Gimme Shelter

The finest song recorded by The Rolling Stones, the one I believe will endure the longest, Gimme Shelter was the first track on the album Let It Bleed, released on December 5, 1969.  A grim and turbulent song released in a grim and turbulent time.  There is so much to talk about with this song because each element is essential to its menacing atmosphere and its staying power.

The Music

We begin with Keith Richard's memorable guitar riff slathered with echo and tremolo and then he adds touches via another guitar overdubbed.  Keith's guitar is tuned to non-standard open tuning, meaning if you just strum the open strings it plays an E chord.

Nicky Hopkins hits one chord on the piano about 33 seconds in, which is then repeated periodically.

At 40 seconds, drummer Charlie Watts enters.  Charlie is noted for playing simple drum parts, usually not very distinctive, but on Gimme Shelter we hear something different.  At 47 seconds he varies the beat slightly, hitting the toms four times and adding a cymbal crash, a pattern he repeats throughout the song, a pattern that adds even more drama to the already dramatic lyrics.

At that point the basic rhythm track is in place and continues throughout the song.  At 2:03 we hear a heavy grinding harmonica played by Mick Jagger and then, at 2:19, the tempo changes and we move into the break and Keith's perfect guitar solo.

Moving into the last verse the basic rhythm track resumes and repeats relentlessly into the fadeout at song's end.

The Lyrics

The first line, "Oh, a storm is threatening my very life today, if I don't get some shelter, oh yeah, I'm gonna fade away" sets the tone and the chorus to the first two verses reinforces it, "War, children, it's just a shot away, it's just a shot away".

Then comes the chorus after the guitar solo which ratchets the danger and sense of unleashed evil to another level, "Rape, murder, it's just a shot away, it's just a shot away".  Hearing those lyrics as an 18 year old in 1969 was shocking.

While the final chorus, "Love, sister, it's just a kiss away, it's just a kiss away" attempts to inject hope and redemption into the mix, the oppressive lyrics and music of the prior three minutes overwhelms that note of optimism.  Nonetheless, it is a needed relief from the grim tone of the rest of the song.

The Vocals

Jagger is fine on vocals but we need to talk about what astonished all of us hearing it for the first time, when our immediate question was "who is that woman doing that incredible singing??".   It was Merry Clayton, a 20 year old singer living in Los Angeles, where the Stones were recording.  It was the middle of the night, Jagger wanted a female vocalist and producer Jack Nitzsche, who knew Merry, called her after midnight to come into the studio right then and there.  Merry, in bed, pregnant and in curlers, who was not familiar with the Stones, came into the studio and did a couple of takes.

Prior to the break you can hear her singing along with Jagger but when it came to "rape, murder" it is all Merry.  It's an electrifying moment when her voice breaks the third time she sings "murder".  Jagger felt the same, exclaiming "Woo!" right after, an exclamation left in the final recording.  This is Merry's song.

Forty five years later you can watch Merry (and Jagger) talking about that night, along with hearing her isolated vocal, which still sends chills down my spine all these years later.