Moonlight Mile (Rolling Stones song)
Encyclopedia
"Moonlight Mile" is a song from The Rolling Stones
' 1971 album Sticky Fingers
.
Credited to Mick Jagger
and Keith Richards
, "Moonlight Mile" is widely considered to be one of the Rolling Stones' most underappreciated ballads. Recording began in March 1970 at Stargroves
. The song was the product of an all-night session between Jagger and guitarist Mick Taylor
. Taylor had taken a short guitar piece recorded by Richards (entitled "Japanese Thing") and reworked it for the session. Jagger performs the song's prominent acoustic guitar
riff. It was Taylor's idea to add a string arrangement by Paul Buckmaster
to the song. Piano is played by regular Rolling Stones trumpet player Jim Price
.
The lyrics are elliptical and mysterious, but touch on the alienation of life on the road.
In his review of the song, Bill Janovitz
says, "Though the song still referenced drugs and the road life of a pop-music celebrity, it really is a rare example of Jagger letting go of his public persona, offering a behind-the-scenes glimpse of the weariness that accompanies the pressures of keeping up appearances as a sex-drugs-and-rock & roll star." Rock critic Robert Christgau
said the song, "re-created all the paradoxical distances inherent in erotic love with a power worthy of Yeats
, yet could also be interpreted as a cocaine
song." This is a reference to the first stanza, which reads, "When the wind blows and the rain feels cold, With a head full of snow..."
The track was used extensively during the final episode of the first part of the HBO series The Sopranos
sixth season, "Kaisha", as well as giving its title to and being used in the 2002 motion picture
Moonlight Mile. The song has been covered live by The Flaming Lips
and on The 5th Dimension album, Earthbound. American hard rock supergroup
Saints of the Underground
covered this song for their only album Love the Sin, Hate the Sinner
.
The Rolling Stones
The Rolling Stones are an English rock band, formed in London in April 1962 by Brian Jones , Ian Stewart , Mick Jagger , and Keith Richards . Bassist Bill Wyman and drummer Charlie Watts completed the early line-up...
' 1971 album Sticky Fingers
Sticky Fingers
-Personnel:The Rolling Stones*Mick Jagger – lead vocals, acoustic guitar on "Dead Flowers", electric guitar on "Sway", percussion*Keith Richards – electric guitar, six & twelve string acoustic guitar, backing vocals...
.
Credited to Mick Jagger
Mick Jagger
Sir Michael Philip "Mick" Jagger is an English musician, singer and songwriter, best known as the lead vocalist and a founding member of The Rolling Stones....
and Keith Richards
Keith Richards
Keith Richards is an English musician, songwriter, and founding member of the Rolling Stones. Rolling Stone magazine said Richards had created "rock's greatest single body of riffs", and placed him as the "10th greatest guitarist of all time." Fourteen songs written by Richards and songwriting...
, "Moonlight Mile" is widely considered to be one of the Rolling Stones' most underappreciated ballads. Recording began in March 1970 at Stargroves
Stargroves
Stargroves is a manor house and associated estate at East Woodhay in the English county of Hampshire. It best known for being the home of Mick Jagger during the 1970s and a recording venue for The Rolling Stones and various other rock bands.-History:...
. The song was the product of an all-night session between Jagger and guitarist Mick Taylor
Mick Taylor
Michael Kevin "Mick" Taylor is an English musician, best known as a former member of John Mayall's Bluesbreakers and The Rolling Stones...
. Taylor had taken a short guitar piece recorded by Richards (entitled "Japanese Thing") and reworked it for the session. Jagger performs the song's prominent acoustic guitar
Acoustic guitar
An acoustic guitar is a guitar that uses only an acoustic sound board. The air in this cavity resonates with the vibrational modes of the string and at low frequencies, which depend on the size of the box, the chamber acts like a Helmholtz resonator, increasing or decreasing the volume of the sound...
riff. It was Taylor's idea to add a string arrangement by Paul Buckmaster
Paul Buckmaster
Paul John Buckmaster is a Grammy Award-winning English artist, arranger and composer.He began learning the cello at the age of 4 and graduated from the Royal College of Music at age 16....
to the song. Piano is played by regular Rolling Stones trumpet player Jim Price
Jim Price (musician)
Jim Price was, together with Bobby Keys and Jim Horn, one of the most in demand horn session players of the 1970s. He toured extensively with The Rolling Stones from 1970 until 1973, including their 1972 American Tour, and appears on the albums, Sticky Fingers, Exile on Main St. and Goats Head Soup...
.
The lyrics are elliptical and mysterious, but touch on the alienation of life on the road.
In his review of the song, Bill Janovitz
Bill Janovitz
Bill Janovitz is best known as the singer and guitarist of the alternative rock band Buffalo Tom.-History:After enrolling at the University of Massachusetts, Janovitz formed Buffalo Tom with fellow students Chris Colbourn and Tom Maginnis. A friendship with J. Mascis of Dinosaur Jr...
says, "Though the song still referenced drugs and the road life of a pop-music celebrity, it really is a rare example of Jagger letting go of his public persona, offering a behind-the-scenes glimpse of the weariness that accompanies the pressures of keeping up appearances as a sex-drugs-and-rock & roll star." Rock critic Robert Christgau
Robert Christgau
Robert Christgau is an American essayist, music journalist, and self-proclaimed "Dean of American Rock Critics".One of the earliest professional rock critics, Christgau is known for his terse capsule reviews, published since 1969 in his Consumer Guide columns...
said the song, "re-created all the paradoxical distances inherent in erotic love with a power worthy of Yeats
William Butler Yeats
William Butler Yeats was an Irish poet and playwright, and one of the foremost figures of 20th century literature. A pillar of both the Irish and British literary establishments, in his later years he served as an Irish Senator for two terms...
, yet could also be interpreted as a cocaine
Cocaine
Cocaine is a crystalline tropane alkaloid that is obtained from the leaves of the coca plant. The name comes from "coca" in addition to the alkaloid suffix -ine, forming cocaine. It is a stimulant of the central nervous system, an appetite suppressant, and a topical anesthetic...
song." This is a reference to the first stanza, which reads, "When the wind blows and the rain feels cold, With a head full of snow..."
The track was used extensively during the final episode of the first part of the HBO series The Sopranos
The Sopranos
The Sopranos is an American television drama series created by David Chase that revolves around the New Jersey-based Italian-American mobster Tony Soprano and the difficulties he faces as he tries to balance the often conflicting requirements of his home life and the criminal organization he heads...
sixth season, "Kaisha", as well as giving its title to and being used in the 2002 motion picture
Film
A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...
Moonlight Mile. The song has been covered live by The Flaming Lips
The Flaming Lips
The Flaming Lips are an American alternative rock band, formed in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma in 1983.Melodically, their sound contains lush, multi-layered, psychedelic rock arrangements, but lyrically their compositions show elements of space rock, including unusual song and album titles—such as "What...
and on The 5th Dimension album, Earthbound. American hard rock supergroup
Supergroup (music)
In the late 1960s, the term supergroup was coined to describe "a rock music group whose performers are already famous from having performed individually or in other groups"....
Saints of the Underground
Saints of the Underground
Saints of The Underground is a hard rock project that was formed in 2006 by Ratt drummer Bobby Blotzer and Alice Cooper guitarist Keri Kelli who recruited ex-Warrant singer Jani Lane and Ratt bassist Robbie Crane...
covered this song for their only album Love the Sin, Hate the Sinner
Love the Sin, Hate the Sinner
Love the Sin, Hate the Sinner is the debut album of Saints of the Underground, a hard rock supergroup composed of Jani Lane , Keri Kelli , Robbie Crane and Bobby Blotzer...
.