"Doo Doo Doo Doo Doo (Heartbreaker)" is the fourth track on

the Rolling Stones The Rolling Stones are an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1962. Active for six decades, they are one of the most popular and enduring bands of the album era, rock era. In the early 1960s, the Rolling Stones pioneered the g ...

' 1973 album ''

Goats Head Soup ''Goats Head Soup'' is the 11th British and 13th American studio album by the English rock band the Rolling Stones. It was released on 31 August 1973 by Rolling Stones Records. Like its predecessor '' Exile on Main St.'', the band composed and ...

''.

Background

Written by

Mick Jagger Sir Michael Philip Jagger (born 26 July 1943) is an English singer and songwriter who has achieved international fame as the lead vocalist and one of the founder members of the rock band the Rolling Stones. His ongoing songwriting partnershi ...

and

Keith Richards Keith Richards (born 18 December 1943), often referred to during the 1960s and 1970s as "Keith Richard", is an English musician and songwriter who has achieved international fame as the co-founder, guitarist, secondary vocalist, and co-princi ...

, the song's lyrics relate two stories: one is a story of

New York City police The New York City Police Department (NYPD), officially the City of New York Police Department, established on May 23, 1845, is the primary municipal law enforcement agency within the City of New York, the largest and one of the oldest in ...

shooting a boy "right through the heart" because they mistook him for someone else, and the second of a ten-year-old girl who dies in an alley of a drug overdose. Neither of these events are known to be factual. In April 1973 a ten-year-old boy named Clifford Glover was with his father when plainclothes police stopped them at gunpoint in Queens, in New York City, supposedly having mistaken the two for suspects in an armed robbery (the robbers were described as being about one foot taller than the boy). The boy and his father ran, fearing that they were about to be victims of a robbery. The police chased them and one officer shot the 10-year-old boy in the back, killing him. The bullet entered Glover's lower back and emerged at the top of his chest (i.e., went through his heart). The case resulted in riots and a murder indictment against the officer, who was later acquitted in a jury trial. After telling the story of the police shooting the wrong person, Jagger sings, : You heartbreaker, with your .44, I want to tear your world apart. The .44 magnum cartridge had recently been made famous by the 1971 film ''

Dirty Harry ''Dirty Harry'' is a 1971 American neo-noir action thriller film produced and directed by Don Siegel, the first in the ''Dirty Harry'' series. Clint Eastwood plays the title role, in his first outing as San Francisco Police Department (SFP ...

'', in which Harry Callahan uses "the most powerful handgun in the world" to cleanse the streets of crime. The lyrics complement the music, which ''Rolling Stone'' magazine described as "urban R&B" for its funk influence and prominent clavinet part (played by Billy Preston).

Recording

"Doo Doo Doo Doo Doo (Heartbreaker)" was first recorded in November and December 1972 before being re-recorded early the following summer.

Jim Horn James Ronald Horn (born November 20, 1940) is an American saxophonist, woodwind player, and session musician. Biography Horn was born in Los Angeles, and after replacing saxophonist Steve Douglas in 1959, he toured with member Duane Eddy for f ...

arranged the song's horns and played sax together with

Bobby Keys Robert Henry Keys (December 18, 1943 – December 2, 2014) was an American saxophonist who performed with other musicians as a member of several horn sections of the 1970s. He appears on albums by the Rolling Stones, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Harry Ni ...

, and Chuck Findley played trumpet.

Mick Taylor Michael Kevin Taylor (born 17 January 1949) is an English guitarist, best known as a former member of John Mayall's Bluesbreakers (1967–1969) and the Rolling Stones (1969–1974). As a member of the Stones, he appeared on: ''Let It Bleed'' ...

played the lead guitar part (which features a

wah-wah pedal A wah-wah pedal, or simply wah pedal, is a type of electric guitar effects pedal that alters the tone and frequencies of the guitar signal to create a distinctive sound, mimicking the human voice saying the onomatopoeic name "wah-wah". The ped ...

and a Leslie speaker), Richards played rhythm guitar and bass; Billy Preston played clavinet (also using a wah-wah during the choruses), and

RMI Electra Piano Rocky Mount Instruments (RMI) was a subsidiary of the Allen Organ Company, based in Rocky Mount, North Carolina, active from 1966 to 1982. The company was formed to produce portable musical instruments, and manufactured several electronic piano ...

. The song appeared on the American version of the compilation album '' Rewind (1971-1984)''.

Reception

Released as the second single from ''Goats Head Soup'' in the US only (after the hit "Angie"), the song reached in the US on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 and has remained a staple on AOR and classic rock radio stations. '' Cash Box'' called it a "powerhouse rocker to once again rocket the Stones to the Top of the Pops" that is "filled with that hard Jagger vocal sensuality and a very tasty bass line."

Charts

References

{{authority control The Rolling Stones songs 1973 songs Songs written by Jagger–Richards Song recordings produced by Jimmy Miller Music videos directed by Michael Lindsay-Hogg Songs about New York City 1973 singles