Signature Songs, Vol. 3 - The Rolling Stones

This week on the Rock-N-Roll Show Podcast, I'm tackling a real challenge in my Signature Song series: what is The Rolling Stones’ signature song?

With a catalog this deep, this is not a simple call. The Stones have produced swaggering riffs, generation-defining singles, stadium anthems, and songs that have become part of the culture itself. So which one stands above the rest as the track most commonly associated with the band by the general public?

In this episode, I break down the leading contenders, look at what makes a true signature song to begin with, and make the case for the one Stones classic that I believe ultimately wins the title.

If you love rock history, big songs, and a good music argument, this one’s for you.

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Transcript

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Welcome to the Rock and Roll Show podcast. I'm your host, Alex Gadd, and this week I've got another episode of Signature Songs for You. And this is the 75th episode of this show. So I'm looking at one of my all time favorite bands, the Rolling Stones. Now an act's signature song is the one song that is most commonly identified with an artist or a band, their calling card, the one that even non-music fans associate with them. Sometimes it's an obvious pick. Sometimes it's impossible to choose one. Most of the time though, it's open for debate and with the stones, there's a very interesting debate to be had. I'll run through all of their biggest tracks and make the case for the one song that I believe is their signature song. And then I want to hear what you think. I hope you'll join me right now. I started this signature song series because I wanted to get a conversation going with you, the audience, since this is one of those topics that I've had a blast discussing with friends over the years in bars, around fire pits at dinner tables. So let's start by trying to define what makes a song an Acts signature song. I haven't found an official definition, but I think it's more than just their biggest hit. It's their musical calling card. The song most tied to an artist's public image, especially for the casual fan. Sometimes it's the first breakthrough hit, sometimes it's their biggest hit. Sometimes it's the song that opened the door to a whole different audience and then stayed attached to that act forever after. Usually it's a combination of those things, which is why figuring out an artist's signature song. Is definitely more art than science. And when you get to the Rolling Stones, it gets complicated in a hurry. They've been making music for more than 60 years, and they've been famous long enough that three, almost four generations now know who they are and are familiar with at least some of their songs. In preparing this episode, I've gone back and forth on this one myself, and I'll do my best to lay out the case for why I've decided on the song that I picked. But if I do this right, it oughta spark some debate. So let's get into it The Rolling Stones formed in 1962 in London with Brian Jones, Mick Jagger, and Keith Richards, along with Keyboardist Ian Stewart and Bass player Dick Taylor. Mick Keith and Dick were high school friends. They met up with Brian and Ian Stewart, who were in another band, and they formed the Rolling Stones. Later in 1962, Dick Taylor was replaced by Bill Wyman on Bass, and Charlie Watts joined on drums in early 1963. They started out as a Blues and R&B cover band, and once manager, Andrew Loog Oldham came aboard, they started to develop a bit of a grittier image to separate themselves from the Beatles who were already deep into Beatlemania by mid 1963, at least in England. Their early original songs were nothing special. Uh, as I said, they started off really doing mostly covers, but the Jagger Richards songwriting partnership came along quickly. By the end of 1964, they had their first US hit of an original with Heart of Stone, and in early 1965, The Last Time became their first self written number one in the Uk. From there, they were off and running. The stones piled up top 10 hits for the next 16 years before settling into that Legacy Act status. In the early eighties, though they never really disappeared. They were still putting out new music as recently as 2023 when the Hackney Diamonds album hit number one in both the UK and the us. They've released 24 studio albums in the uk, 26 in the US overall, including what may be the greatest four album run in rock and roll history, and that's Beggar's Banquet, Let It Bleed, Sticky Fingers, and Exile on Main Street. It's hard to top that as a four record run So the point is, there's a lot of music to choose from. They've had eight number one singles and 38 top 10 hits in the uk, including all time greats. Like I Can't Get No Satisfaction, get Off of My Cloud. Ruby Tuesday, Paint It, Black Jumping Jack Flash, Honky Tonk Woman, Brown Sugar, and Angie. And those are just the number ones. But for the Stones' signature song, I've whittled it down to three options. First is I can't get no satisfaction. It was their fourth number one single in the UK and only their second original to get there. This was also their first number one in the US and when I was a kid in the seventies and early eighties, this was unquestionably their signature song. It was already 15 years old by 1980, and everybody who listened to the radio knew it. It was ranked number two on On Rolling Stone Magazines 2004 list of the 500 greatest songs of all time number two, and it's been inducted into both the Grammy Hall of Fame and the Library of Congress's National Recording Registry. It's also the song The Stones have played live the second most often, and really it's the one that put them on the map. That riff alone has secured a place in rock history, which is why I included it in my episode on the 10 greatest guitar riffs in rock and roll. I encourage you to go check that out. The second contender for signature song is Jumping Jack Flash. It was recorded at the beginning of the Beggar's Banquet sessions in 1968, and then the band released it ahead of that album as a standalone single where it went to number one in the uk and number three in the us. It's the song The Stones have played more than any other in concert, more than satisfaction, despite having arrived three years later. And it's landed on plenty of greatest songs of all time lists over the years as well. Finally, there's the late career entry, that's Start Me Up from 1981's Tattoo You record. This was not a number one single for them, but it was their last truly massive global hit reaching number two in the us, number seven in the uk. It has had multiple lives since then, first through constant use in sports arenas, and then in 1995 when Microsoft paid the Stones a then staggering$3 million to use it in their launch campaign for Windows 95. The band has also used it as an opener more than almost any other song because it's such a natural fit for that spot in the set list. So which one is the Rolling Stones signature song? My friend Eric, who was my very first guest on the podcast, insists that it's Jumping Jack Flash, but I can't quite get there without slighting it in any way, I think what that song does best is reinforce the Stones' signature sound, not establish it. The riff is really reminiscent of Satisfaction. And to me, Jumping Jack Flash feels like a logical evolution of the identity that the band had already established three years earlier. And I admit I'm nitpicking between great songs. Not saying one is good and the other isn't, but I don't think I can go with Jumping Jack Flash as the Stones' signature song. Start me up is the third contender in my eyes. Interestingly, it has a similar issue that We Will Rock you had for Queen. I started this series discussing Queen signature song that was four episodes ago, which I encourage you to go watch. The songs are similar because any music fan can hear the opening riff or the beat the case of We Will Rock You and recognize it. The lyrics are simple and repetitive enough to drive home the song titles, which is why I find both songs a little monotonous. I used to play Start Me Up in a cover band when I was in grad school and I hated playing it'cause it was so repetitive and kind of mindless. But the audiences loved hearing it. And I wonder if this may be partly a generational divide between Start Me Up and then either jumping jack flash or satisfaction simply because satisfaction's now over 60 years old. Then again, start me up is well over 40 years old itself, so neither one is exactly current. In the end, I Can't Get No Satisfaction, is my pick for the Rolling Stones signature song It was their first major hit on both sides of the Atlantic, and it laid the foundation for everything that followed for the band. I said before that a signature song can be a band's breakthrough hit. Though it doesn't have to be, and this one had me waffling more than most. One of the factors I considered was relevancy. I don't think Start me up is really about anything. It's kind of a silly song about lusting after a woman using car metaphors. Satisfaction, on the other hand, was a commentary on youthful alienation with the post-war society in Great Britain, which was seen as being wrapped up in consumerism, conformity, and false promises that never really led to fulfillment. And that seems kind of relevant in today's world, even if there have been a ton of other songs since then by other artists that have addressed the same sentiment for younger generations, the breakthrough impact of satisfaction, it's 60 year presence on the. The breakthrough impact of satisfaction. Its 60 year presence in the popular culture and its influence on other bands and the Stones music itself puts satisfaction over the top as my pick for the Rolling Stones signature song with Start Me Up as a very strong pick one B, and I'm still not sure I'm right. I want to note that I look at streaming data as well as record sales charts when considering a signature song and the most streamed Rolling Stones song on Spotify of all time is neither Start Me Up Nor Satisfaction, but Paint It Black. Satisfaction's in second, more than 600 million streams behind, paint It Black and Start Me Up is third, another a hundred million streams behind Satisfaction. But I wouldn't even have"Paint It, Black" in the top five songs to be considered for the band's signature song. And I should point out that I haven't even mentioned any of my five favorite Stones songs, which are at number five all down the line. Number four, no expectations. Number three, gimme Shelter. Number two, sympathy for the Devil and my All Times favorite stone song is Tumbling Dice from the Exile on Main Street Album. Okay. What do you think? Did I get it right or wrong? Let me know because as I said at the start, I'm doing this podcast and this series to have fun discussing great music, and I've got more than a hundred other acts to get through. So if you like what you heard today, I'd appreciate it if you would like and either subscribe or follow this channel to make sure you get notified about each new episode, and please tell your friends. Also a reminder that I release a playlist for every episode. So look for the Rock and Roll Show podcast playlist on Spotify and Apple Music every week this week, featuring all of the Rolling Stones, top 10 hits, plus some additional favorites of mine that I mentioned. Maybe even a couple more, so check that out. Additionally, as I said, I want to know what you think, so please leave me a comment and I'll try to respond to every one of them. The Rock and Roll Show Podcast is a World Highway Media production. I'm your host, Alex Gadd and, until next time remember that life is short, so get those concert tickets.