Luna Kafé e-zine - From head to heart: The Rolling Stones' Satisfaction

Luna Kafé article

From head to heart
The Rolling Stones' Satisfaction

Following our retroscope series going on for several years, here we go again. Yes, for one more year! Here's Speakers' corner's cousin; From head to heart. Luna Kafé's focused eye on great events, fantastic happenings, absolute milestones, or other curious incidents from the historic shelves'n'vaults of pop'n'rock. Blowing our ears and our head, punching our chest and shaking our heart, or simply tapping our shoulder. Making us go sentimental, but not slaphappy. This moonth we present a seven-inch, 50-year-old which you probably have heard a billion times. Plus one. What more can I say... I'd rather quote Mr Tom Waits:

'I said I will have satisfaction
I will be satisfied, I said I will be satisfied
When I'm believing: satisfaction
When I'm grieving: satisfaction
When I'm shaking: satisfaction
When I'm praying: satisfaction
When I'm staying: satisfaction
When I'm carousing, When I'm a thousand
I will have satisfaction
I will be satisfied
I will have satisfaction
I will be satisfied
Now Mr. Jagger and Mr. Richards
I will scratch where I've been itching
Now Mr. Jagger and Mr. Richards
I will scratch where I've been itching, Before I'm gone...' ("Satisfied", from Bad As Me, 2011).

coverpic

The Rolling Stones
(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction b/w The Spider And The Fly
Decca Records/London Records

I can't get no satisfaction
I can't get no satisfaction
'Cause I try and I try and I try and I try
I can't get no, I can't get no

When I'm driving in my car
And the man comes on the radio
He's tellin' me more and more
About some useless information
Supposed to drive my imagination

I can't get no, oh no, no, no
A hey, hey, hey, that's what I say

I can't get no satisfaction
I can't get no satisfaction
'Cause I try and I try and I try and I try
I can't get no, I can't get no

When I'm watchin' my TV
And a man comes on and tells me
How white my shirts can be
But he can't be a man 'cause he doesn't smoke
The same cigarettes as me

I can't get no, oh no, no, no
A hey, hey, hey, that's what I say

I can't get no satisfaction
I can't get no girl reaction
'Cause I try and I try and I try and I try
I can't get no, I can't get no

When I'm ridin' round the world
And I'm doin' this and I'm signing that
And I'm tryin' to make some girl
Who tells me baby better come back maybe next week
'Cause you see I'm on losing streak

I can't get no, oh no, no, no
A hey, hey, hey, that's what I say

I can't get no, I can't get no
I can't get no satisfaction, no satisfaction
No satisfaction, no satisfaction
I can't get no

On 6 June it's 50 years since this little seven inch platter was released. What is it about the song that is so special and put the Stones in the rock'n'roll limelight forever? The simple three note guitar riff - that Keith Richards allegedly came up with in a dream - is catchy and characteristic, of course. The lyrics - written by Sir Mick with the lips - confirmed that the band belonged among the rude boys. The Kinks had done about the same some months earlier ("You Really Got Me" (the riff) and "All Day And All Of The Night" (the riff and rude-boy lyrics), but the Stones grew to be way more popular all over the western world the following moonths and years, not least due to this little platter. I guess it must have something to do with appearance as well. Incidentally, Jagger and Richards didn't like the idea to release this recording of the song as a single. Keith wanted the guitar riff to be substituted by horns... But the other three members of the band outvoted them.