tugs and teases" in various musical directions and called it "a classic".[33] In his 2001 Stones biography, Stephen Davis said of the album "No rock record, before or since, has ever so completely captured the sense of palpable dread that hung over its era."[6] In a five-star review for Rolling Stone in 2004, Gavin Edwards praised Richards' guitar playing throughout the album, and stated: "Whether it was spiritual, menstrual or visceral, the Stones made sure you went home covered in blood."[34] Jason McNeil of PopMatters wrote that Beggars Banquet and Let It Bleed are "the two greatest albums the band's (or anyone's) ever made".[42] In Steven Van Zandt's opinion, Let It Bleed was one in the Stones' series of four studio LPs—including Beggars Banquet (1968), Sticky Fingers (1971) and Exile on Main St. (1972)—that was "the greatest run of albums in history".[43]
The album was included in a "Basic Record Library" of 1950s and 1960s recordings, published in Christgau's Record Guide: Rock Albums of the Seventies (1981).[44] In 2000, Q magazine ranked it at number 28 in its list of "The 100 Greatest British Albums Ever".[citation needed] In 2001, the TV network VH1 placed Let It Bleed at 24th on their "100 Greatest Albums of R 'n' R" survey.[citation needed] In 1997, it was voted the 27th-best album ever by The Guardian.[citation needed] In 2003, Rolling Stone ranked it at number 32 on the magazine's list of the "500 Greatest Albums of All Time."[45] It maintained the rating in a 2012 revised list,[46] and was ranked at number 41 in a 2020 revised list.[47] It was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 2005.[48]
Track listing
The track listing on the back of the album jacket did not follow the one on the album itself. According to Brownjohn, he altered it purely for visual reasons; the correct order was shown on the record's label. Additionally, "Gimme Shelter" is rendered as "Gimmie Shelter" on the jacket. Some releases have "Gimmie Shelter" on the cover, the inner sleeve and the LP label.
All tracks are written by
No. | Title | Length |
---|---|---|
1. | "Midnight Rambler" | 6:52 |
2. | "You Got the Silver" | 2:51 |
3. | "Monkey Man" | 4:12 |
4. | "You Can't Always Get What You Want" | 7:28 |
Total length: | 21:23 |
Personnel
Track numbers noted in parentheses below are based on the CD track numbering where the titles of the second side are numbered from 6 to 9.[49]
The Rolling Stones
- Mick Jagger – vocals (all but 7), harmonica (1, 6)
- Keith Richards – electric guitar (all but 3), acoustic guitar (2, 3, 5, 7, 9), slide guitar (2, 5–8), backing vocals (1, 3, 8), bass guitar (4), lead vocals (7)
- Brian Jones – congas (6), autoharp (7)
- Bill Wyman – bass guitar (1, 2, 5–9), autoharp (5), vibraphone (8)
- Charlie Watts – drums (all but 9)
- Mick Taylor – slide guitar (3), electric guitar (4)
Additional personnel
- Ian Stewart – piano (5)
- Nicky Hopkins – piano (1, 4, 7, 8), organ (7)
- Byron Berline – fiddle (3)
- Ry Cooder – mandolin (2)
- Bobby Keys – tenor saxophone (4)
- Jimmy Miller – percussion (1), drums (9), tambourine (8)
- Leon Russell – piano and horn arrangement (4)
- Jack Nitzsche – choral arrangements (9)
- Al Kooper – piano, French horn and organ (9)
- Merry Clayton – lead and backing vocals (1)
- Nanette Workman – backing vocals (3, 9) (credited as Nanette Newman on the LP)
- Doris Troy – backing vocals (9)
- Madeline Bell – backing vocals (9)
- Rocky Dijon– percussion (9)
- The London Bach Choir – vocals (9)
Charts
Chart (1969–1970) | Peak position |
---|---|
Australian Albums (Kent Music Report)[50] | 2 |
Canada Top Albums/CDs (RPM)[51] | 4 |
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[52] | 1 |
Finland ( The Official Finnish Charts)[53]
|
12 |
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[54] | 3 |
Italian Albums ( Musica e Dischi)[55]
|
7 |
Japanese Albums (Oricon)[56] | 11 |
Norwegian Albums (VG-lista)[57] | 2 |
Sweden ( Kvällstoppen)[58]
|
5 |
UK Albums (OCC)[59] | 1 |
US Billboard 200[60] | 3 |
Chart (2007) | Peak position |
---|---|
Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)[61] | 37 |
Chart (2012) | Peak position |
---|---|
French Albums ( SNEP)[62]
|
138 |
Chart (2019) | Peak position |
---|---|
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[63] | 112 |
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[64] | 128 |
Spanish Albums (PROMUSICAE)[65] | 64 |
Certifications
Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
---|---|---|
Australia (ARIA)[66] | Platinum | 70,000‡ |
Canada (Music Canada)[67] | Platinum | 100,000^ |
Netherlands (NVPI)[68] | Gold | 25,000[68] |
United Kingdom (BPI)[69] | Platinum | 300,000^ |
United States (RIAA)[70] | 2× Platinum | 2,000,000^ |
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. |
References
- ^ a b McPherson, Ian. "Let It Bleed". www.timeisonourside.com. Retrieved 25 October 2016.
- ISBN 978-1-4930-1389-0.
- ISBN 0-7535-0493-6.
- ISBN 1-90331-877-7.
- ^ Decca. "Inner sleeve credits". Retrieved 13 July 2012.
- ^ ISBN 0-7679-0312-9.
- ISBN 0-207-16940-3.
- ISBN 0-7513-4646-2.
- ISBN 0-7679-0312-9.
- ^ a b McPherson, Ian. "Country Honk". www.timeisonourside.com. Retrieved 25 October 2016.
- ^ McPherson, Ian. "Midnight Rambler". www.timeisonourside.com. Retrieved 25 October 2016.
- ^ Heckman, Don (28 December 1969). "Pop: No, The Rolling Stones are Not Fascists; Mick's Not Fascist". The New York Times. p. D24. Retrieved 21 June 2013. (subscription required)
- ^ Unterberger, Richie. "Let It Bleed". AllMusic. Archived from the original on 2 October 2011. Retrieved 17 June 2015.
- ^ "The Rolling Stones Top 10 Albums" > "2. Let It Bleed". mojo4music.com. Retrieved 11 September 2015.
- ^ McPherson, Ian. "Love In Vain". www.timeisonourside.com. Retrieved 25 October 2016.
- ^ McPherson, Ian. "You Can't Always Get What You Want". www.timeisonourside.com. Retrieved 25 October 2016.
- ^ McPherson, Ian. "Monkey Man". www.timeisonourside.com. Retrieved 25 October 2016.
- ^ McPherson, Ian. "Let It Bleed". www.timeisonourside.com. Retrieved 25 October 2016.
- ^ McPherson, Ian. "You Got the Silver". www.timeisonourside.com. Retrieved 25 October 2016.
- ^ McPherson, Ian. "Live with Me". www.timeisonourside.com. Retrieved 25 October 2016.
- ^ Wenner, Jann (14 December 1995). "Mick Jagger Remembers". rollingstone.com.
- ^ "Review: The Amazing World of MC Escher". Herald Scotland. 28 June 2015. Retrieved 21 April 2016.
- ^ Higgins, Chris (21 October 2009). "How Mick Jagger Got Dissed By M.C. Escher". Mental Floss. Retrieved 21 April 2016.
- ^ "Delia and The Rolling Stones". Delia Online. 20 January 2017. Retrieved 14 December 2017.
- ^ Popeson, Pamela (12 September 2013). "Let Them Eat Delia's Cake, or Robert Brownjohn's Let It Bleed". moma.org. Retrieved 14 December 2017.
- ^ Wyman, Bill. 2002. Rolling With the Stones
- ^ "Royal Mail puts classic albums on to stamps". The Guardian. London. 21 November 2009. Retrieved 14 December 2017.
- ^ Hall, John (7 January 2010). "Royal Mail unveil classic album cover stamps". The Independent. London. Archived from the original on 14 June 2022. Retrieved 14 December 2017.
- All Media Network. Retrieved 17 June 2015.
- ^ a b Christgau, Robert (16 February 2022). "Xgau Sez: February 2022". And It Don't Stop. Retrieved 18 February 2022.
- ^ "Let It Bleed CD". Muze Inc. Retrieved 21 June 2008.
- ISBN 1-57859-061-2.
- ^ a b "Review: Let It Bleed". NME. London. 8 July 1995. p. 46.
- ^ a b Edwards, Gavin (2 September 2004). "Review: Let It Bleed". Rolling Stone. New York. p. 147.
- rollingstone.com. Archived version retrieved 15 November 2014.
- ^ "Album Reviews: The Rolling Stones – Let it Bleed". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 31 October 2009.
- ^ "Robert Christgau's 1970 Jazz & Pop Ballot". Jazz & Pop. 1970 – via robertchristgau.com.
- ^ Christgau, Robert (17 December 1979). "Journey Through the Past". The Village Voice. Retrieved 20 March 2020 – via robertchristgau.com.
- ^ "Public Enemy". Playboy. September 1991. Retrieved 20 March 2020 – via robertchristgau.com.
- ^ Walsh, Christopher (24 August 2002). "Super audio CDs: The Rolling Stones Remastered". Billboard. p. 27.
- ^ Aswad, Jem (9 November 2016). "The Rolling Stones' Early Catalog Dazzles on New Mono Remasters: Sneak Peek". Billboard. Retrieved 18 December 2016.
- ^ MacNeil, Jason (23 August 2004). "The Rolling Stones: Beggars Banquet / Let it Bleed". PopMatters. Archived from the original on 19 October 2012. Retrieved 31 October 2009.
- ^ Steven Van Zandt (3 December 2010). "The Immortals – The Greatest Artists of All Time: 4) The Rolling Stones". The RollingStone. Retrieved 8 February 2020.
- ISBN 0899190251. Retrieved 16 March 2019 – via robertchristgau.com.
- ^ "Rolling Stone 500 Greatest Albums 2003 List". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 11 November 2020.
- ^ "500 Greatest Albums of All Time Rolling Stone's definitive list of the 500 greatest albums of all time". Rolling Stone. 2012. Retrieved 23 September 2019.
- ^ "Let It Bleed ranked 41st greatest album by Rolling Stone magazine". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 11 November 2020.
- ^ "Grammy Hall of Fame Letter L". Grammy. Retrieved 5 May 2020.
- ^ Let It Bleed CD track numbering
- ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
- ^ "Top RPM Albums: Issue 6114". RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved 22 December 2022.
- ^ "Dutchcharts.nl – The Rolling Stones – Let It Bleed" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 22 December 2022.
- ISBN 978-951-1-21053-5.
- GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved 22 December 2022.
- Musica e Dischi(in Italian). Retrieved 27 May 2022. Set "Tipo" on "Album". Then, in the "Artista" field, search "Rolling Stones".
- ISBN 4-87131-077-9.
- ^ "Norwegiancharts.com – The Rolling Stones – Let It Bleed". Hung Medien. Retrieved 22 December 2022.
- OCLC 165178200.
- ^ "The Rolling Stones | Artist | Official Charts". UK Albums Chart. Retrieved 22 December 2022.
- ^ "The Rolling Stones Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved 22 December 2022.
- ^ "Swedishcharts.com – The Rolling Stones – Let It Bleed". Hung Medien. Retrieved 22 December 2022.
- ^ "Lescharts.com – The Rolling Stones – Let It Bleed". Hung Medien. Retrieved 22 December 2022.
- ^ "Ultratop.be – The Rolling Stones – Let It Bleed" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 22 December 2022.
- ^ "Ultratop.be – The Rolling Stones – Let It Bleed" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved 22 December 2022.
- ^ "Spanishcharts.com – The Rolling Stones – Let It Bleed". Hung Medien. Retrieved 22 December 2022.
- ^ "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 2023 Albums" (PDF). Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved 23 November 2023.
- ^ "Canadian album certifications – The Rolling Stones – Let It Bleed". Music Canada. Retrieved 11 June 2016.
- ^ a b "Bill Wyman Dutch Gold Record Award". 20 December 2020.
- ^ "British album certifications – The Rolling Stones – Let It Bleed". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 11 June 2016.
- ^ "American album certifications – The Rolling Stones – Let It Bleed". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved 11 June 2016.
External links
- Let It Bleed at Discogs (list of releases)