The Beatles ~ Let it Be á la Laibach
mentions:
The Rolling Stones ~ Beggar's Banquet
Laibach - 2011
Showing posts with label Sympathy for the Devil. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Sympathy for the Devil. Show all posts
May 8, 2019
Laibach articles/mentions
~
The Beatles ~ Let it Be á la Laibach
mentions:
The Rolling Stones ~ Beggar's Banquet
The Beatles ~ Let it Be á la Laibach
mentions:
The Rolling Stones ~ Beggar's Banquet
December 6, 2018
20,000 Vinyl LPs 159: The Rolling Stones ~ Beggar's Banquet
~
vinyl LP, front cover
photo by Styrous®
The seventh British and ninth American studio album by The Rolling Stones, Beggar's Banquet, was released 40 years ago on December 6, 1968, by Decca Records in the United Kingdom and London Records in the United States.
Of all the great songs on this album, my absolute favorite is Sympathy For The Devil. No song before or since has had the pathos yet horror of atrocities this song details. The song was written by Mick Jagger and Keith Richards, and is the opening track of the album. Rolling Stone magazine placed it at number 32 on its list of the "500 Greatest Songs of All Time".
I would have put it higher but then, who the hell am I?
vinyl LP, back cover detail
detail photo by Styrous®
Jagger sings in first person narrative as the Devil,
boasting his role in each of several historical violent atrocities.
The singer then ironically demands our courtesy towards him, implicitly
chastising the listener for our collective culpability in the listed
killings and crimes. In the 2012 documentary Crossfire Hurricane, Jagger stated that his influence for the song came from Baudelaire and from the novel, The Master and Margarita (which had just appeared in English translation in 1967) by Russian author Mikhail Bulgakov. The book was given to him by Marianne Faithfull.
Jagger originally wrote it as a folk song but Richards suggested changing the tempo and using additional percussion, turning the folk song into a samba.
Jagger originally wrote it as a folk song but Richards suggested changing the tempo and using additional percussion, turning the folk song into a samba.
vinyl LP, back cover detail
detail photo by Styrous®
The lyrics focus on atrocities in the history of mankind from Satan's point of view including the trial and death of Jesus Christ ("Made damn sure that Pilate washed his hands to seal his fate"), European wars of religion ("I watched with glee while your kings and queens fought for ten decades for the gods they made"), the violence of the Russian Revolution of 1917 and the 1918 shooting of the Romanov family during World War I ("I stuck around St. Petersburg when I saw it was a time for a change/Killed the Tsar and his ministers/Anastasia screamed in vain"), and World War II ("I rode a tank, held a general's rank when the blitzkrieg raged, and the bodies stank"). The song was originally written with the line "I shouted out 'Who killed Kennedy?'" After the Robert F. Kennedy death on 6 June 1968, the line was changed to "Who killed the Kennedys?".
And the answer is "when after all it was you and me", which is a way of
saying that "the devil is not the other one, but eventually each one of
us."
vinyl LP, back cover detail
detail photo by Styrous®
The recording of Sympathy For The Devil began at the Olympic Sound Studios
in London on June 4, 1968, and continued into the next day; overdubs
were done on 8, 9 and 10 June. Personnel included on the recording
include Nicky Hopkins on piano, Rocky Dijon on congas and Bill Wyman on maracas. Marianne Faithfull, Anita Pallenberg, Brian Jones, Charlie Watts, producer Jimmy Miller, Wyman and Richards performed backup vocals, singing the "woo woos". Richards plays bass on the original recording,
and also electric guitar. Brian Jones plays a mostly mixed out acoustic
guitar, although in isolated tracks of the studio cut, it is audible
playing along with the piano.
vinyl LP, back cover detail
detail photo by Styrous®
Jagger said, "It has a very hypnotic groove, a samba, which has a tremendous hypnotic
power, rather like good dance music. It doesn't speed up or slow down.
It keeps this constant groove. Plus, the actual samba rhythm is a great
one to sing on, but it is also got some other suggestions in it, an
undercurrent of being primitive—because it is a primitive African, South
American, Afro-whatever-you-call-that rhythm (candomblé).
So to white people, it has a very sinister thing about it. But
forgetting the cultural colors, it is a very good vehicle for producing a
powerful piece. It becomes less pretentious because it is a very
unpretentious groove. If it had been done as a ballad, it wouldn't have
been as good."
photo by Styrous®
In an interview with Creem,
Jagger said, "[When people started taking us as devil worshippers], I
thought it was a really odd thing, because it was only one song, after
all. It wasn't like it was a whole album, with lots of occult signs on
the back. People seemed to embrace the image so readily, [and] it has
carried all the way over into heavy metal bands today. Some people have
made a living out of doing this; for example, Jimmy Page."
photo by Styrous®
Of the change in public perception the band experienced after the song's release, Richards said in a 1971 interview with Rolling Stone,
"Before, we were just innocent kids out for a good time, they're
saying, 'They're evil, they're evil.' Oh, I'm evil, really? So that
makes you start thinking about evil... What is evil? Half of it, I don't
know how much people think of Mick as the devil or as just a good rock
performer or what? There are black magicians who think we are acting as
unknown agents of Lucifer and others who think we are Lucifer.
Everybody's Lucifer."
detail photo by Styrous®
Contrary to a widespread misconception, it was Under My Thumb and not Sympathy For The Devil that the Rolling Stones were performing when Meredith Hunter was killed at the Altamont Free Concert. Rolling Stone magazine's early articles on the incident misreported that the killing took place during Sympathy For The Devil
but the Stones in fact played Sympathy earlier in the
concert; it was interrupted by a fight and restarted, Jagger commenting,
"We're always having—something very funny happens when we start that
number." Several other songs were performed before Hunter was killed.
detail photo by Styrous®
Guns N' Roses recorded a cover in 1994 which reached number 55 on the Billboard Hot 100; it was featured in the closing credits of the Neil Jordan film adaptation of Interview with the Vampire (except the 4K cut of the film) by Anne Rice, and was included on their Greatest Hits album. This cover is noteworthy for causing an incident involving incoming guitarist, Paul "Huge" Tobias, that was partially responsible for guitarist Slash departing from the band in 1996. Slash has described the Guns N' Roses version of the song as "the sound of the band breaking up".
The Slovenian avant-garde, Goth/heavy-metal group, Laibach, did a sensational cover of Sympathy For The Devil that raises goose bumps on your arms.
vinyl LP, side 1
photo by Styrous®
vinyl LP label, side 1
photo by Styrous®
vinyl LP, side 2
photo by Styrous®
Tracklist:
Side 1:
A1 - Sympathy For The Devil - 6:14
A2 - No Expectations - 3:52
A3 - Dear Doctor - 3:19
A4 - Parachute Woman - 2:17
A5 - Jig-Saw Puzzle - 6:07
Side 2:
B1 - Street Fighting Man - 3:10
B2 - Prodigal Son, written by Rev. Wilkins* - 2:47
B3 - Stray Cat Blues - 4:32
B4 - Factory Girl - 2:06
B5 - Salt Of The Earth - 4:43
Companies, etc.
Recorded At – Olympic Studios
Mastered At – Audio Matrix, Inc.
Pressed By – Bestway Products Inc.
Credits:
Engineer – Eddie*, Gene (3), Glyn Johns
Producer – Jimmy Miller
Written-By – Jagger; Richard* (tracks: A1 to B1, B3 to B5)
Notes:
Pressing Variation: Bestway Products Inc..
Does not include Credit for track B2 "Prodigal Son" to Rev. Wilkins on the label.
Include the text "Written by Mick Jagger and Keith Richards" on the back cover. See Picture
It comes in a gold-bordered gatefold cover.
Cat # PS-539 appears on the label.
Cat # PS 539 spine and rear sleeve, bottom-middle.
Barcode and Other Identifiers
Matrix / Runout (Side 1 Label): ZAL-8476-BW
Matrix / Runout (Side 2 Label): ZAL-8477-BW
Matrix / Runout (Side 1 Etched): XZAL-8476A AM_
Matrix / Runout (Side 2 Etched): XZAL-8477-B W 8-19-68
Matrix / Runout (Side 1 & 2 Stamped): AUDIOMATRIX Bestway
Pressing Plant ID (at the end of label matrix): BW
The Rolling Stones – Beggars Banquet
Label: London Records – PS-539, London Records – PS 539
Format: Vinyl, LP, Album, Stereo, Bestway Pressing
Country: US
Released: 1968
Genre: Rock
Style: Blues Rock, Rock & Roll, Classic Rock
Side 1:
A1 - Sympathy For The Devil - 6:14
A2 - No Expectations - 3:52
A3 - Dear Doctor - 3:19
A4 - Parachute Woman - 2:17
A5 - Jig-Saw Puzzle - 6:07
Side 2:
B1 - Street Fighting Man - 3:10
B2 - Prodigal Son, written by Rev. Wilkins* - 2:47
B3 - Stray Cat Blues - 4:32
B4 - Factory Girl - 2:06
B5 - Salt Of The Earth - 4:43
Companies, etc.
Recorded At – Olympic Studios
Mastered At – Audio Matrix, Inc.
Pressed By – Bestway Products Inc.
Credits:
Engineer – Eddie*, Gene (3), Glyn Johns
Producer – Jimmy Miller
Written-By – Jagger; Richard* (tracks: A1 to B1, B3 to B5)
Notes:
Pressing Variation: Bestway Products Inc..
Does not include Credit for track B2 "Prodigal Son" to Rev. Wilkins on the label.
Include the text "Written by Mick Jagger and Keith Richards" on the back cover. See Picture
It comes in a gold-bordered gatefold cover.
Cat # PS-539 appears on the label.
Cat # PS 539 spine and rear sleeve, bottom-middle.
Barcode and Other Identifiers
Matrix / Runout (Side 1 Label): ZAL-8476-BW
Matrix / Runout (Side 2 Label): ZAL-8477-BW
Matrix / Runout (Side 1 Etched): XZAL-8476A AM_
Matrix / Runout (Side 2 Etched): XZAL-8477-B W 8-19-68
Matrix / Runout (Side 1 & 2 Stamped): AUDIOMATRIX Bestway
Pressing Plant ID (at the end of label matrix): BW
The Rolling Stones – Beggars Banquet
Label: London Records – PS-539, London Records – PS 539
Format: Vinyl, LP, Album, Stereo, Bestway Pressing
Country: US
Released: 1968
Genre: Rock
Style: Blues Rock, Rock & Roll, Classic Rock
July 3, 2014
101 Reel-to-Reel Tapes 71: Arif Mardin ~ Glass Onion
.Arif Mardin ~
Glass Onion
In addition to my vinyl LP record collection I'm selling, I have hundreds of reel-to-reel, pre-recorded tapes as well. This is an entry about one of them that is for sale on eBay (see link below). Interested? Contact me by email, please, not by a comment.
~ ~ ~
Glass Onion, 1970, was the first of only two solo albums by Mardin. His other album was Journey, 1975, in which he was the composer and arranger, but he also played electric piano and percussion, and was accompanied by many stars of jazz (Randy and Michael Brecker, Joe Farrell, Gary Burton, Ron Carter, Steve Gadd, Billy Cobham and many others). Mardin composed, arranged, conducted and produced The Prophet, an interpretation of The Prophet by Kahlil Gibran, in 1974, featuring Richard Harris.
Arif Mardin ~ Glass Onion reel-to-reel tape
Cover illustration & design: Stanislaw Zagorski
photo by Styrous®
Mardin produced many hit artists including Margie Joseph, Thereza Bazar, The Rascals, Carly Simon, Petula Clark, Bette Midler, Barbra Streisand, the Bee Gees, Diana Ross, Queen, Patti Labelle, Aretha Franklin, Lulu, Anita Baker, Judy Collins, Phil Collins, Scritti Politti, Culture Club, Roberta Flack, Average White Band, Hall & Oates, Donny Hathaway, Norah Jones, Daniel Rodriguez, Chaka Khan, George Benson, Melissa Manchester, Side Show, The Manhattan Transfer, Modern Jazz Quartet, Willie Nelson, John Prine, Leo Sayer, Dusty Springfield, David Bowie, Raul Midon, Mamas Pride, Jewel and Ringo Starr.
Cover illustration & design: Stanislaw Zagorski
detail photo by Styrous®
Arif Mardin, born on March 15, 1932, in Istanbul, was a Turkish-American music producer, who worked with hundreds of artists across many different styles of music, including jazz, rock, soul, disco, and country. He worked at Atlantic Records for over 30 years, as both an assistant, producer, arranger, studio manager, and vice president, before moving to EMI and serving as vice president and general manager of Manhattan Records. His collaborations include working with Queen, The Bee Gees, Anita Baker, Aretha Franklin, Roberta Flack, Bette Midler, Laura Branigan, Chaka Khan, Scritti Politti, Phil Collins, Daniel Rodriguez, Norah Jones, Richard Marx, Culture Club and Howard Jones. Mardin was awarded 11 Grammy Awards.
reel-to-reel tape box back
photo by Styrous®
Mardin began his career at Atlantic Records in 1963 as an assistant to Nesuhi Ertegün. A fellow Turkish émigré, Nesuhi was the brother of Ahmet Ertegün, Atlantic's co-founder and a jazz enthusiast when they met at the Newport Jazz Festival.
Mardin rose through the ranks quickly, becoming studio manager, label
house producer and arranger. In 1969, he became the Vice President and
later served as Senior Vice President until 2001. He worked closely on
many projects with co-founders Ertegün and Jerry Wexler, as well as noted recording engineer Tom Dowd;
the three legends (Dowd, Mardin, and Wexler) were responsible for
establishing the "Atlantic Sound". Arif Mardin retired from Atlantic
Records in May 2001 and re-activated his label Manhattan Records. He maintained ties to the Turkish music industry.
reel-to-reel tape back detail
detail photo by Styrous®
When Mardin was producing the Bee Gees' 1975 Main Course album track, Nights on Broadway, he discovered the distinctive falsetto of Barry Gibb, which became a familiar trademark of the band throughout the disco era.
reel-to-reel tape back detail
detail photo by Styrous®
the music
With the exception of Midnight Walk, all the songs are instrumental covers of music by other artists. Walk is a bluesy, slow tune with lots of brass, (trumpets, saxes, etc.) backing his piano. There's a nice harmonica at one point. Jazz drummer Elvin Jones covered this song in 1966; it was released on the Atlantic label.
reel-to-reel tape
photo by Styrous®
Mardin's cover of Sympathy for the Devil, by Mick Jagger and Keith Richards of The Rolling Stones, is a very strange version of the song. It also is an instrumental but it almost doesn't even sound like the same tune. You can hear it on Spotify (link below).
reel-to-reel tape label detail
detail photo by Styrous®
Track List:
Side 1:
1 - How Can I Be Sure - Written by Eddie Brigati, Felix Cavaliere - 3:35
2 - (Sittin' On) The Dock Of The Bay - Written by Otis Redding, Steve Cropper - 3:20
3 - Listen Here - Written by Eddie Harris - 3:10
4 - Mary Ann - Written by Ray Charles - 2:06
5 - Ain't No Way - Written by Carolyn Franklin - 3:08
6 - Midnight Walk - Written by Arif Mardin - 4:28
Side 2:
1 - Glass Onion - Written by John Lennon, Paul McCartney - 2:42
2 - Proud Mary - Written by John Fogerty - 3:32
3 - Sympathy For The Devil - Written by Keith Richards, Mick Jagger - 3:56
4 - Walk On By - Written by Burt Bacharach, Hal David - 3:19
5 - Strange Brew - Written by Eric Clapton, Felix Pappalardi, Gail Collins - 4:18
Arranged By – Arif Mardin
Drums – Roger Hawkins
Electric Bass – David Hood
Electric Piano – Barry Beckett
Harmonica – Eddie Hinton
Lead Guitar – Eddie Hinton
Organ – Barry Beckett
Percussion – Roger Hawkins
Piano – Barry Beckett
Rhythm Guitar – Jimmy Johnson (4)
Arif Mardin, Glass Onion, 3¾ ips reel-to-reel tape
Atlantic - X 9333
Released 1969
Side 1:
1 - How Can I Be Sure - Written by Eddie Brigati, Felix Cavaliere - 3:35
2 - (Sittin' On) The Dock Of The Bay - Written by Otis Redding, Steve Cropper - 3:20
3 - Listen Here - Written by Eddie Harris - 3:10
4 - Mary Ann - Written by Ray Charles - 2:06
5 - Ain't No Way - Written by Carolyn Franklin - 3:08
6 - Midnight Walk - Written by Arif Mardin - 4:28
Side 2:
1 - Glass Onion - Written by John Lennon, Paul McCartney - 2:42
2 - Proud Mary - Written by John Fogerty - 3:32
3 - Sympathy For The Devil - Written by Keith Richards, Mick Jagger - 3:56
4 - Walk On By - Written by Burt Bacharach, Hal David - 3:19
5 - Strange Brew - Written by Eric Clapton, Felix Pappalardi, Gail Collins - 4:18
Arranged By – Arif Mardin
Drums – Roger Hawkins
Electric Bass – David Hood
Electric Piano – Barry Beckett
Harmonica – Eddie Hinton
Lead Guitar – Eddie Hinton
Organ – Barry Beckett
Percussion – Roger Hawkins
Piano – Barry Beckett
Rhythm Guitar – Jimmy Johnson (4)
Arif Mardin, Glass Onion, 3¾ ips reel-to-reel tape
Atlantic - X 9333
Released 1969
Sittin' On the Dock of the Bay on YouTube
Midnight Walk on YouTube
Arif Mardin ~ Glass Onion reel-to-reel tape is for sale on eBay
reel-to-reel tapes on eBay
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