HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

"Paint It Black" is a song by the English rock band the Rolling Stones. A product of the songwriting partnership of Mick Jagger and Keith Richards, it is a raga rock song with Indian, Middle Eastern and Eastern European influences and lyrics about grief and loss. London Records released the song as a single on 7 May 1966 in the United States, and
Decca Records Decca Records is a British record label established in 1929 by Edward Lewis (Decca), Edward Lewis after his acquisition of a gramophone manufacturer, The Decca Gramophone Company. It set up an American subsidiary under the Decca name, which bec ...
released it on 13 May in the United Kingdom. Two months later, London Records included it as the opening track on the American version of the band's 1966 studio album '' Aftermath'', though it is not on the original UK release. Originating from a series of improvisational melodies played by Brian Jones on the sitar, the song features all five members of the band contributing to the final arrangement although only Jagger and Richards were credited as songwriters. In contrast to previous Rolling Stones singles with straightforward rock arrangements, "Paint It Black" has unconventional instrumentation, including a prominent sitar, a
Hammond organ The Hammond organ is an electric organ invented by Laurens Hammond and John M. Hanert, first manufactured in 1935. Multiple models have been produced, most of which use sliding #Drawbars, drawbars to vary sounds. Until 1975, sound was created ...
and castanets. This instrumental experimentation matches other songs on ''Aftermath''. The song was influential to the burgeoning psychedelic genre as the first chart-topping single to feature the sitar, and widened the instrument's audience. Reviews of the song at the time were mixed, and some music critics believed its use of the sitar was an attempt to copy
the Beatles The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band formed in Liverpool in 1960. The core lineup of the band comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are widely regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatle ...
, while others criticised its experimental style and doubted its commercial potential. "Paint It Black" was a major chart success for the Rolling Stones, remaining 11 weeks (including two at number one) on the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100, and 10 weeks (including one atop the chart) on the ''
Record Retailer ''Record Retailer'' was the only music trade newspaper for the UK record industry. It was founded in August 1959 as a monthly newspaper covering both labels and dealers. Its founding editor was Roy Parker (who died on 27 December 1964). The ti ...
'' chart in the UK. Upon a reissue in 2007, it reentered the UK Singles Chart for 11 weeks. It was the band's third number-one single in the US and sixth in the UK. The song also topped charts in Canada and the Netherlands. It received a platinum certification in the UK from the
British Phonographic Industry BPI (British Recorded Music Industry) Limited, trading as British Phonographic Industry (BPI), is the British recorded music industry's trade association. It runs the BRIT Awards; is home to the Mercury Prize; co-owns the Official Charts C ...
(BPI) and from Italy's Federazione Industria Musicale Italiana (FIMI). "Paint It Black" was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 2018, and ''
Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. The magazine was first known fo ...
'' magazine ranked the song number 213 on their list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time. In 2011, the song was added to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's list of " The Songs that Shaped Rock and Roll". Many artists have covered "Paint It Black" since its initial release. It has been included on many of the band's
compilation album A compilation album comprises Album#Tracks, tracks, which may be previously released or unreleased, usually from several separate recordings by either one Performing arts#Performers, performer or by several performers. If the recordings are from ...
s and several film soundtracks. It has been played on a number of Rolling Stones tours.


Background

In 1965, popularity of the Rolling Stones increased markedly with a series of international hit singles written by lead singer Mick Jagger and guitarist Keith Richards. While 1964 saw the band reach the top of both the albums and singles charts in their native United Kingdom, other bands from Britain dominated the American market, such as
the Beatles The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band formed in Liverpool in 1960. The core lineup of the band comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are widely regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatle ...
. In 1965, the Stones crossed over to the American market with their first number one single, " (I Can't Get No) Satisfaction", and first number one album '' Out of Our Heads''. That year also saw the Stones reach the top of the charts for the first time in countries such as Finland, Germany, and South Africa. This success attracted the attention of Allen Klein, an American businessman who became their US representative in August while Andrew Loog Oldham, the group's manager, continued in the role of promoter and record producer. One of Klein's first actions on the band's behalf was to force
Decca Records Decca Records is a British record label established in 1929 by Edward Lewis (Decca), Edward Lewis after his acquisition of a gramophone manufacturer, The Decca Gramophone Company. It set up an American subsidiary under the Decca name, which bec ...
to grant a $1.2 million royalty advance to the group, bringing the members their first signs of financial wealth and allowing them to purchase country houses and new cars. Their October–December 1965 tour of North America was the group's fourth and largest tour there up to that point. According to the biographer Victor Bockris, through Klein's involvement, the concerts afforded the band "more publicity, more protection and higher fees than ever before." By this time, the Rolling Stones had begun to respond to the increasingly sophisticated music of the Beatles, in comparison to whom they had long been promoted by Oldham as a rougher alternative. With the success of the JaggerRichards-penned singles "(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction" (1965), " Get Off of My Cloud" (1965) and " 19th Nervous Breakdown" (1966), the band increasingly rivalled the musical and cultural influence of the Beatles, and began to be identified as one of the major pillars of the
British Invasion The British Invasion was a cultural phenomenon of the mid-1960s, when Rock music, rock and pop music acts from the United Kingdom and other aspects of Culture of the United Kingdom, British culture became popular in the United States with sign ...
. The Stones' outspoken, surly attitude on songs like "Satisfaction" alienated the Establishment detractors of
rock music Rock is a Music genre, genre of popular music that originated in the United States as "rock and roll" in the late 1940s and early 1950s, developing into a range of styles from the mid-1960s, primarily in the United States and the United Kingdo ...
, which music historian Colin King explains, "only made the group more appealing to those sons and daughters who found themselves estranged from the hypocrisies of the adult world – an element that would solidify into an increasingly militant and disenchanted counterculture as the decade wore on."


Development

"Paint It Black" came at a pivotal period in the band's recording history. The JaggerRichards songwriting collaboration had begun producing more original material for the band over the past year, with the early model of Stones albums featuring only a few JaggerRichards compositions having been replaced by that of albums such as ''Out of Our Heads'' and '' December's Children (and Everybody's)'', each of which consisted of half original tracks and half cover songs. This trend culminated in the sessions for '' Aftermath'' (1966) where, for the first time, the duo penned every track on the album. Brian Jones, originally the band's founder and leader over the first few years of its existence, began feeling overshadowed by the prominence of Jagger and Richards' contributions to the group. Despite having contributed to early songs by the Stones via the Nanker Phelge pseudonym, Jones had less and less influence over the group's direction as their popularity grew primarily as a result of original JaggerRichards singles. Jones grew bored attempting to write songs with conventional guitar melodies. To alleviate his boredom, he began exploring Eastern instruments, specifically the Indian sitar, with a goal to bolstering the musical texture and complexity of the band's sound. A multi-instrumentalist, Jones could develop a tune on the sitar in a short time; he had a background with the instrument largely from his studies under Harihar Rao, a disciple of Ravi Shankar. Over 1965, the sitar had become a more and more prominent instrument in the landscape of British rock. The Yardbirds had attempted to record " Heart Full of Soul" with the sitar as part of the arrangement in April; however, they had run into problems getting the instrument to "cut through" the mix, and the session musician responsible for playing the instrument had trouble staying within the 4/4 time signature of the song. Ultimately, the final version of "Heart Full of Soul" featured a fuzz guitar in place of the sitar, although the song's distinctively Indian timbre remained. Following similar Indian-influenced experimentation by the Kinks on " See My Friends" that nonetheless still used guitar as the primary instrument, the first British band to release a recording featuring the sitar was the Beatles, with " Norwegian Wood (This Bird Has Flown)" released that December on the album '' Rubber Soul''. Following a discussion with the Beatles' lead guitarist George Harrison, who had recently played the sitar on the sessions for "Norwegian Wood" in October 1965, Jones began devoting more time to the sitar, and began arranging basic melodies with the instrument. One of these melodies morphed over time into the tune featured in "Paint It Black".


Writing and recording

Jagger and Richards wrote the lyrics and much of the chord progression of "Paint It Black" the previous December during the first sessions for the then untitled album '' Aftermath'', and while on the 1966 Australian tour. Initially, the first group of sessions were to be released as an album by themselves, then titled ''Could You Walk on the Water?'' In mid-January 1966, the British press announced that a new Rolling Stones LP carrying that title would be released on 10 March. In ''Rolling with the Stones'', Wyman refers to the announcement as "audacity" on Oldham's part. A Decca spokesman said the company would not issue an album with such a title "at any price"; Oldham's idea upset executives at the company's American distributor, London Records, who feared the allusion to Jesus walking on water would provoke a negative response from
Christians A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the world. The words '' Christ'' and ''C ...
. The title controversy embroiled the Stones in a conflict with Decca, delaying the Stones' next studio album's release from March to April 1966. The delay, however, gave the Stones more time to record new material for the upcoming album, which had now been retitled ''Aftermath''. Upon their return from Australasia, it was one of the new songs worked on for the revised new album. "Paint It Black" was recorded as the Stones had begun to take more time recording their material. Referring to the atmosphere of the Stones' sessions at the time, Richards told '' Beat Instrumental'' magazine in February 1966: "Our previous sessions have always been rush jobs. This time we were able to relax a little, take our time."
Sound engineer An audio engineer (also known as a sound engineer or recording engineer) helps to produce a sound recording, recording or a Concert, live performance, balancing and adjusting sound sources using equalization (audio), equalization, Dynamic range ...
Dave Hassinger recorded the song on 6 and 9 March 1966 at RCA Studios in
Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...
. Andrew Loog Oldham produced the track, as with all of the Stones' recordings until 1967. Both the single's US and UK B-sides were also recorded on these dates, as were a majority of album tracks for ''Aftermath''. "Paint It Black" follows a simple verse form that lacks a
refrain A refrain (from Vulgar Latin ''refringere'', "to repeat", and later from Old French ''refraindre'') is the Line (poetry)">line or lines that are repeated in poetry or in music">poetry.html" ;"title="Line (poetry)">line or lines that are repeat ...
. It starts with five consecutive 16-bar verses before relaxing into a chanted section and finishing in a frantic coda. The song was written originally as a standard pop arrangement in a minor key similar to " The House of the Rising Sun", which Jagger humorously compared to "songs for Jewish weddings". The Stones were dissatisfied with this version and considered scrapping the song altogether. During a session break, Bill Wyman twiddled with a
Hammond organ The Hammond organ is an electric organ invented by Laurens Hammond and John M. Hanert, first manufactured in 1935. Multiple models have been produced, most of which use sliding #Drawbars, drawbars to vary sounds. Until 1975, sound was created ...
in search of a heavier bass sound; Wyman's playing inspired the uptempo and Eastern melody. The sitar was brought into the mix when Harihar Rao walked into the studio with one in hand. With the sitar, Jones combined his recent melodic improvisations with the chord progression and lyrics provided by Jagger and Richards. Soon after the recording session, Richards felt that the track's conclusion was over-recorded and that it could have been improved. This song may have the first recorded example of a fretless bass guitar. Wyman had removed the frets from a bass intending to replace them, but became enamoured with the fretless sound. This can be most easily heard near the end of each vocal line, when Wyman plays high on the bass's neck, using the upper register. Wyman was later critical of Oldham listing Jagger and Richards as songwriters to the exclusion of the rest of the Stones. He felt that "Paint It Black" should have been credited to the band's pseudonym, Nanker Phelge, rather than Jagger–Richards, since the song's final arrangement originated from a studio improvisation by Jones, Watts and himself, and Jones was responsible for providing the melody line on the sitar. In the view of pop historian Andrew Grant Jackson, "Paint It Black" bears a strong resemblance to
the Supremes The Supremes were an American girl group formed in Detroit, Michigan, in 1959 as the Primettes. A premier act of Motown Records during the 1960s, the Supremes were the most commercially successful of Motown's acts and the most successful Amer ...
' 1965 hit " My World Is Empty Without You", which used "a foreboding minor key with harpsichord and organ".


Music and lyrics

In a 1995 interview, commenting on the musical styles found on ''Aftermath'', Jagger described "Paint It Black" as "this kind of Turkish song". According to music scholar James E. Perone, although the introductory sitar passage is played in an Indian fashion, "the rhythmic and melodic feel of the Eastern-sounding phrases actually call to mind the Middle East more than India". Jagger's droning and slightly nasal singing complement the motif Jones plays on the sitar. Wyman's heavy bass,
Charlie Watts Charles Robert Watts (2 June 1941 – 24 August 2021) was an English musician who was the drummer of the Rolling Stones from 1963 until his death in 2021. Originally trained as a Graphic designer, graphic artist, Watts developed an interest i ...
' low-pitch drumming and Richards' bolero-driven
acoustic guitar An acoustic guitar is a musical instrument in the string family. When a string is plucked, its vibration is transmitted from the bridge, resonating throughout the top of the guitar. It is also transmitted to the side and back of the instrument, ...
outro drive "Paint It Black". Commentators and reviewers have classified "Paint It Black" as raga rock,
psychedelia Psychedelia usually refers to a Aesthetics, style or aesthetic that is resembled in the psychedelic subculture of the 1960s and the psychedelic experience produced by certain psychoactive substances. This includes psychedelic art, psychedelic ...
, and
psychedelic rock Psychedelic rock is a rock music Music genre, genre that is inspired, influenced, or representative of psychedelia, psychedelic culture, which is centered on perception-altering hallucinogenic drugs. The music incorporated new electronic sound ...
. Perone named "Paint It Black" as one of the Stones' 1966 songs that acts as an explicit attempt to transcend the blues-based rock and roll conventions of the Stones' previous songs, along with other ''Aftermath'' songs such as "Stupid Girl", " Lady Jane" and " Under My Thumb". Using colour-based metaphors, the song's lyrics describe the grief suffered by someone stunned by the sudden and unexpected loss of a partner, leading to what author Tony Visconti terms "a blanket worldview of desperation and desolation, with no hint of hope." The lyrics have also given rise to alternative interpretations scholars consider less likely, ranging from a
bad trip A bad trip (also known as challenging experiences, acute intoxication from hallucinogens, psychedelic crisis, or emergence phenomenon) is an acute adverse psychological reaction to the effects of Psychoactive drug, psychoactive substances, namely ...
on hallucinogens to the
Vietnam War The Vietnam War (1 November 1955 – 30 April 1975) was an armed conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia fought between North Vietnam (Democratic Republic of Vietnam) and South Vietnam (Republic of Vietnam) and their allies. North Vietnam w ...
. Perone noted in 2012 that the lyrical content – a character "so entrenched in his depression and rage that he has lost all hope" – establishes a rough concept for ''Aftermath''s American edition, the following songs offering insight into "the darkness of his psyche" and possible reasons for its darkness. Perone argues the resulting connections among the songs on ''Aftermath'' lend it a conceptual unity which, although not sufficient for it to be considered a
concept album A concept album is an album whose tracks hold a larger purpose or meaning collectively than they do individually. This is typically achieved through a single central narrative or theme, which can be instrumental, compositional, or lyrical. Som ...
, allows for the record to be understood "as a psychodrama around the theme of love, desire and obsession that never quite turns out right". As Perone explains:
The individual songs seem to ping-pong back and forth between themes of love/desire for women and the desire to control women and out-and-out misogyny. However, the band uses musical connections between songs as well as the sub-theme of travel, the use of feline metaphors for women and other lyrical connections to suggest that the characters whom lead singer Mick Jagger portrays throughout the album are really one and perhaps stem from the deep recesses of his psyche.
''The Village Voice'' music critic
Robert Christgau Robert Thomas Christgau ( ; born April 18, 1942) is an American music journalist and essayist. Among the most influential music critics, he began his career in the late 1960s as one of the earliest professional rock critics and later became a ...
described "Paint It Black" as an example of the Stones' development as artists. According to Christgau, the texture of the Stones' blues-derived
hard rock Hard rock or heavy rock is a heavier subgenre of rock music typified by aggressive vocals and Distortion (music), distorted electric guitars. Hard rock began in the mid-1960s with the Garage rock, garage, Psychedelic rock, psychedelic and blues ...
is "permanently enriched" as Jones "daub on occult instrumental olours. Christgau praised Mick Jagger specifically for his influence on the Stones' artistic identity on their 1966 material, describing him as a lyricist "whose power, subtlety and wit are unparalleled in contemporary popular music", and additionally suggested that Jagger and Richards rank second as composers of melody in rock, behind only John Lennon and Paul McCartney.


Release

London Records released "Paint It Black" as a single in the US on 7 May 1966;
Decca Records Decca Records is a British record label established in 1929 by Edward Lewis (Decca), Edward Lewis after his acquisition of a gramophone manufacturer, The Decca Gramophone Company. It set up an American subsidiary under the Decca name, which bec ...
released it on 13 May in the UK. "Paint It Black"s UK B-side was "Long Long While", a song that was not released on any of the band's studio albums. Richie Unterberger of ''
AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...
'' later described "Long Long While" as an underappreciated song, with a "considerably different" tone than most of the band's work, and commented that it was better than many of the tracks the Stones selected for their studio albums. Upon their original release, the songs were credited to "Jagger-Richard", as Andrew Loog Oldham advised Keith Richards to use the surname Richard professionally on the Stones' releases during the 1960s. Later releases of the song have changed the credit to "Jagger-Richards". In the US, " Stupid Girl" was chosen as its US B-side. Both songs were included in the American release of ''Aftermath'', with "Paint It Black" being a new addition when compared to the earlier British edition "Paint It Black" became ''Aftermath''s opening track, replacing " Mother's Little Helper", while "Stupid Girl" remained as the second track on the album. Its delayed North American release allowed pirate radio stations to play the single up to two weeks before the album appeared. The song was originally released as "Paint It, Black", the
comma The comma is a punctuation mark that appears in several variants in different languages. Some typefaces render it as a small line, slightly curved or straight, but inclined from the vertical; others give it the appearance of a miniature fille ...
being an error by Decca, which stirred controversy over its racial interpretation. The Stones performed "Paint It Black" live on ''
The Ed Sullivan Show ''The Ed Sullivan Show'' is an American television variety show that ran on CBS from June 20, 1948, to March 28, 1971, and was hosted by New York City, New York entertainment columnist Ed Sullivan. It was replaced in September 1971 by the ''CB ...
'' on 11 September. Due to "Paint It Black" not appearing on the UK edition of ''Aftermath'' and being released as a non-album single, its first album release in the UK came on the UK edition of the compilation '' Big Hits (High Tide and Green Grass)'' (1966), though the album was not released with the song as part of its track listing in the US. The first release of the song on a compilation album in the US came on '' Through the Past, Darkly (Big Hits Vol. 2)'' (1969). Later compilations by the Rolling Stones featuring "Paint It Black" include '' Hot Rocks 1964–1971'' (1971), '' Singles Collection: The London Years'' (1989), '' Forty Licks'' (2002), and '' GRRR!'' (2012). Live recordings are on the concert albums '' Flashpoint'' (1991), '' Live Licks'' (2004), '' Shine a Light'' (2008), '' Hyde Park Live'' (2013), and '' Havana Moon'' (2016).


Critical reception and legacy

Initial reaction to "Paint It Black" was mixed. Some
music critics Music journalism (or music criticism) is media criticism and reporting about music topics, including popular music, classical music, and traditional music. Journalists began writing about music in the eighteenth century, providing commentary on ...
found the addition of the sitar to be simply a case of the band copying the Beatles. In his book ''Brian Jones: The Making of the Rolling Stones'', Paul Trynka comments on the influence of Harrison's sitar playing on the Beatles' song "Norwegian Wood" from the '' Rubber Soul'' album and draws parallels with Jones' droning sitar melody on "Paint It Black". Responding to claims that he was imitating the Beatles, Jones replied: "What utter rubbish", comparing the argument to saying that all groups using a guitar copy each other merely by using the instrument. Jonathan Bellman, an American
musicologist Musicology is the academic, research-based study of music, as opposed to musical composition or performance. Musicology research combines and intersects with many fields, including psychology, sociology, acoustics, neurology, natural sciences, f ...
, agreed with Jones, writing in a 1997 issue of '' The Journal of Musicology'' that the events are an example of concurrent musical and instrumental experimentation. Jones' sitar part on the track influenced the development of a whole subgenre of minor-key psychedelic music. Lindy Shannon of the '' La Crosse Tribune'' felt that "Paint It Black",
the Byrds The Byrds () were an American Rock music, rock band formed in Los Angeles, California, in 1964. The band underwent multiple lineup changes throughout its existence, with frontman Roger McGuinn (known as Jim McGuinn until mid-1967) being the so ...
' " Eight Miles High" and the Beatles' "
Rain Rain is a form of precipitation where water drop (liquid), droplets that have condensation, condensed from Water vapor#In Earth's atmosphere, atmospheric water vapor fall under gravity. Rain is a major component of the water cycle and is res ...
" were straying from the "commercial field" and instead "going into a sort of distorted area of unpleasant sounds". Staff at ''
Melody Maker ''Melody Maker'' was a British weekly music magazine, one of the world's earliest music weeklies; according to its publisher, IPC Media, the earliest. In January 2001, it was merged into "long-standing rival" (and IPC Media sister publicatio ...
'' lauded the track, calling it "a glorious Indian raga-riot that will send the Stones back to number one". Writing for '' Disc and Music Echo'', Penny Valentine praised Jagger's singing, writing that it was "better than ever" but was critical of the track's sitar. '' Guitar Player''s Jesse Gress cited "Paint It Black" as originating the 1960s ragarock craze. In a review for ''
New Musical Express ''New Musical Express'' (''NME'') is a British music, film, gaming and culture website, bimonthly magazine, and brand. Founded as a newspaper in 1952, with the publication being referred to as a " rock inkie", the ''NME'' would become a maga ...
'' (NME), Keith Altham considered "Paint It Black" the band's best single since " (I Can't Get No) Satisfaction" was released the previous year. A reviewer for '' Billboard'' predicted that ''Aftermath'' would become another hit for the band, citing "Paint It Black" as the focal point of this
hard rock Hard rock or heavy rock is a heavier subgenre of rock music typified by aggressive vocals and Distortion (music), distorted electric guitars. Hard rock began in the mid-1960s with the Garage rock, garage, Psychedelic rock, psychedelic and blues ...
album and praising Oldham's production. '' Record World'' said "Guys are in depressed mood, but the rhythm is anything but depressed. Irrepressible hit." ''The Herald News'' considered the song a "top record... for teeners", and in ''The Sunday Press'' Nancy Brown described it as a "pulsating, blues-soaked romantic tear-jerker". In the '' San Francisco Examiner'', Ralph J. Gleason lauded the song for its "hypnotizing tone" and "same qualities of ambiguity and obscurity as some of the previous Stones hits". In April 1967, while hosting the television documentary '' Inside Pop: The Rock Revolution'', Leonard Bernstein praised the song for its "arab café" sound, and cited it as an example of contemporary pop music's ability to evoke disparate moods through instrumentation. In a retrospective review, Richie Unterberger of ''AllMusic'' called the song an "eerily insistent" classic that features some of "the best use of sitar on a rock record", and in another ''AllMusic'' review wrote it is "perhaps the most effective use of the Indian instrument in a rock song". Writing on the song's 50th anniversary in 2016, Dave Swanson of '' Ultimate Classic Rock'' considered the song, like its parent album ''Aftermath'', to be a major turning point in artistic evolution for the band, noting: "Paint It, Black' wasn't just another song by just another rock group; it was an explosion of ideas presented in one neat three-minute package." In 2017, ranking ''Aftermath'' as one of the best albums of the 1960s, Judy Berman of ''
Pitchfork A pitchfork or hay fork is an agricultural tool used to pitch loose material, such as hay, straw, manure, or leaves. It has a long handle and usually two to five thin tines designed to efficiently move such materials. The term is also applie ...
'' described the song as "rock's most nihilistic hit to date". David Palmer, editor of '' the Cullman Times'', wrote that the "attitude" songs on ''Aftermath'' – particularly "Paint It Black" – influenced the nihilistic outlook of punk music. ''
Stereogum ''Stereogum'' is a daily Internet publication that focuses on music news, reviews, interviews, and commentary. The site was created in January 2002 by Scott Lapatine. ''Stereogum'' was one of the first MP3 blogs and has received several awar ...
'' critic Tom Breihan praised the song as a strong example of the band's brand of "swirling doom-blues", and praised its heavy sound and dark lyrics as ahead of its time when compared to the landscape of popular music in 1966. "Paint It Black" inspired almost four hundred covers. It has placed on many "best songs" lists including those by ''
Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. The magazine was first known fo ...
'', '' Vulture'' magazine, ''NME'', and ''Pitchfork''.
The Recording Academy National Academy of Recording Arts & Sciences, Inc. (NARAS), doing business as The Recording Academy, is an American Learned society, learned academy of musicians, producers, recording engineers, and other musical professionals. It is widely kno ...
inducted the song into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 2018. It is ranked number 213 on ''Rolling Stones list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.


Commercial performance

In the UK, "Paint It Black" peaked at number one on the ''
Record Retailer ''Record Retailer'' was the only music trade newspaper for the UK record industry. It was founded in August 1959 as a monthly newspaper covering both labels and dealers. Its founding editor was Roy Parker (who died on 27 December 1964). The ti ...
'' chart during a 10-week stay, becoming the Rolling Stones' sixth UK number one. Seven days after its UK release, "Paint It Black" had sold 300,000 advance copies; the
British Phonographic Industry BPI (British Recorded Music Industry) Limited, trading as British Phonographic Industry (BPI), is the British recorded music industry's trade association. It runs the BRIT Awards; is home to the Mercury Prize; co-owns the Official Charts C ...
(BPI) later certified it platinum. In 2007, the song entered the UK Singles chart at number 70 for an 11-week stint. In Germany, "Paint It Black" peaked at number two on the '' Musikmarkt'' Hit-Parade; the (BVMI) certified the 2018 re-issue gold. The single was a top five hit in other European countries, peaking at number two in Austria, Ireland and Norway; number three in Belgium; and number four in Spain. After its 1990 reissue, "Paint It Black" charted at number 61. The single's 2007 reissue charted at number 49 on the Official German Charts and its 2012 re-issue charted number at 127 in France. "Paint It Black" debuted at number 48 on the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart for the week of 14 May 1966. The song took three weeks to rise to number one, where it stayed for two consecutive weeks, being replaced by
Frank Sinatra Francis Albert Sinatra (; December 12, 1915 – May 14, 1998) was an American singer and actor. Honorific nicknames in popular music, Nicknamed the "Chairman of the Board" and "Ol' Blue Eyes", he is regarded as one of the Time 100: The Most I ...
's " Strangers in the Night". Its stint at number one made it the band's third in the US and the first song to feature a sitar to peak at number one in the country. By June, it had sold more than a million copies. It rose to number one in a "violent shakeup" of the list where 10 of its 20 songs appeared for the first time. "Paint It Black" remained on the chart for 11 weeks. Further reissues of the single have not peaked on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100, but 2008 sales saw "Paint It Black" reach number 73 on the ''Billboard'' Hot Canadian Digital Song Sales. According to the pop historian Richard Havers, ''Aftermath''s 1966 chart run in the US, where it reached number 2 on the ''Billboard'' chart and number 1 on those published by ''Cash Box'' and ''Record World'', was assisted by the success of "Paint It Black". "Paint It Black" also topped singles charts in Canada and the Netherlands, and was ranked within the Top 10 highest performing singles of the year in Austria, despite not reaching number 1 on the weekly charts. In a KEYS national survey taken in June 1966, "Paint It Black" was number one in the United States. Surveys conducted by the
Associated Press The Associated Press (AP) is an American not-for-profit organization, not-for-profit news agency headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1846, it operates as a cooperative, unincorporated association, and produces news reports that are dist ...
and
United Press International United Press International (UPI) is an American international news agency whose newswires, photo, news film, and audio services provided news material to thousands of newspapers, magazines, radio and television stations for most of the 20th ce ...
identified the song as ranking No. 1 in the US the week of 12–19 June 1966. On the 1966 year-end charts, "Paint It Black" ranked number 34 on the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100 and number 30 on the ''Record Retailer'' chart. The 1990 reissue of "Paint It Black" topped the Netherlands Single Top 100 and peaked at number 11 in Belgium.


Live performances

The Rolling Stones performed "Paint It Black" during their tours of America and England in 1966, following its release, along with other songs from ''Aftermath'' such as "Under My Thumb" and "Lady Jane", One notable live performance of the song was as the opening song of the Stones' performance at the
Royal Albert Hall The Royal Albert Hall is a concert hall on the northern edge of South Kensington, London, England. It has a seating capacity of 5,272. Since the hall's opening by Queen Victoria in 1871, the world's leading artists from many performance genres ...
, a performance remembered for ending prematurely due to a riot, which led to rock bands being banned from performing at the venue. Footage of the riot would later be used in the promotional video for the Stones' next single, " Have You Seen Your Mother, Baby, Standing in the Shadow?". Despite its status as a hit single and as a staple of these shows, "Paint It Black" was not included on the Stones' live album documenting their tour of England, '' Got Live If You Want It!.'' "Paint It Black" has become a regular fixture of the Stones' concert setlists following its release, and has been performed during the Steel Wheels/Urban Jungle Tour (1991), Licks Tour (2002–2003), A Bigger Bang Tour (2005–2007), 50 & Counting (2012–2013), 14 On Fire (2014), América Latina Olé Tour 2016, No Filter Tour (2017–2021) and Sixty tour (2022).


Personnel

According to authors Andy Babiuk and Greg Prevost, except where noted: The Rolling Stones * Mick Jagger – lead and harmony vocals; writer * Keith Richards – harmony vocal; electric and acoustic guitars; writer * Brian Jones – sitar, acoustic guitar * Bill Wyman – bass,
Hammond organ The Hammond organ is an electric organ invented by Laurens Hammond and John M. Hanert, first manufactured in 1935. Multiple models have been produced, most of which use sliding #Drawbars, drawbars to vary sounds. Until 1975, sound was created ...
, maracas, cowbell *
Charlie Watts Charles Robert Watts (2 June 1941 – 24 August 2021) was an English musician who was the drummer of the Rolling Stones from 1963 until his death in 2021. Originally trained as a Graphic designer, graphic artist, Watts developed an interest i ...
 – drums, tambourine, castanets Additional musicians and production * Jack Nitzsche – piano * Dave Hassinger – sound engineer * Andrew Loog Oldham – producer In Philippe Margotin and Jean-Michel Guesdon's book ''The Rolling Stones All the Songs'', they add a question mark after Jones' guitar contribution and credit "tambourine, bongos, castanets" to "unidentified musicians". In the book ''Rolling Stones Gear'' by Babiuk and Prevost, they credit an acoustic guitar contribution to Jones, maracas and cowbell to Wyman and tambourine and castanets to Watts. Studio locations * Recorded at RCA Studios (
Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...
)


Charts


Weekly charts


Year-end charts


Certifications


Notable cover versions

* Eric Burdon and War released a cover of the song in 1970, which reached number 31 on the
Dutch Top 40 The Dutch Top 40 () is a weekly music chart compiled by ''Stichting Nederlandse Top 40''. It started as a radio program titled "Veronica Top 40", on the offshore radio, offshore station Radio Veronica in 1965. It remained "The Veronica Top 40" ...
singles chart. * Bahamian musician Exuma included a cover of the song on his 1973 album ''
Life Life, also known as biota, refers to matter that has biological processes, such as Cell signaling, signaling and self-sustaining processes. It is defined descriptively by the capacity for homeostasis, Structure#Biological, organisation, met ...
''. * English all-female
post-punk Post-punk (originally called new musick) is a broad genre of music that emerged in late 1977 in the wake of punk rock. Post-punk musicians departed from punk's fundamental elements and raw simplicity, instead adopting a broader, more experiment ...
band the Mo-dettes released their version in 1980 which just missed the UK top 40, peaking at No. 42. * American Hard Rock/Heavy Metal band W.A.S.P. recorded a cover of "Paint It Black" as the B-side to their 1984 7" single "School Daze". It was also included on the 1998 CD reissue of the bands first self titled album W.A.S.P. * Canadian speed metal band
Anvil An anvil is a metalworking tool consisting of a large block of metal (usually Forging, forged or Steel casting, cast steel), with a flattened top surface, upon which another object is struck (or "worked"). Anvils are massive because the hi ...
recorded a cover for their 1981 debut album '' Hard 'n' Heavy''. * Irish rock band U2 included a cover of "Paint It Black" as the B-side to their 1992 single " Who's Gonna Ride Your Wild Horses", and did so again with the 20th anniversary rerelease of their album '' Achtung Baby'' in 2011. * The London Symphony Orchestra performed a cover of the song in their 1994 "Symphonic Music of the Rolling Stones" performance. * American singer
Tracy Lawrence Tracy Lee Lawrence (born January 27, 1968) is an American country music singer, songwriter, and record producer. Born in Atlanta, Texas, and raised in Foreman, Arkansas, Lawrence began performing at age 15 and moved to Nashville, Tennessee in 19 ...
covered "Paint It Black" for the compilation album '' Stone Country: Country Artists Perform the Songs of the Rolling Stones'' in 1997. * American singer-songwriter Vanessa Carlton included a cover of the song on her 2002 debut album '' Be Not Nobody'', which was certified platinum by the
Recording Industry Association of America The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a trade organization that represents the music recording industry in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and/o ...
. * Canadian rock band Rush played one minute and ten seconds of the song during their 2003 performance at Molson Canadian Rocks for Toronto. * American singer-songwriter Ciara recorded a cover version for the 2015 film '' The Last Witch Hunter''. * In 1967 Marie Laforêt recorded a French version titled ''Marie Douceur - Marie Colère'', which was itself later covered by Tyler Bates and Manon Hollander in the 2023 film '' John Wick: Chapter 4''. * English band
Duran Duran Duran Duran () are an English pop rock band formed in Birmingham in 1978 by singer Stephen Duffy, keyboardist Nick Rhodes and guitarist/bassist John Taylor (bass guitarist), John Taylor. After several early changes, the band's line-up settled ...
recorded a cover for their 2023 album ''
Danse Macabre The ''Danse Macabre'' (; ), also called the Dance of Death, is an artistic genre of allegory from the Late Middle Ages on the universality of death. The ''Danse Macabre'' consists of the dead, or a personification of death, summoning represen ...
''. * Irish rockers U2 have incorporated it into their performance of Until The End Of The World at their
Las Vegas Las Vegas, colloquially referred to as Vegas, is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and the county seat of Clark County. The Las Vegas Valley metropolitan area is the largest within the greater Mojave Desert, and second-l ...
residency at The Sphere. * Canadian rock band Sum 41 recorded a cover for their eighth and final album '' Heaven :x: Hell'', released in 2024. The cover seems to be inspired by guitarist Tom Thacker's other band Gob's version. * Canadian punk rock band Gob recorded a cover for their album '' How Far Shallow Takes You'', released in 1998. The song was on the US album release. * Czech singer Karel Gott made a German cover of the song named "Rot und Schwarz" for his 1969 album "In mir klingt ein Lied".


Notable usage in media

"Paint It Black" has seen commercial use in film, video games and other entertainment media. * In the end credits of the film '' Full Metal Jacket'' (1987) * In the end credits of the film '' The Devil's Advocate'' (1997), * It was used as a plot device in the supernatural horror film '' Stir of Echoes'' (1999) * It was featured in '' Black Adam'' (2022), during a slow motion fight sequence. * In 1987 it was used as opening theme for the broadcast version of the CBS television show, ''Tour of Duty''. * In a trailer for the video game '' Call of Duty: Black Ops III'' (2015) * In a trailer for the film '' The Mummy'' (2017). * Multiple episodes of the TV series '' Westworld'' use an orchestral arrangement of the song by
Ramin Djawadi Ramin Djawadi (born 19 July 1974) is an Iranian-German film score composer, conductor, and record producer. He is known for his scores for the HBO series ''Game of Thrones'', for which he was nominated for Grammy Awards in 2018 and 2020. He is al ...
. * A
cello The violoncello ( , ), commonly abbreviated as cello ( ), is a middle pitched bowed (sometimes pizzicato, plucked and occasionally col legno, hit) string instrument of the violin family. Its four strings are usually intonation (music), tuned i ...
arrangement of the song is featured prominently in the
Netflix Netflix is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service. The service primarily distributes original and acquired films and television shows from various genres, and it is available internationally in multiple lang ...
original series ''Wednesday'' (2022). * The song features on the soundtracks to multiple
video game A video game or computer game is an electronic game that involves interaction with a user interface or input device (such as a joystick, game controller, controller, computer keyboard, keyboard, or motion sensing device) to generate visual fe ...
s, including: ** '' Twisted Metal: Black'' (2001), ** '' Conflict: Vietnam'' (2004), ** '' Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock'' (2007) ** '' Guitar Hero Live'' (2015)


Notes


References


Bibliography

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * {{Authority control 1966 songs 1966 singles 1968 singles 1971 singles 1990 singles The Rolling Stones songs Decca Records singles Liberty Records singles London Records singles Immediate Records singles The Animals songs War (band) songs W.A.S.P. songs Billboard Hot 100 number-one singles Cashbox number-one singles Dutch Top 40 number-one singles RPM Top Singles number-one singles UK singles chart number-one singles Grammy Hall of Fame Award recipients Songs written by Jagger–Richards Song recordings produced by Andrew Loog Oldham British psychedelic rock songs Songs about death Songs about depression Song recordings produced by Jerry Goldstein (producer) Raga rock songs Versa (band) songs The Last Witch Hunter Chris Farlowe songs Songs of the Vietnam War