You Can’t Always Get What You Want – A Personal Take

This iconic song was written by Mick Jagger and Keith Richards, released on the Rolling Stones’ 1969 album – “Let It Bleed”.

It was also one of the first songs I knew by the band.

The song describes the very familiar yet very frustrating moment when you don’t get that thing you dreamed of.

In the song, the subject of desire was a woman –

“I saw her today at the reception
A glass of wine in her hand
I knew she would meet her connection
At her feet was her footloose man”

by Jagger’s words –

“‘You Can’t Always Get What You Want’ was something I just played on the acoustic guitar—one of those bedroom songs.”

The bedroom setting, mixed with the 60’s freedom and love lays the perfect foundations for the enlightenment –

“You can’t always get what you want
But if you try sometimes you just might find
You get what you need“

In the last verse, Jagger and Richards describe the first scene once again. This time, they understood they got what they need as the woman they desired was deadly –

“I saw her today at the reception
In her glass was a bleeding man
She was practiced at the art of deception
Well, I could tell by her blood-stained hands”

The melody also tells a story.

The first verse is quite and rather calm, slowly rising to the conclusion presented at the chorus.

As the song goes on, the verses maintain this calm rhythm, each one added with a little bit more beat until the song reaches its climax at the end, when the chorus is repeated twice, loudly and confidently escorted by very up-beat tones.

In my opinion the quite verses represent the feeling confusing and disappointment when you just realize you will not get what you asked for, followed by the happiness and excitement of realizing it is ok – because you’ll get what you need.

let’s enjoy the song now.

first version – out of the album.

second version – recorded before a live audience in London