Sympathy for the Devil
The Stones leave Psychedelica in their wake, and with Jimmy Miller at their side produce "Beggars Banquet" a Country, Blues, and Rock masterpiece. Always in tune with musical trends, the Stones latch on to the Folk and Delta Blues craze that began sweeping the States since the early 60's. Interest in this genre of music was fueled by the writing of Samuel Charters' "The Country Blues", and the "rediscovery" of some of the original masters by Blues aficionados like John Fahey, Stefan Grossman, and the late Nick Perls. Delta Bluesmen such as Skip James, John Hurt, Rev. Gary Davis, and Rev. Robert Wilkins start playing the Folk Festivals and Coffee House circuits. Wilkins was the first person to record a song titled "Rollin' Stone" in September, 1928. The movie "Sympathy for the Devil" documents the song's folk and country roots, and somehow, incredibly, it ends up with a frenzied Samba beat. It is a first person historical narrative of trials, tribulations, and tragedies throughout the ages from the perspective of the "Dark One". Marianne Faithfull writes in her autobiography (with David Dalton) about a gift she'd given Jagger called "The Master and the Margarita" by Mikhail Bulgakov. She describes how he "devoured" the book in one night, and "spit out" Sympathy for the Devil. "The Master and the Margarita" is also referenced as an inspiration for the imagery in song in the Faithfull biography "As Tears Go By" by Mark Hodkinson. An incredible Jagger/Richards song writing accomplishment none the less. Live performance of the song adds a different flavor to the style, and they try desperately to recapture the original feel of the studio version with an 18 minute plus version of the song at the inaugural Hyde Park gig on July 5, 1969.
A. Structure:
Verse #1
Starts with two crashes to the cymbal: One at :05, and the other at :07. The instrumental introduction has been edited (shortened).
Line 1. Please allow me...to introduce myself
Line 2. Why I'm a man of wealth and taste (faint crowd applause-mixed down)
Line 3. Been around for a long long year
Line 4. Stole many a man's soul and faith
Line 5. I was 'round when Jesus Christ had his moment of doubt and pain
Line 6. Made damn sure that Pilate...washed his hands...sealed his fate
Chorus #1
Line 7. Pleased to meet you and I...hope you guess a my name
Line 8. Ahaw(Marker #1)
Line 9. What's been puzzling you is just the...nature of a my game
Line 10. Aw yeah(Marker #2)
Verse #2
Line 11. I stuck around St. Petersburg when I saw it was time for a change
Line 12. Killed the Czar and his ministers
Line 13. Anastasia...screamed in vain
Line 14. I rode a tank in the generals rank
Line 15. When the Blitzkrieg raged and the bodies stank
Line 16. Aw yeah(Marker #3)
Chorus #2
Line 17. A 'cause I'm...pleased to meet and I...hope you guess a my name
Line 18. Aw-oh baby(Marker #4) Drum roll(Marker #5)
Line 19. What's been puzzling you is just the...nature of a my game
Line 20. Aw baby(Marker #6)
Verse # 3
Line 21. I watched with glee while your king and queens
Line 22. Fought for ten dec-ades...a for the gods they made
Line 23. I shouted out...who killed the Kennedy's
Line 24. A well a after all...after all, it was...you and me
Line 25. A why don't...a let me please introduce myself
Line 26. Why I'm a man of wealth and taste
Line 27. Yes and I...I laid tracks for troubadours
Line 28. Who get killed before they reach Bombay
Line 29. Ah
Chorus #3
Line 30. And I'm a... pleased to meet you baby...hope you guess a my name
Line 31. Aw yeah(Marker #7)
Line 32. A what's been puzzling you is just the...nature of my game
Verse #4
Missing from the song. It has been edited out as follows:
<Just as every cop is a criminal...and all the sinners saints>
<As heads is tails...just call me Lucifer>
<'Cause I'm in need of...some restraint>
<So if you meet me...have some courtesy...have some sympathy...have some taste>
<Use all your well learned politesse...or I'll lay your soul to waste>
Chorus #4
Missing from the song. It has been edited out.
Line 33. Awwoooowhooooo at 2:55(Marker #8)
Instrumental Break #1: Keith Richards burns up the right channel with a cool and soulful guitar solo. The solo starts at 3:00. Ten seconds later at 3:10 there is a feedback/harmonic sound(Marker #9).
Line 34. "Oh yeah" (faint) during the solo at 3:43
Line 35. "Yeah" during the solo at 3:47
Line 36-37. "Slow it down, slow it down, slow it down, slow it down, slow it down...whoo...yeah" (faint) during the solo from 3:51 through 4:04
Line 38. Ohh Hooo at 4:14
(Check out the "Engine Room" during Lines 39 - 45!)
Line 39. Aw yeah, oh yeah, oohh come on down.
Line 40. Tell me baby...a what my name
Line 41. Tell me sweety...a what my name
Line 42. Oh yeah, oh yeah, ohh whoo, ohh whoo, ohh whoo, yeah
Line 43. Awww-oh, I think I'm gonna get on down, aahh
Line 44. Come on down, shewoo, come on down boy
Line 45. Oh come on down, oh come on down, come on down
Line 46. Aww-ooh, yeah, I'm gonna throw you down, Keith: Hey.
Taylor starts the solo at around 5:05 during Line 46. Fifty seconds later we hear the next improvised line from Jagger (see Marker #10).
Instrumental Break #2: Mick Taylor guitar solo left channel.
In my opinion, One of the Most Incredible Solos Ever Recorded.
I can see the guy's fingers when I listen to this. What a sight.
Line 47. "Awwyeah" during the solo at 5:55 (Marker #10)
Line 48. Whoo...Awwwohh
Line 49. Now down the song, I get on down, I get on down, give it to 'em
B. Reference Recordings, Markers and Conclusions:
1. Compared to MSG November 27, 1969 audience source
Markers:
Line 2: No "Why..."
Line 3: Starts with "I..."
Line 7: Please to meet you "baby"...
Line 8: No Marker #1. Says: "Aw yeah"
Line 9: "A" what's been...
Line 10: No Marker #2. Says: "yeah"
Line 11: Does not start with "I"...
Line 16: No Marker #3
Line 17: Does not begin with "A 'cause I'm..."
Line 17: Please to meet you "baby"
Line 18: No Marker #4 or #5
Line 19: "A" what's been...
Line 20: No Marker #6
Line 22: No "a" for the...
Line 24: Only one "after all"
Line 25: No "A why don't...a"
Line 27: No "Yes and I..."
Line 29: No "Ah"
Line 30: No "And I'm a..."
Line 31: Marker #7 present
Line 32: Does not start with "A"... Add an additional "Aw yeah"
Verse #4 is present
Chorus #4 is present
Line 33: No Marker #8. Is "All right I want you to get down with it...yeah"
Instrumental Break #1: Solo starts at 3:50. There is a feedback sound at 4:01. There is a Marker #9 present.
"Yeah" during the solo
Improvised: "Hey... get on down...get on down" during the solo
Instrumental Break #2: Taylor burns, but it's a different solo than "Ya-Ya's". He is quite capable of changing the solo from show-to-show.
The solo starts at 5:29 with the first talk-over occurring at 6:30.
Closes: With improvised "get on downs..."
2. Compared to MSG November 28, 1969 2nd audience source
Line 2: No "Why"
Line 7: Please to meet you "baby"...
Line 8: No Marker #1
Line 9: Nature of "your" game
Line 10: No Marker #2
Line 11: No "I"
Line 16: No Marker #3
Line 17: Does not begin with "A 'cause I'm..."
Line 17: Please to meet you "baby"
Line 18: There is crowd noise at this point, but Marker #4 and #5 are not present. A drum roll is not a likely candidate for instrumental overdubbing.
Line 20: No Marker #6. Says "all right"
Line 24: Only one "after all"
Line 25: No "A why don't...a"
Line 26: No "Why"
Line 27: No "Yes and I..."
Line 29: No "Ah"
Line 30: No "And I'm a..."
Verse #4 is present
Chorus #4 is present
Line 33: No Marker #8. Is "all right" and not "Awwoooowhooooo"
Instrumental Break #1: Parts of this sound very familiar, but Marker #9 is not present.
Line 38 & 39: Are different improvisations of "yeah" and "all right"
Lines 40 & 41: Are repeated a second time
Line 42: No "ohh whoo's"
No Lines 44 through 46
Instrumental Break #2: Parts of this also sound very familiar. The solo starts at 5:19 and an "Aw yeah" and a "Whooo" occur at 6:04 and 6:06 respectively. The time difference is 45 seconds from the solo start to improvised words, so Marker #10 misses by 5 and 3 seconds respectively. It is also possible the that vocal channel has been entirely replaced but...check the conclusion.
Line 47: Yeah...all right...all right"
Closes with: "Tell me baby...what's my name...Tell me sweety...what's my name" repeated
Conclusion:
Despite many listens to MSG 11/28/69 2nd, the Marker evidence is not conclusive enough in my opinion to say that this is the musical source; therefore it is MSG 11/28/69 1st by process of elimination. The faint Jagger talk-overs during Instrumental Break #1 are the remnants of edits to remove his vocal improvisations from Richards' skillful solo. I also believe that Marker #9, present in MSG 11/27/69, is not conclusive enough to say the music is 11/27/69. It could simply be an "artificial" harmonic intentionally introduced by Richards during the opening segment of the solo based on the way he's holding the pick.
Jagger said in a 1994 interview that Sympathy for the Devil was his favorite Stones song.