You Can't Always Get What You Want
"You Can't Always Get What You Want" is a song by The Rolling Stones released on their 1969 album Let It Bleed. Written primarily by Mick Jagger with assistance from Keith Richards, it was named as the 100th greatest song of all time by Rolling Stone (magazine) in its 2004 list of "500 Greatest Songs of All Time."
Description
"You Can't Always Get What You Want" was recorded on 16 and 17 November 1968 at London's Olympic Sound Studios. It features the London Bach Choir opening the song, highlighting throughout, and bringing it to its conclusion. Jimmy Miller, the Rolling Stones' producer at the time, plays drums on this song instead of Charlie Watts. Al Kooper plays piano and organ and also played the French horn intro, while Rocky Dijon plays congas and maracas. Nanette Workman sings backup vocals, but she is credited as "Nanette Newman".
Of the song, Jagger said in 2003, "'You Can't Always Get What You Want' was something I just played on the acoustic guitar—one of those bedroom songs. It proved to be quite difficult to record because Charlie couldn't play the groove and so Jimmy Miller had to play the drums. I'd also had this idea of having a choir, probably a gospel choir, on the track, but there wasn't one around at that point. Jack Nitzsche, or somebody, said that we could get the London Bach Choir and we said, 'That will be a laugh.'"[1]
In his review of the song, Richie Unterberger says, "If you buy John Lennon's observation that the Rolling Stones were apt to copy the Beatles' innovations within a few months or so, 'You Can't Always Get What You Want' is the Rolling Stones' counterpart to 'Hey Jude'". Jagger said in 1969, "I liked the way the Beatles did that with 'Hey Jude'. The orchestra was not just to cover everything up—it was something extra. We may do something like that on the next album."[2]
Meaning
A popular story of the song's origins involves Jagger's experience at a drug store in the town of Excelsior, Minnesota:
[I]n 1964, Mick Jagger, having played at the Danceland ballroom the night before, was standing in line to get his prescription filled at the Excelsior drugstore. Seems a local character named Jimmy Heutmaker started yapping about how he loved his cherry coke but that morning he was given a different flavor and y’know, Mr. Jagger, you can’t always get what you want…[3]
The story about Jagger meeting a drifter named Jimmy Hutmaker may be apocryphal. "Jagger never acknowledged the conversation 'or' using it as an inspiration."[4] Webster's Dictionary has called it an "urban legend," and argued that "considering that this alleged meeting took place in June 1964 and the song was not recorded until almost five years later, it is of dubious validity."[5] Nevertheless, according to Heutmaker's obituary in the Star Tribune, many still insist that the story is true.[6]
However, one Jimmy Phelge, friend of the band in their early days and onetime roommate of Mick, Keith and Brian, has claimed that he is the "Mr. Jimmy" of the song, and says as much in his book of recollections, 'Phelge's Stones' (also published as 'Nankering With The Stones.')
The three verses (along with the varied theme in the 4th verse) address the major topics of the 1960s: love, politics, and drugs. Each verse captures the essence of the initial optimism and eventual disillusion, followed by the resigned pragmatism in the chorus.
Unterberger concludes of the song, "Much has been made of the lyrics reflecting the end of the overlong party that was the 1960s, as a snapshot of Swinging London burning out. That's a valid interpretation, but it should also be pointed out that there's also an uplifting and reassuring quality to the melody and performance. This is particularly true of the key lyrical hook, when we are reminded that we can't always get what we want, but we'll get what we need."
Release and aftermath
Though popular on modern classic rock radio stations, "You Can't Always Get What You Want" was not released as a single, but rather as the B-Side to "Honky Tonk Women", albeit in an edited form (4:49) without the choral section. One of the Stones' most popular recordings, it has since appeared on the compilations Hot Rocks, Singles Collection, Forty Licks, Rolled Gold+: The Very Best of the Rolling Stones (2007 edition), Singles 1968-1971 (single version), and Slow Rollers.
"You Can't Always Get What You Want" is very popular at Rolling Stones shows due to the sing-along chorus, and is played at almost every show (where it is custom for Jagger to change the lyrics from "my favourite flavour, cherry red" to the question "What's your favourite flavour?" to which the audience replies "Cherry red"). Live recordings appear on the albums Love You Live, Flashpoint, Live Licks, and The Rolling Stones Rock and Roll Circus recorded in 1968.
Personnel
Covers and tributes
- In 1971, jazz pianist Vince Guaraldi released a cover version of the song on his album Oaxaca.
- In 1980, Bette Midler recorded her own live cover, during her concert album and film Divine Madness. The song was made into a medley featuring Bob Dylan's "I Shall Be Released".
- In 1981, an Aretha Franklin cover followed, released on her album ''Love All the Hurt Away.
- In 1989, "Weird Al" Yankovic included this song in "The Hot Rocks Polka," a polka medley consisting entirely of The Stones' songs
- In 1990, George Michael used the song's rhythm, chords and chorus in his single "Waiting For That Day". Jagger and Richards received shared songwriting credit.
- In 1992, Def Leppard released an acoustic cover of the song as a B-side to their single "Have You Ever Needed Someone So Bad". (This version has never been officially released in the United States.)
- Blues musician Luther Allison covered the song for the 1997 tribute album Paint it Blue: Songs of the Rolling Stones.
- In 1997, Sunchild released a live version of the song on their album Barefoot & Live
- In 1998, the jam band Rusted Root included a version on their self-titled fourth album.
- Perhaps the most unusual cover was also released in 2001, when the reggae band Steel Pulse recorded it for the Paint It Black: A Reggae Tribute to the Rolling Stones.
- The 3-2-1 Penguins video, The Amazing Carnival of Complaining (released 2001) features a song which includes the line "You can't always get what you want, you can't always get what you want, but if you gripe sometimes, you just might find, you turn into seeds!"
- Band from TV covered it for the soundtrack of House.
- In 2006, the cover by Ituana was included into the album Bossa n' Stones, Vol. 2.
- In 2007, indie supergroup The Chavs performed a version merged with The Charlatans song "North Country Boy" live for Rockworld TV.
- In 2007, Anarchist folk punk group Ghost Mice recorded a version of this song to benefit Food Not Bombs.
- In 2008, Belgian outfit Soulwax released a remix of the song, which appeared on the soundtrack to the 2008 film, 21.
- In 2008, French Jean-Jacques Milteau (harmonica) recorded the song for his album Soul Conversation with Ron Smyth (vocal).
- In 2009, the cast of Glee recorded a cover in the thirteenth episode, "Sectionals".
- In 2010, Blunt Instrument released a glitch-hop remix of the song.
Soundtrack appearances
In film
- Bette Midler recorded the song, during her concert film Divine Madness, released in 1980. The song was made into a medley featuring Bob Dylan's "I Shall Be Released".
- The song is used during the opening funeral scene in the 1983 Academy Award-nominated film The Big Chill. The use of the song in the film has been copied and pastiched in several other dramas.
- Used to underscore the unsuccessful endeavour in the closing scenes of the 2006 film The Hoax after Clifford Irving's (Richard Gere) deception (in his bogus "autobiography" of Howard Hughes) revealed to the world.
- The Soulwax remix of the song is played during the final scene at Harvard Medical School in the 2008 film 21.
- The song is mentioned in the movie High Fidelity as part of a list of "Top 5" songs about death, but receives an immediate disqualification for its involvement with The Big Chill.
- The song is used in the final scene of the movies 21 and Middle Men.
In television
- The Simpsons eighteenth season-finale was called "You Kent Always Say What You Want".
- The track has been featured in several episodes of the Fox television medical drama series House. In the pilot episode, Gregory House tries to avoid work imposed by his boss Lisa Cuddy, and says "In the words of the great philosopher Mick Jagger, you can't always get want you want." Cuddy later in the episode says "I looked into that philosopher you quoted, and you're right, you can't always get what want, but it turns out, if you try sometimes, you get what you need." The introduction of the song was played at the end of the episode. In the Season 1 finale ("Honeymoon"), the song plays as House attempts to walk without the support of his cane, but to no avail. The song was heard for a third time at the end of "Meaning". Another was in the Season 4 finale ("Wilson's Heart") when it is quoted to House by Amber in the form of a hallucination. In the episode Saviors House plays the song Georgia on my Mind on piano in the middle of which he adds the main riff from You Can't Always Get What You Want. It is also heard in Season five's "Unfaithful" where House plays the chorus of the song on the piano. It was most recently heard in the Season seven's "Last Temptation"" as Martha Masters takes leave.
- The song was featured in an episode of the NBC television comedy My Name Is Earl. In "Born a Gamblin' Man", the song plays at the end of the episode over a montage of the multiple storyline conclusions for the episode.
- The song was featured in an episode of the FX television medical drama Nip/Tuck, and during ESPN's coverage of the 2007 NFL Draft.
- The song was featured in the pilot episode of Showtime's dramedy Californication in 2007. The song was used during the opening scene, in a manner parodying its use in The Big Chill. The song then finished episode 12, bringing the first season to a close.
- The song was featured in the finale episode of the British ITV2 drama Secret Diary of a Call Girl in 2007.
- The end of the third episode of Swingtown used this song to communicate the inner desires of some of the characters.
- In the intro to an episode of Drake and Josh, Drake says "you know there's a song by the Stones that says you can't always get what you want".
- The song played an important role in the first fall finale of Glee, where the glee club perform it as their main song at the sectionals competition in the episode "Sectionals".
- The song was sung by Crystal Bowersox on the Finals: Top 12 of the 9th season of American Idol.
- The chorus was used in the first promos for short-lived mockumentary "My Generation"
- Was again used in the Showtime series Californication in the finale of season 4 (episode 12) during the last 2 minutes and throughout the credits.
In advertising
- The song was used prominently in U.S. TV commercials for Coca-Cola's "low-carb" C2 cola in 2004.
- The song is used in advertisements for Simon mall gift cards during the holiday season. It portrays people opening their presents, but the presents were not what they wanted. The tagline is to get people to give gifts the receiver will want.
References
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