Behind the Album: ‘Beggars Banquet’ by The Rolling Stones

The Rolling Stones had to go astray to find themselves. Once they did, they became an unstoppable force. And the album that kicked off that period in their history was the bruising, bluesy Beggars Banquet, which was released in 1968.

The album was the last to feature any significant contributions from original Stones member Brian Jones, who died seven months following its release. Beggars Banquet also reaffirmed songwriters Mick Jagger and Keith Richards‘ commitment to darker, seedier music, which was a drastic detour from the direction they’d been traveling with the music they released just prior to it. To understand this album, you have to first understand the album against which it was reacting.

A Majestic Mess

While The Rolling Stones’ 1967 album Their Satanic Majestic Request has its staunch defenders, it certainly painted the band more as followers than leaders. The Beatles and other groups of the day had expertly captured the watercolor ethos of the Summer of Love. The Stones, staring glumly with their wizard outfits on the cover of Satanic, seemed out of place and out of time.

Luckily, a single song seemed to set them in the right direction. With a title inspired by Richards’ gardener and a tone that can best be described as menacing, “Jumpin’ Jack Flash,” released as a standalone in May 1968, set the template for the rootsy, earthy music the band has been making ever since.

This change of direction could also be partly attributed to the recession of Jones’ standing in the band. Although he was a blues purist, his ability to handle any instrument gave the Stones songs of the mid-’60s more options. With the music that was made on Beggars Banquet, Jones wouldn’t be needed in quite the same fashion. Except for the sad slide part he contributed to “No Expectations,” he was mostly put in the background. (Jones’ drug-addled unreliability also had a hand in this development.)

Dark but Creative

It’s not that the Stones’ musical ambition disappeared on Beggars Banquet. It was just utilized on behalf of darker subject matter. Exhibit A was lead track “Sympathy for the Devil.” The band concocted a relentless, percussion-heavy workout with lots of empty spaces. This allowed Jagger to garner full attention for his lyrics about the omnipresence of evil.

That song wasn’t the only indication Jagger was radically improving and deepening as a lyricist. You could hear it on “Jigsaw Puzzle,” which saw him dealing in Dylan-style surrealism, albeit in a pessimistic way. “Street Fighting Man” questioned the effectiveness of protesters, while also suggesting that sitting back and watching it all was its own kind of defeat. That the song took the guise of a fist-pumping anthem, with Richards’ guitars ringing like a clarion call to battle, added even more complexity to the arguments.

Elsewhere, the Stones returned to traditional styles and sounded thrilled to be back. “Dear Doctor” travels a lighthearted country-folk lane, while “Stray Cat Blues” gets into the gutter musically and lyrically. “No Expectations” found Jagger deadpanning his way through depressive lyrics, as that Jones slide part sighs and twangs all around him. Closing track “Salt of the Earth” goes out on a note of gospel uplift, but not before Jagger admits he can’t relate to anyone around him, least of all his fans.

After the Banquet

The 1-2 punch of “Jumpin’ Jack Flash” and Beggars Banquet returned the Stones to their rightful place in the rock stratosphere. It also began a four-album run unlike few others in rock history, as Let It Bleed, Sticky Fingers, and Exile on Main Street were waiting in the wings. So was a young virtuoso guitarist in Mick Taylor, who would replace Jones and prove to be Richards’ best sparring partner ever.

If it weren’t for Beggars Banquet, it’s hard to imagine the Stones hitting those heights (while singing about the depths). Considering what that run by the band made on rock history, it only makes it clearer just how important this fantastic course correction of an album was.

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