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Rolling Stones songs: Downtown Suzie
*Click for MORE ROLLING STONES SONGS 1962-PRESENT

Oh Lucy looked sweet just a-strollin’ down Newport Street/ Talkin’ ’bout Lu, what ya gonna do…

Also known as: Sweet Lucy
Written by: Wyman
Recorded: Olympic Sound Studios, London, England, May 13-18 1968

From Martin Elliott’s book THE ROLLING STONES COMPLETE RECORDING SESSIONS 1962-2012:
The good fortune of having his composition included on the SATANIC MAJESTIES album made Bill Wyman determined to write further songs. He knew the musical quality had to be maintained and he admitted that Downtown Suzie did not warrant inclusion on BEGGARS BANQUET. How did Lucy in the lyrics become Suzie in the song title? Brian Jones did not respond quite so objectively to the Jagger/Richard dominance. Keith Richards indicates that Brian never actually produced a finished product and, therefore, this part of his insecurity was mostly self-inflicted. The music on Suzie is good-time boogie with a portion of acoustic blues.

From the Rolling Stones – All the Songs, The Story Behind Every Track book:
“Downtown Suzie” is the second Stones number credited to Bill Wyman (“In Another Land” on Their Satanic Majesties Request being the first). The lyrics are reasonably entertaining. The unfortunate narrator has a raging hangover and is lying on his bed with an Alka Seltzer head. Things do not improve during the next few hours, even when Suzie enters the hotel room. The voluptuous soubrette is not one to show compassion and kicked him in the hole (or possibly hall!)… Presumably the words to “Downtown Suzie” were committed to paper as the musicians in the studio for this Let It Bleed session were playing. In any case, they clearly had a lot of fun, starting with Ry Cooder, who is always brilliant on slide.