Tell Me (The Rolling Stones song)

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"Tell Me"
Tellmestones.jpg
Single by The Rolling Stones
from the album The Rolling Stones
B-side "I Just Want to Make Love to You"
Released13 June 1964 (U.S.)
Format 7"
RecordedFebruary 1964
Genre
Length
  • 4:05 (album version)
    2:47 (single version)
Label London 45-LON 9682
Songwriter(s) Jagger/Richards
Producer(s) Andrew Loog Oldham
The Rolling Stones singles chronology
"Not Fade Away"
(1964)		"Tell Me"
(1964)		"It's All Over Now"
(1964)

"Tell Me (You're Coming Back)" is a song by English rock band The Rolling Stones, featured on their 1964 self-titled album (later referred to as England's Newest Hit Makers in the US). It was later released as single A-side in the US & Canada only, becoming the first Jagger/Richards song that the band released as a single A-side, and their first record to enter the US Top 40. The single reached #24 in the US and #1 in Sweden. It was not released as a single in the UK.

The Rolling Stones English rock band

The Rolling Stones are an English rock band formed in London in 1962. The first stable line-up consisted of bandleader Brian Jones, Mick Jagger, Keith Richards, Bill Wyman (bass), Charlie Watts (drums), and Ian Stewart (piano). Stewart was removed from the official line-up in 1963 but continued to work with the band as a contracted musician until his death in 1985. The band's primary songwriters, Jagger and Richards, assumed leadership after Andrew Loog Oldham became the group's manager. Jones left the band less than a month before his death in 1969, having already been replaced by Mick Taylor, who remained until 1974. After Taylor left the band, Ronnie Wood took his place in 1975 and continues on guitar in tandem with Richards. Since Wyman's departure in 1993, Darryl Jones has served as touring bassist. The Stones have not had an official keyboardist since 1963, but have employed several musicians in that role, including Jack Nitzsche (1965–1971), Nicky Hopkins (1967–1982), Billy Preston (1971–1981), Ian McLagan (1978–1981), and Chuck Leavell (1982–present).

<i>The Rolling Stones</i> (album) 1964 debut studio album by The Rolling Stones

The Rolling Stones is the debut album by the English rock band the Rolling Stones, released by Decca Records in the UK on 16 April 1964. The American edition of the LP, with a slightly different track list, came out on London Records on 30 May 1964, subtitled England's Newest Hit Makers, which later became its official title.

Jagger/Richards songwriting, music production partnership

Jagger/Richards is the songwriting partnership of Mick Jagger and Keith Richards, a musical collaboration whose output has produced the majority of the catalogue of the Rolling Stones. They are one of the most successful songwriting partnerships in history. In addition to Jagger and Richards' songwriting partnership, they have also produced or co-produced numerous Rolling Stones albums under the pseudonym The Glimmer Twins.

Contents

The song

Written by singer Mick Jagger and guitarist Keith Richards, "Tell Me" is a pop ballad. Richie Unterberger, on Allmusic, said in his review of the song, "It should be pointed out ... that the Rolling Stones, even in 1964, were more versatile and open toward non-blues-rooted music than is often acknowledged by critics." [1] The Rolling Stones' two previous singles bear out this observation: one had been the Lennon–McCartney-penned "I Wanna Be Your Man" (later recorded by The Beatles as well); another was Buddy Holly's "Not Fade Away".

Mick Jagger English songwriter, singer of The Rolling Stones

nuary 2014 |deadurl=no |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20140220075732/http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b01pg54v |archivedate=20 February 2014}}</ref>}}}} }} Sir Michael Philip Jagger is an English singer, songwriter, actor, and film producer who gained worldwide fame as the lead singer and one of the founder members of the Rolling Stones. Jagger's career has spanned over five decades, and he has been described as "one of the most popular and influential frontmen in the history of rock & roll". His distinctive voice and energetic live performances, along with Keith Richards' guitar style, have been the trademark of the Rolling Stones throughout the band's career. Jagger gained press notoriety for his admitted drug use and romantic involvements, and was often portrayed as a countercultural figure.

Keith Richards British songwriter, guitarist of The Rolling Stones

Keith Richards is an English musician, singer, and songwriter, best known as the co-founder, guitarist, secondary vocalist, and co-principal songwriter of the Rolling Stones. Rolling Stone magazine called Richards the creator of "rock's greatest single body of riffs" on guitar and ranked him fourth on its list of 100 best guitarists in 2011, and the magazine lists fourteen songs that Richards wrote with the Rolling Stones' lead vocalist Mick Jagger on its "Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Songs of All Time" list.

Pop music is a genre of popular music that originated in its modern form in the United States and United Kingdom during the mid-1950s. The terms "popular music" and "pop music" are often used interchangeably, although the former describes all music that is popular and includes many diverse styles. "Pop" and "rock" were roughly synonymous terms until the late 1960s, when they became increasingly differentiated from each other.

Jagger said in a 1995 interview with Rolling Stone magazine: "['Tell Me'] is very different from doing those R&B covers or Marvin Gaye covers and all that. There's a definite feel about it. It's a very pop song, as opposed to all the blues songs and the Motown covers, which everyone did at the time." [2]

<i>Rolling Stone</i> American magazine focusing on popular culture, based in New York City

Rolling Stone is an American monthly magazine that focuses on popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California in 1967 by Jann Wenner, who is still the magazine's publisher, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first known for its musical coverage and for political reporting by Hunter S. Thompson. In the 1990s, the magazine shifted focus to a younger readership interested in youth-oriented television shows, film actors, and popular music. In recent years, it has resumed its traditional mix of content, including music, entertainment, and politics.

Marvin Gaye African American singer-songwriter and musician

Marvin Gaye was an American singer, songwriter, and record producer. He helped to shape the sound of Motown in the 1960s, first as an in-house session player and later as a solo artist with a string of hits, earning him the nicknames "Prince of Motown" and "Prince of Soul".

The song's lyrics are a glimpse of a failed relationship and the singer's attempt to win back the girl's love:

I want you back again
I want your love again
I know you find it hard to reason with me
But this time it's different, darling you'll see

Regarding the lyrics, Unterberger says, "When [Jagger and Richards] began to write songs, they were usually not derived from the blues, but were often surprisingly fey, slow, Mersey-type pop numbers... 'Tell Me' was quite acoustic-based, with a sad, almost dispirited air. After quiet lines about the end of the love affair, the tempo and melody both brighten…" [1]

Beat music, British beat, or Merseybeat is a popular music genre of rock and roll that developed in the United Kingdom in the early 1960s.

Recording and release

"Tell Me" was recorded in London in February 1964; versions both with and without Ian Stewart's piano were cut. [3] [4] Jagger said: "Keith was playing 12-string and singing harmonies into the same microphone as the 12-string. We recorded it in this tiny studio in the West End of London called Regent Sound, which was a demo studio. I think the whole of that album was recorded in there." [2]

London Capital of the United Kingdom

London is the capital of and largest city in England and the United Kingdom, with the largest municipal population in the European Union. Standing on the River Thames in the south-east of England, at the head of its 50-mile (80 km) estuary leading to the North Sea, London has been a major settlement for two millennia. Londinium was founded by the Romans. The City of London, London's ancient core − an area of just 1.12 square miles (2.9 km2) and colloquially known as the Square Mile − retains boundaries that follow closely its medieval limits. The City of Westminster is also an Inner London borough holding city status. Greater London is governed by the Mayor of London and the London Assembly.

Ian Stewart (musician) British musician and tour manager

Ian Andrew Robert Stewart was a Scottish keyboardist and co-founder of the Rolling Stones. He was removed from the line-up in May 1963 at the request of manager Andrew Loog Oldham who felt he did not fit the band's image. He remained as road manager and pianist for decades and was posthumously inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame along with the rest of the band in 1989.

Richards said in a 1971 interview with Rolling Stone, "'Tell Me'... was a dub. Half those records were dubs on that first album, that Mick and I and Charlie and I'd put a bass on or maybe Bill was there and he'd put a bass on. 'Let's put it down while we remember it,' and the next thing we know is, 'Oh look, track 8 is that dub we did a couple months ago.' That's how little control we had." [5]

Early pressings of the UK release of the debut album mistakenly included the piano-less version of "Tell Me" (the 2:52 version); all subsequent releases have featured the version with piano. [4] The full-length (4:05 or 4:06) recording of this piano version, which appeared on the standard UK LP after the mistake was corrected, has an abrupt ending before the performance of the song finishes. Most other LP and CD versions of the UK debut album — as well as the Stones' debut US album, originally subtitled but later officially called England's Newest Hit Makers — contain an edited version of this recording, which fades out at around 3:48.

In June 1964 "Tell Me" was released as a single in the USA only. The single edit is 2:47. It peaked at # 24 for two weeks, lasting on the Billboard Hot 100 for a total of 10 weeks.[ citation needed ] The B-side was a cover of the Willie Dixon song "I Just Wanna Make Love to You".

The Rolling Stones performed the song in concert in 1964 and 1965. [3]

The Stones lip-synched to a performance of this song on The Mike Douglas Show in 1964.

The "Tell Me" single was re-released on various Rolling Stones compilation albums, including Big Hits (High Tide and Green Grass) , More Hot Rocks (Big Hits & Fazed Cookies) , 30 Greatest Hits, and Singles Collection: The London Years . Over the years, the 3:48 edit has replaced the 2:47 single edit on such compilations; for example, the 1989 edition of Singles Collection: The London Years has the single edit, while the 2002 edition has the longer version.

The song was used in Martin Scorsese´s film Mean Streets (1973).

The "Rules for the Actors" section of Peter Handke's 1966 theater piece Offending the Audience contains the line "Listen to “Tell Me” by the Rolling Stones."

Personnel

Additional musicians

Charts

Chart (1964–65)Peak
position
Canada Top Singles ( RPM ) [6] 7
Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders) [7] 1
Germany (Official German Charts) [8] 22
Netherlands (Single Top 100) [9] 3
US Billboard Hot 100 [10] 24

Cover versions

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References

  1. 1 2 3 Unterberger, Richie. "Tell Me". song review. Allmusic. Retrieved 6 May 2012.
  2. 1 2 Wenner, Jann S. (14 December 1995). "Jagger Remembers". Archived from the original on 25 June 2009. Retrieved 8 June 2011.
  3. 1 2 Zentgraf, Nico. "The Complete Works of the Rolling Stones 1962-2008" . Retrieved 18 March 2008.
  4. 1 2 Elliott, Martin (2002). The Rolling Stones: Complete Recording Sessions 1962-2002. Cherry Red Books. pp. 22–23. ISBN   1-901447-04-9.
  5. ↑ McPherson, Ian. "Track Talk: Tell Me" . Retrieved 9 March 2008.
  6. ↑ "Top RPM Singles: Issue 4720." RPM . Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved 17 June 2016.
  7. ↑ "Ultratop.be – The Rolling Stones – Tell Me" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved 17 June 2016.
  8. ↑ "Offiziellecharts.de – The Rolling Stones – Tell Me". GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved 17 June 2016.
  9. ↑ "Dutchcharts.nl – The Rolling Stones – Tell Me" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved 17 June 2016.
  10. ↑ "The Rolling Stones Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved 17 June 2016.
  11. ↑ The Termites: Tell Me at AllMusic . Retrieved 19 July 2015.
  12. ↑ " Termites, The –Tell Me / I Found My Place " at Discogs
  13. ↑ Unterberger, Richie. The Grass Roots: Where Were You When I Needed You at AllMusic . Retrieved 19 July 2015.
  14. ↑ Grass Roots, The –Where Were You When I Needed You at Discogs (list of releases)
  15. ↑ Prato, Greg. Dead Boys: We Have Come for Your Children at AllMusic . Retrieved 19 July 2015.
  16. ↑ Dead Boys –We Have Come For Your Children at Discogs (list of releases)
  17. ↑ Cassell Webb –Conversations At Dawn at Discogs (list of releases)
  18. ↑ " Cassell Webb –Tell Me " at Discogs (list of releases)
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