| 7th | Top songs about New Orleans |
| "Brown Sugar" | ||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Single by The Rolling Stones | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| from the album Sticky Fingers | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| B-side | "Bitch"/"Let It Rock" (UK) "Bitch" (US) |
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| Released | 16 April 1971 (UK) 7 May 1971 (US) |
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| Format | 7" | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Recorded | 2–4 December 1969 | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Genre | Rock | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Length | 3:50 | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Label | Rolling Stones Records | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Writer(s) | Jagger/Richards | |||||||||||||||||||||
| The Rolling Stones singles chronology | ||||||||||||||||||||||
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"Brown Sugar" is a song by English rock band The Rolling Stones. It is the opening track and lead single from the band's 1971 album Sticky Fingers. Rolling Stone magazine ranked it #490 on their list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.[1]
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Though credited, like most Rolling Stones compositions, to singer Mick Jagger and guitarist Keith Richards, the lyrics were primarily the work of Jagger, who wrote it sometime during the filming of Ned Kelly in 1969.[2] Originally recorded over a three day period at Muscle Shoals Sound Studio in Muscle Shoals, Alabama during 2–4 December 1969, the song was not released until over a year later due to legal wranglings with the band's former label though at the request of guitarist Mick Taylor, they debuted the number live during the infamous concert at Altamont on 6 December. In the film Gimme Shelter, an alternate mix of the song is played back to the band while they relax in a hotel in Alabama. This version differs from that on record by the inclusion of a rhythmic variation on the familiar staccato introduction for two out of every four bars for that part and it includes a guitar solo by Mick Taylor rather than Bobby Keyes' sax solo.
The song, with its prominent blues-rock riffs, dual horn/guitar instrumental break, and danceable rock rhythms, is representative of the Stones' definitive mid-period and the tough, bluesy hard-rock most often associated with the group.[citation needed] In the liner notes to the 1993 compilation album Jump Back, Jagger says, "The lyric was all to do with the dual combination of drugs and girls. This song was a very instant thing, a definite high point." In the Rolling Stone interview (December 14, 1995, RS 723) with Mick Jaggar, Jaggar spoke at length about the song, including claiming credit writing the lyrics for the entire song, the inspiration and success of the song. He attributed the success of the song to a “good groove”. After noting that the lyrics meant so many lewd subjects, he again noted that the combination of those subjects, and the lyrics ambiguousness was partially why the song was considered successful. He noted, “That makes it...the whole mess thrown in. God knows what I’m on about on that song. It’s such a mishmash. All the nasty subjects in one go….I never would write that song now.” When Jann Wenner asked him why, Jaggar replied, “I would probably censor myself. I’d think, 'Oh God, I can’t. I’ve got to stop. I can’t just write raw like that.'” [3]
The lyrical subject matter has often been a point of interest and controversy. Described by rock critic Robert Christgau as "a rocker so compelling that it discourages exegesis",[4] "Brown Sugar"'s popularity indeed often overshadowed its scandalous lyrics, which were essentially a pastiche of a number of taboo subjects, including interracial sex, cunnilingus, slave rape, and less distinctly, sadomasochism, lost virginity, and heroin.[5]
An alternate version was recorded on 18 December 1970, at Olympic Studios in London, after (or during) a birthday party for Richards. It features appearances by Al Kooper on piano, and Eric Clapton on slide guitar. The alternate version is widely available on bootleg recordings. Richards considered releasing this version on Sticky Fingers, mostly for its more spontaneous atmosphere, but decided on the original.[6]
"Brown Sugar" was eventually released in May 1971 as the first single from the album, becoming a number-one hit in the United States and a number two hit in the United Kingdom and has since become a classic rock radio staple. While the American single featured only "Bitch" on the B-side, the British single featured that track plus a live rendition of Chuck Berry's "Let It Rock", recorded at the University of Leeds during the 1971 tour of the UK.
The song was performed routinely during the Rolling Stones' 1970 European Tour, occupying a prominent spot near the end of the set list even though audiences were unfamiliar with it. It eventually opened the famed 1972 American Tour shows and has been a Stones concert stalwart since.
When the Rolling Stones perform "Brown Sugar" live, Jagger often changes the lyrics from, "Just like a young girl should," to, "Just like a young man should." The line, "Hear him whip the women just around midnight," is often changed to the less offensive, "You shoulda heard him just around midnight." This is evidenced in their live albums Love You Live, Flashpoint, Live Licks and Shine a Light. This change even occurs on the version recorded at Richards' birthday party.
The song is also notable for being the first single released on Rolling Stones Records (catalogue number RS-19100) and is one of the two Rolling Stones songs (along with "Wild Horses") licensed to both the band and former manager Allen Klein (a result of various business disagreements) resulting in its inclusion on the compilation album Hot Rocks 1964–1971. "Brown Sugar" is also included on the most significant latter-day Rolling Stones compilations, Jump Back and Forty Licks.
The song was later used in a 1998 Pepsi commercial with a fly singing a cover version of "Brown Sugar" after sipping on some spilled Pepsi. The commercial was used as part of Pepsi's aggressive ad campaign of switching to a blue background on its cans & bottles after decades of using a white background.[citation needed]
| Preceded by "Joy to the World" by Three Dog Night |
Billboard Hot 100 number one single 29 May 1971 (two weeks) |
Succeeded by "Want Ads" by The Honey Cone |
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  | "Brown Sugar" - Brown Sugar : Rolling Stone |
| | Complete Official Lyrics - RollingStones.com music.discography |
| | "Jagger Remembers" - Cover Story: Jagger Remembers : Rolling Stone |
| | Robert Christgau "Rolling Stones" - Robert Christgau: The Rolling Stones |
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