The Styrous® Viewfinder: 20,000 vinyl LPs 332: Rolling Stones ~ Their Satanic Majesties Request

Rolling Stones ~ Their Satanic Majesties Request

album cover photo by Michael Cooper

photo of album cover by Styrous®

Today, July 26, is the birthday of Mick Jagger. My, oh, my! I remember when he was just a skinny kid; he's still skinny but he's no kid, he is 80 years old today! He was born and grew up in Dartford, England, and studied at the London School of Economics before abandoning his studies to join The Rolling Stones.

Jagger is the frontman and one of the founder members of the Stones. He and guitarist Keith Richards have written most of the band's songs together; their songwriting partnership is one of the most successful in history. His career has spanned over six decades, and he has been widely described as one of the most popular and influential frontmen in the history of rock music. His distinctive voice and energetic live performances, along with Richards' guitar style, have been the Stones' trademark throughout the band's career. Jagger gained notoriety for his romantic involvements and illicit drug use, and has often been portrayed as a countercultural figure.

The 1967 album, Between the Buttons, was considered largely unsuccessful commercially but up to that point, I thought it was fantastic! Keith Richards claims in his 2010 memoir Life that “none of us wanted to make [Satanic Majesties], but it was time for another Stones album, and Sgt. Pepper’s was coming out, so we thought basically we were doing a put-on.” Even Rolling Stone Magazine does not give it high value (links below) but I loved it!

In the 2000s, Jagger co-founded a film production company, Jagged Films, and produced feature films through the company beginning with the 2001 historical drama Enigma. In the late 1960s, Jagger starred in the films Performance (1970) and Ned Kelly (link below) (1970), to mixed receptions. Beginning in the 1980s, he released a number of solo works, including four albums and the single Dancing in the Street, a 1985 duet with David Bowie that reached No. 1 in the UK and Australia and was a top-ten hit in other countries.

In 1989, Jagger was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and, in 2004, into the UK Music Hall of Fame with the Rolling Stones. As a member of the Rolling Stones and as a solo artist, he reached No. 1 on the UK and US singles charts with 13 singles, the top 10 with 32 singles and the top 40 with 70 singles. In 2003, he was knighted for his services to popular music. The genus Jaggermeryx naida and the type species Aegrotocatellus jaggeri are named for him.

Their Satanic Majesties Request was released in a gatefold sleeve . . .

Rolling Stones ~ Their Satanic Majesties Request

gatefold cover

front above

interior below

photos by Styrous®

. . . with a lenticular image on the front cover of a photo by Michael Cooper.

As with all albums I have loved, I have favorites. Topping the list is In Another Land. It features an electronic-watery sounding vocal that is very trippy. The follow up is 2000 Light Years from Home. Now THIS is definitely in the trippy category!

The album, the strange result of a bizarre set of personal, professional, and cultural circumstances, was reissued for its 50th anniversary in 2017 (link below).

Of course, they couldn't be content with labeling the record as side 1 and side 2; they are labeled 'front side' and 'back side'.

Rolling Stones ~ Their Satanic Majesties Request

vinyl LP front side

photo by Styrous®

Rolling Stones ~ Their Satanic Majesties Request

vinyl LP back side

photo by Styrous®

Tracklist:

Side 1:

A1 - Sing This All Together - 3:46
A2 - Citadel - 2:50
A3 - In Another Land, Written-By, Vocals [Sung By] – Bill Wyman - 3:13
A4 - 2000 Man - 3:05
A5 - Sing This All Together (See What Happens) - 7:58

Side 2:

B1 - She's A Rainbow, Strings – J.P. Jones* - 4:35
B2 - The Lantern - 4:24
B3 - Gomper - 5:12
B4 - 2000 Light Years From Home - 4:45
B5 - On With The Show - 3:40

Companies, etc.

    Engineered At – Olympic Studios
    Engineered At – Bell Sound Studios
    Designed At – Pictorial Productions, Mount Vernon
    Copyright © – The Decca Record Company Limited
    Published By – Gideon Music, Inc.
    Printed By – Robert Stace
    Lacquer Cut At – Decca Studios
    Pressed By – Decca Record Co. Ltd., Pressing Plant, UK.

Credits:

    Artwork [Cover Photo Built By] – Artchie, Michael Cooper (8), The Rolling Stones
    Design [Album], Photography By – Michael Cooper (8)
    Engineer – Glyn Johns
    Illustration [Back Cover] – Tony Meeviwiffen*
    Lacquer Cut By – K (52)
    Piano – Nicky Hopkins
    Producer, Arranged By – The Rolling Stones
    Written-By [Songs By], Vocals [Singing By] – Mick Jagger And Keith Richards* (tracks: A1, A2, A4 to B5)

Notes:

Released in a gatefold sleeve with a lenticular image on front and a special 'psychedelic' red and white printed inner sleeve. Catalog number on spine and back: TXS 103

This stereo version has green labels with visible grooves and the following differences between the A and B sides:

Side A:
- Catalog number with dot: TXS.103
- Matrix number with dot and within brackets: (ZAL.8126)
- Non-italised writer credits.
- San-serif typeface for speed and side indicators, publisher, matrix number and credits.

Side B:
- Catalog number without dot: TXS 103
- Matrix number without dot and brackets: ZAL 8127
- Italised writer credits.
- Serif typeface for speed and side indicators, publisher, matrix number and credits.

There also exists a similar version with the A and B side label characteristics swapped around.

Engineer: at Olympic and Bell Sound
Cover photo built at Pictorial Productions, Mount Vernon, N.Y.
And many thanks to Harry Farmlett Studio
Published by Gideon (BMI)

© 1967, The Decca Record Company Limited, London
Printed in England by Robert Stace.

Barcode and Other Identifiers

    Rights Society: BMI
    Matrix / Runout (Label side A): ZAL.8126
    Matrix / Runout (Label side B): ZAL 8127
    Matrix / Runout (Runout side A, stamped): ZAL-8126-T2-6K
    Matrix / Runout (Runout side B, stamped): ZAL-8127-T2-5K

The Rolling Stones – Their Satanic Majesties Request
Label: Decca – TXS 103, Decca – TXS.103
Format: Vinyl, LP, Album, Stereo, Lenticular
Country: UK
Released: Dec 8, 1967
Genre: Rock
Style: Psychedelic Rock

Viewfinder links:

David Bowie

Michael Cooper

Ned Kelly, Mick Jagger & the Supreme Court

Keith Richards

The Rolling Stones

Stereogram ~ Sonic & Visual 3D

Charlie Watts

Ronnie Wood

Net links:

American Songwriter ~ Behind The Album

Billboard ~ How the Stones found themselves by getting lost