The Rolling Stones - Let It Bleed
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Written By: Moti Kupfer
Album review - The Rolling Stones - Let It Bleed
Release date - 28.11.69 UK 5.12.69 / US
Label - Decca (UK) / London (US)
Genre - Hard rock / Rock / Blues
The late 1960s awakened the flower children and the entire world from the overwhelming optimism that had covered it. Yes, in 1969 the United States reached the moon, and a messy little festival turned into the defining Woodstock. But at the same time, protest movements were rising against the American government, sinking deeper into the mud of Vietnam.
And in Britain it was Mick Jagger who sang “You Can't Always Get What You Want”, as if scolding a spoiled child lying on the floor in protest for not getting what he demanded. Jagger may have been singing about humanity’s elusive attempts to chase moment after moment of happiness, but beneath those attempts lay the closing song of the Stones’ eighth studio album, “Let It Bleed”, released on November 28, 1969 in the U.K. and on December 5, 1969 in the U.S., an album in which the band effectively said goodbye to one of its founders, guitarist Brian Jones.
Jones, born on February 28, 1942 to Welsh parents, suffered from asthma throughout his short life. Both of his parents were deeply interested in music, and this passion clearly had a profound influence on their son. Brian’s father played piano and organ and conducted the local church choir. His mother was a piano teacher who began giving him lessons at a very young age. He quickly learned to read music and soon moved on to clarinet.
Although he listened to classical music as a child, Jones preferred the blues, especially Elmore James and Robert Johnson. In 1957 he was introduced for the first time to jazz musician Charlie Parker. He convinced his parents to buy him a saxophone, just one of many instruments he would learn. Two years later, for his 17th birthday, they bought him his first acoustic guitar.
After founding "The Rolling Stones" in 1962 and giving the band its name, Jones slowly lost creative influence as Mick Jagger and Keith Richards took over the band’s musical direction, especially once they became the central songwriting duo, the “Glimmer Twins.”
Jones was a man of contradictions. “There were two Brians: one was introverted, shy, sensitive, and deeply thoughtful. The other was a preening peacock — flamboyant, artistic, needy, dependent on the reassurance of his peers. "He pushed every friendship to the limit and way beyond", bassist Bill Wyman recalled.
As the band grew more successful, Jones spiraled deeper into drug and alcohol addiction. He entered multiple relationships, fathered several children, but could never maintain stability. His dream of becoming a full-time father shattered repeatedly against the rocks of reality.
In 1967 Jones met Italian-German actress and model Anita Pallenberg backstage, beginning a serious relationship. At some point he became abusive, breaking his hand across her face. Keith Richards came to her aid, and eventually Pallenberg left Jones for Richards.
Jones was arrested on May 21, 1968 for possession of cannabis, which he claimed had been left by former tenants. Because he was already on probation, he faced a long prison sentence if convicted. The jury found him guilty, but the judge sympathized with Jones, instead of jailing him, he fined him £50 and warned him not to get in trouble again, or this will be very serious...
Jones’ legal troubles, growing distance from the band, drug use, and unpredictable mood swings became too large an obstacle for him to participate meaningfully in the band’s work. "The Stones" wanted to tour the United States in 1969, but Jones was in no condition to travel, and his second arrest complicated the process of securing a U.S. work visa. Jones attendance at rehearsals and recording sessions became unstable, and even when he did show up, he contributed very little.
According to author Gary Herman, Jones was "literally incapable of making music; when he tried to play harmonica, his mouth started bleeding". He was eventually fired during the sessions and replaced by Mick Taylor. Before leaving, he contributed to only two songs: he played autoharp on “You Got the Silver” — written by Keith Richards about Anita Pallenberg leaving Jones for him, and percussion on “Midnight Rambler”, inspired by the Boston Strangler, a murderer stalking his victims in the dead of night.
Jones wasn’t the only one whose body suffered while recording. Keith Richards’ fingers began bleeding as he played acoustic guitar for hours while Jagger and the sound engineer worked on the drums. Some claim that this bleeding inspired the title “Let It Bleed.” Another interpretation ties the name to drug slang: “let it bleed” referred to the moment heroin users search for a vein.
The album opens with “Gimme Shelter”, the primal scream of anyone living through such a turbulent, restless era. A desperate plea for shelter from the world’s chaos. Gospel singer Merry Clayton delivers the unforgettable female vocals. She was pregnant at the time, summoned late at night to the Los Angeles studio, arriving in silk pajamas with curlers in her hair. Jagger explained that she would be singing the line: “Rape, murder, it’s just a shot away.”
The album’s only cover is Robert Johnson’s “Love in Vain”. "The Stones" recorded it with a distinct country feel rather than the original blues tone. With Jones unavailable, Ry Cooder stepped in to play mandolin.
Keyboardists Nicky Hopkins and Ian Stewart were among the crucial contributors. Hopkins played on four tracks, including “Monkey Man”, a song often interpreted as referencing heroin use or a bad acid trip.
Other guests include Al Kooper and the London Bach Choir, who appear on the album’s closing track “You Can’t Always Get What You Want.” Later, the choir tried to have their name removed after discovering the album was titled “Let It Bleed” and contained “Midnight Rambler,” a song about a serial killer.
Jagger approached artist M.C. Escher to design the album cover, but Escher refused. Ultimately, Robert Brownjohn created the surreal artwork. the "Let It Bleed" record spinning under the tone arm of an old phonograph, while a record-changer spindle supports a stack of objects, a clock face, a pizza, a bicycle tire, and an elaborately iced cake topped with figurines representing the band. The cake was partly crafted by an unknown young cook at the time - Delia Smith.
Jones was fired in June 1969. One month later he drowned at his home, just 27 years old.
The album pulses with fear, claustrophobia, and despair through its nine tracks. "Let It Bleed" captures the sound of an era coming to an end, filled with an underlying fear of what lies around the corner. Yet for "The Rolling Stones", it marked the dawn of a new day, the beginning of an extraordinary period of growth in the early 1970s.
For Listening: Spotify, Apple Music