Unfortunately, I've never had a job I liked (there are much worse fates), but I can guarantee you that if I ever win the lottery and get to tell a boss they can blow this job out their ass, this week's tune is going to be the one I'm playing in my car on the way home. Defiantly.
I've done a Jukebox about the Rolling Stones before ("Gimme Shelter"), and what I said then about the weekly brief band bio pretty much holds true still--there are many people who have written about the Rolling Stones who can do a much better job of it than I, and their history is a bit long for a paragraph. Most students of pop music would place the Stones right behind Elvis, Dylan, and the Beatles, and while I'd probably put the Who ahead of them, that's just a personal preference. I always thought the Stones were the greatest singles band ever--I've only heard a couple of their albums that (for me) held together well, but outside of the Beatles you'd be hard pressed to name another band that could fill a greatest hits album with more, well, greatest hits. Needless to say, they've been accorded just about every musical accolade you can think of (Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, Songwriter's Hall of Fame, Grammy Award, etc.), sold over 250 million albums, and just to put the icing on the cake, they've also had three of the top five grossing concert tours ever.
Released in 1978 on what many considered a comeback album (after releasing their seminal Exile on Main St. in 1972 the Stones had several what could kindly be considered uneven efforts), Some Girls, "Before They Make Me Run" was not released as a single, though it definitely should have been, especially if it would have meant they wouldn't have released "Miss You" as a single, which is quite possibly the worst song the Stones have ever done. In fairness, it seems to have taken the Stones a while to appreciate "Before They Make Me Run"--they never played it live until 1989, but since then it has become a staple of their live shows.
There seems to be some debate as to the theme of the song--some believe it's Keith Richards' defense of his heroin use, others believe it's a paean to giving up his addiction (I hold with the former, for what it's worth), but either way, I've always found the song to be a big picture song, and to be a song about defiance of those who would keep us down. The song is pretty much a Keith Richards production--though the credits go to The Glimmer Twins, Mick Jagger is said to have only added backing vocals. Obviously one of the things that stands out about the song is that it's one of the few Stones' songs that Richards provides lead vocals for, and while he might not have Jagger's swagger, he does an incredible job of singing about his life. He also keeps it simple--it's just guitars, bass, and drums. Richards and Ron Wood compliment each other smashingly on guitar (just listen to the intro), while Bill Wyman's bass and (especially) Charlie Watt's drumming keep the pace fast and furious (to quote a phrase). In the end, it's a quintessential Stones song--while they very well may be sons of the devil, who knew Satan's offspring could write such a heavenly tune?
Lyric Sheet: "Gonna find my way to heaven, 'cause I did my time in hell/I wasn't looking too good but I was feeling real well..."
Enjoy:
Fuck Donald Trump,
emaycee
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