If you start me up, I’ll never stop talking about the splendid Rolling Stones album, which was released 45 years ago…
Start Me Up
Considering that Tattoo You was essentially a piecemeal job cobbled together from past studio outtakes and unused recordings, it doesn’t half stand up well 45 years since its release.
Reasons for this approach have varied, depending on who you speak to. Keith Richards claimed that with the band wanting to tour more, there wasn’t time to make a record at the same time. Whereas associate producer Chris Kimsey suggested that Tattoo You’s genesis was down to Mick Jagger and Keith Richards hitting a not-getting-on-so-well patch. With demand for a new LP looming, Kimsey reckoned that he could gather together enough raw material after sifting through the band’s past recordings.
The first single to be lifted from Tattoo You had been abandoned twice in the past. Initially pencilled in for 1976’s Black And Blue album, Start Me Up was then passed down for possible inclusion on 1978’s Some Girls. The third time was the charm, as with a few tweaks, it got the go-ahead for Tattoo You’s opener. Tweaks included a few handclaps and also that distinctive sound, also known as Bob Clearmountain’s “bathroom reverb”, which laid down vocals and snare drums in the bathroom of the Power Station recording studio, giving it that unique echo.
The band couldn’t have picked a better first single. Start Me Up remains one of the Stones’ best offerings. Keith’s instantly recognisable riff propels it along, the tune’s immediately hummable, and Mick’s vocals are leaps and bounds over his odd high-pitched yodel in Emotional Rescue, which was more along the lines of Mel singing Hey There, Lonely Girl in Benidorm. Record buyers around the globe took to Start Me Up straight away too, as it hit Number One in Australia and Zimbabwe, also achieving Top 10 status in the UK, US, Canada, Belgium, Norway and the Netherlands. Easily one of my Top 10 Stones Selections.
Hang Fire
No one likes politicians – apart from politicians themselves – and political complaints were frequent fair game for rock stars. Keith Richards claimed that the brisk stroll of Hang Fire was all about “ugly politicians” and how rising unemployment and inflated tax rates had caused a nationwide slump of decline in their homeland. “In the sweet old country where I come from, nobody works, nothing ever gets done,” huffs Mick in the intro. “We hang fire…”
Curiously, Hang Fire wasn’t released as a single in the Stones’ sweet old country. Maybe it was too close for comfort. In the US, it made the Top 20 when it was chosen as the third 45. The memorable “doo-doo” hook ensured that this was guaranteed radio-friendly chart fodder, but Hang Fire’s lyrics proved that the Stones hadn’t lost their own flame.
Slave
What to do when your second guitarist goes walkies?
In early 1975, Mick Taylor had left the line-up, and so, to fill the gap, the Stones looked to some of their old chums for a spot of session work. The blues jam of Slave features mights such as Fifth Beatle Billy Preston on electric piano, legendary saxophonist Sonny Rollins and more randomly, The Who’s Pete Townshend on background vocals.
There’s no revelatory message to be found in the lyrics, which match the sparse, improvised feel of the musicianship. Mick’s had enough of being his other half’s slave, occasionally barking at her to go down to the supermarket and to “steal something off the shelves”.
Although a likely resultant jail sentence for his missus would mean that he’d have to do everything himself, anyway.
Little T&A
Oh, how things have changed in the blink of an eye between 1981 and 2026. Call your track Little T&A and growl lyrics like these in 2026, and you’ll be ripped to moral shreds on social media faster than you can say Mary Whitehouse.
True, Little T&A isn’t the most PC of tracks to listen to, but this is The Rolling Stones I’m writing about. Hardly boy scouts. Ignore the lyrics and you’ve still got a most agreeable rockabilly-induced foot-tapper to boogie along to. Keith’s hoarse rasp is a good fit for this, and was actually one of the later selections taken off the shelf – originally a contender for the Emotional Rescue album.
Black Limousine
The Rolling Stones’ previous three albums were more soul and dance based, and while there are still traces of that on Tattoo You, the 1981 album does go back to the band’s original bluesy roots.
A notable example is the heavy blues drawl of Black Limousine, a rare instance of guitarist Ronnie Wood getting to share a piece of the songwriting credits pie. Wood claims that he fought hard to get his name on the record label, instantly recognising his own contributions. Inspiration for Wood’s notable guitar work came from Texan blues steel guitarist Hop Wilson and fellow blues axeman, Big Moose.
Neighbours
Not the Australian soap theme tune.
The Stones’ argy bargy with the Neighbours is enough to give Helen Daniels the shudders. The story goes that Keith and wife Patti were evicted from their New York City apartment after playing their music too loudly. Keith recalled “one uncool couple” in an interview, who presumably provided ideas for Paul Robinson’s sneaky trick playing.
The irony is, the lyrics are not written by Keith, but by Mick. “Neighbours!” he hollers. “Do yourself a favour! Don’t you mess with my baby when I’m workin’ all night!” Keith actually later said that it’s the song that Mick had written especially for him.
It’s a good one, the waspish lyrics matching the stomping rage of the vocals and playing. Charlie Watts’ drumming is a core part of The Rolling Stones’ appeal, and again, it sounds like his furious, echoey thrash has been recorded in the bathroom. Hopefully, no one was in the room next door to complain.
Worried About You
So there I was, a week ago, bemoaning the yawning chasm between fast and slow (yawning being the operative word, here) on Rod Stewart’s Atlantic Crossing album. Listening to Tattoo You, I’m finding that The Rolling Stones have taken the same approach with what us old-school farts call Side One and Side Two.
And yet, this is so much better. Why?
All of Tattoo You’s Side Two selections take the tempo down, but unlike Atlantic Crossing, doesn’t descend into sloth-esque lethargy. The Stones come up with enough interesting musical tricks to keep you hooked. Worried About You alone has some lovely chord structures, a fine guitar solo from R&B guitar guest Wayne Perkins and some great falsetto hollering from Mick.
A number of the Tattoo You cuts were used as specially recorded promo videos. After the launch of MTV in August 1981, promos were fast becoming useful gimmicks to shift records. As well as Start Me Up, Hang Fire, Waiting On A Friend and the Hitchcock-inspired promo for Neighbours, Worried About You got the video treatment.
Tops
One of the oldest tracks chosen by Kimsey, Tops dates all the way back to 1972 – hence the presence of Mick Taylor, whose unobtrusive but striking guitar work adds a great deal to this soulfully world-weary grumble about the trappings of fame.
A notable trick pulled by Mick on the album is to contrast his low and high vocal range. It’s a gimmick that stands him in good stead on Tops, as he drawls a seedy showbiz impressario type in a husky register. “I’ll be your partner, show you the steps,” he promises. “With me behind, you’re tasting the sweet wine of success.” But as with the showbizzy lifestyle, it’s less a vintage and more a cheap bottle of plonk that wouldn’t set you back any more than £1.99 from the local garage.
When promising to “take you to the top”, Jagger switches to that cooing falsetto, and it meshes well with both Taylor’s guitar and also guest Nicky Hopkins’ piano – another notable plus point of this hidden gem.
Heaven
The Stones swap their frequent bombast for the ethereal on the excellent Heaven. Unlike Tops, Heaven was pretty much up to date, only coming about around 1980 when Mick played around with a few chords one night in a Parisian recording studio. Before long, those chords became a fully-formed song, and one of the few to feature Jagger on the guitar.
In fact, Heaven is unusual in that the personnel is kept to a minimum. Richards and Wood are absent, leaving only Jagger, Bill Wyman, Charlie Watts and Chris Kimsey on electric piano to create this unusual snatch of dreamy ambience. Heaven’s minimalistic exercise works in its favour, resulting in one of the best on Tattoo You.
No Use In Crying
Just shy of 20 years in the business, The Rolling Stones were still coming up with new ways to surprise on Tattoo You. No Use In Crying continues the Side Two trend of swapping the bluster for subtlety, and like Heaven, takes the minimalistic approach to its logical conclusion.
If many a break-up song screams in the here and now, No Use In Crying stands shattered in the aftermath. Too tired for tears, resigned to a lifetime of lonely nights and takeaway meals for one, the voice on No Use In Crying is muted, jaded… only allowing a glimmer of a high-pitched whimper towards the end in Mick’s vocal ad-libbing.
Likewise, the instrumentation’s muted, almost going through the motions. Which isn’t to do it a disservice. The distance in the playing creates a haunted, empty feeling that’s in perfect harmony with the emotional void expressed in the lyrics. Even that old-style piano sounds a bit out of sorts – a neat little detail which maybe came about by accident. Or maybe by design.
Waiting On A Friend
I actually find this closer quite touching. It could be the lyrics which suggest that when the chips are down, a good friend is all you need. Maybe it’s the overall, chilled-out vibe of the track. Probably, it’s Sonny Rollins’ blistering saxophone solo that gets me a bit choked.
The second single release from Tattoo You, it hardly touched the UK Top 50, while achieving modest Top 20 placings in the US, Belgium and the Netherlands (although it did go Top 10 in Canada). All this despite heavy MTV airplay with a Michael Lindsay-Hogg-directed promo video shot at 96-98 St Mark’s Place in Manhattan (best known for its front cover image on Led Zeppelin’s Physical Graffiti album).
Tattoo You, however, was a worldwide smash. If it didn’t quite take to the Tops in the UK, instead settling at Number Two, it did in the US, Australia, Canada, Holland and New Zealand. Not bad going for a concept that dusted down a few old Stones favourites gathering dust on the shelves.
(Cover design credited to Peter Corriston and Hubert Kretzschmar)
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