"Honky Tonk Women" is a 1969 hit song by The Rolling Stones. Released as a single on July 4, 1969, in the United Kingdom, and the next day in the United States, it topped the charts in both nations.
Inspiration and Recording
Two versions of the song were recorded by the band: the familiar hit which appeared on the 45 single and their collection of late 1960s singles, Through The Past, Darkly (Big Hits Vol. 2); and a honky-tonk version entitled "Country Honk" with slightly different lyrics which appeared on Let it Bleed. In addition, the live recording of the song on Get Yer Ya-Ya's Out differs from both the hit version and the Country Honk version, with a markedly different guitar introduction and an entirely different second verse referring to a stroll on the boulevards of Paris (replacing the familiar second verse about a divorcee in New York City).The song was written by Mick Jagger and Keith Richards while on vacation in Brazil in late December 1968, early January 1969. Inspired by Brazilian gauchos/cowboys bringing cattle back to the ranch where Jagger and Richards were staying the song was originally conceived as an acoustic country song. Thematically, a "honky tonk woman" refers to a dancing girl in a western bar who may work as a prostitute; the setting for the Blues narrative version is Memphis while "Country Honk" sets the first verse in Jackson. There were originally two different sets of lyrics for "Honky Tonk Women" and "Country Honk"
Recorded in London in early February 1969 without Brian Jones, the band initially recorded a track called "Country Honk". Prior to the arrival of new band member Mick Taylor, the song transformed into the familiar electric, riff-based hit single 'Honky Tonk Women' sometime in the spring of 1969. Mick Taylor was quoted in Sean Egan's 'The Making of Let it Bleed' that the backing track was already recorded before he added his lead fill overdubs. The track was nearly complete before he even arrived at his first Stones session at the end of May 1969. The song is distinctive among the Stones' catalogue as it opens, not with a guitar riff, but with a beat played on a cowbell. The Stones' producer Jimmy Miller performed the cowbell for the recording. Live versions are included on the albums Love You Live and Live Licks, as well as the aforementioned Get Yer Ya-Ya's Out!.
Keith Richards denies that he took the opening riff from Ry Cooder, who taught Richards how to play in the "open-G" guitar tuning that he used on that song and many other Stones songs. Cooder has accused the Stones of "ripping him off," and to date refuses to speak in specifics about his sessions with the Stones. Stones pianist Ian Stewart also disliked the song: "It's bloody ten times Keith you hear."
The song topped the Billboard Hot 100 for four weeks from August 23, 1969. The single was released in England on the day after founding member Brian Jones' funeral. "You Can't Always Get What You Want" was the single's B-side.
Rolling Stone ranked it #116 on their list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.
Country Honk
"Country Honk" is a country version of "Honky Tonk Women". "Country Honk" was released five months after "Honky Tonk Women", on the album Let it Bleed. This version contains different lyrics from the hit single version, notably changing Memphis to Jackson.Gram Parsons claimed to have been responsible for the "Country Honk" arrangement although this claim is disputed by Jagger and Richards. Richards has repeatedly claimed that "Country Honk" is how "Honky Tonk Women" was originally written. According to Byron Berline (who memorably played fiddle on the track) Parsons was certainly responsible for him being hired to play on the recording. Berline had previously recorded with Parson's band The Flying Burrito Brothers among many others.
The track was recorded at the Elektra recording studio on La Cienega Boulevard, Los Angeles, with producer Glyn Johns suggesting that Berline actually record his part on the sidewalk outside the studio to add ambience to the track. The car horn also resulted from the sidewalk recording. Nanette Workman performs backing vocals on this version (although the album sleeve credits actress Nanette Newman). Some sources claim that "Country Honk" was recorded at Olympic Studios right after "Honky Tonk Women," with only Berline's fiddle part overdubbed at Elektra Studios. This might be supported by the existence of a bootleg recording that does not contain either the fiddle, or Mick Taylor's slide guitar.
Pop culture
- The song was covered by Elton John on his first live album, 17-11-70.
- The song was also recorded live by Billy Joel on his live album 2000 Years: The Millennium Concert.
- The song was covered by Ike & Tina Turner and was featured as the B-Side of their 1971's re-release of "River Deep - Mountain High".
- The song was covered by Celtic folk/punk band The Pogues in 1992 as their first single after original lead singer Shane MacGowan left in 1991.
- Blues-great Albert King recorded a version for his album Lovejoy.
- The song's name was used as the title in episode 3 of the popular Japanese anime television show, Cowboy Bebop.
- In 1987 the opening drum beat was sampled for two hip hop records: "The Motorcade Sped On" by Steinski and the Mass Media and "Travelling at the Speed of Thought" by Ultramagnetic MCs.
- The song was covered by rock band Humble Pie on their 1973 album Eat It.
- The song was covered by a Hungarian rock band called Z'Zi Labor. On this version there are also the female folk-choir of Veresegyház.
- Pop-punk act McFly has been known to cover this song in their live shows.
- Taj Mahal and James Cotton recorded a blues version of this song.
In 2007, Tesla recorded a version for their Real to Reel release.
Notes
- The Billboard Book of Number One Hits (fifth edition)
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Last updated on Friday July 25, 2008 at 08:42:41 PDT (GMT -0700)
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