Like what you see? Help keep it going! This site runs on the support of readers like you. Your donation helps cover costs and keeps fresh Rolling Stones content coming your way every day. Thank you!
Rolling Stones songs: Emotional Rescue
Yeah, the other night, crying/ Crying baby, yeah I’m crying…
Written by: Jagger/Richards Recorded: EMI Pathé Marconi Studios, Boulogne-Billancourt, France, June 10-Oct. 19 1979; Electric Lady Studios, NYC, USA, Nov-Dec. 1979 *Data taken from Martin Elliott’s book THE ROLLING STONES COMPLETE RECORDING SESSIONS 1962-2012
Mick Jagger: vocals, electric piano, guitar Keith Richards: rhythm and lead guitar Bill Wyman: synthesizer Ron Wood: bass Charlie Watts: drums Guest musicians: Bobby Keys (saxophone), Michael Shrieve (percussion)
Before Emotional Rescue became a lightning rod among fans, Mick Jagger had already shaped it into something daring, strange, and undeniably modern. Written on an electric piano and built spontaneously in the studio, the song marked a bold step away from the Stones’ guitar-driven signature. Jagger’s falsetto — airy, playful, and theatrical — instantly separated the track from anything he had sung before, calling to mind Marvin Gaye, the Bee Gees, and even Prince. Its narrative of a man vowing to save a troubled lover wrapped itself inside a slick, disco-infused groove powered by Ron Wood’s bass and Charlie Watts’ impeccable pulse. Though the vibe felt miles away from the band’s bluesy foundation, the groove carried enough soul to tie it back to the Stones’ R&B roots. Released in June 1980, it still climbed high in the charts, proving that experimentation didn’t scare off audiences as much as purists believed.
Studio Alchemy
Although Jagger first laid down the bones of Emotional Rescue quickly — writing it on an electric piano and cutting an initial version with Watts and Wood — the track evolved through layers of sonic experimentation. Engineers like Chris Kimsey helped shape its unmistakably “dance” character, using delay, phasing, and reverb on the hi-hat to create the shimmering, airy texture that defines its beat. Wood handled the bass with surprising fluency, delivering lines that were funky, fluid, and central to the groove. Bill Wyman, displaced from his usual role, contributed a staccato synthesizer part that added an unusual color for a Stones record. The interplay of multiple electric pianos — one by Nicky Hopkins, one by Jagger, and yet another in the refrains — gradually stacked into a thick, pulsing foundation. Behind all this, layers of percussion by Michael Shrieve enriched the rhythm: bongos, shakers, tambourine, and more subtle accents that nudged the track closer to the dance floor than the dive bar.
The Falsetto Gamble
The most startling element of Emotional Rescue, however, remained Jagger’s falsetto. Even Bobby Keys, who played the song’s smooth saxophone lines, admitted he was shocked when hearing the “Minnie Mouse vocals” for the first time. Jagger later revealed influences from Don Covay — particularly Mercy Mercy, which the Stones had covered in 1965 — and defended his vocal leap by referencing Prince’s mastery of high-register singing. Yet the falsetto divided listeners more than any other feature. Some longtime Stones fans viewed the song as a full-on surrender to disco, far removed from the grit of Exile on Main St. or the swagger of Sticky Fingers. They had tolerated Miss You, but Emotional Rescue pushed them over the edge. Still, the track carried enough Booker T. & the MG’s-style tightness to avoid descending into pure Euro-disco gloss. Even critics who disliked the spoken-word outro — a lazy, drawling declaration of possessiveness — admitted the groove itself was irresistible.
Tension Behind the Scenes
What listeners didn’t see at the time was the creative tension simmering between Jagger and Richards during the Emotional Rescue sessions. As Keith gradually sobered up, he pushed to reclaim roles and decision-making power that Jagger had largely controlled through the 1970s. The result was a strained dynamic: the two were rarely in the studio together, trading shifts instead of collaborating as they once had. Jagger built the foundation of the track with Wood and Watts, while Richards later overdubbed rhythm and a brief lead guitar part — and little more. Although Jagger insisted the song was partially about a girl “just a little bit screwed up” whom the narrator longs to save, Richards seemed unconvinced by the whole direction. He found the track less guitar-centric than he preferred and remained lukewarm toward its disco leanings, which partly explains why the Stones never performed it live until 2013, during their 50 and Counting tour in Los Angeles.
Images, Afterlives and Legacy
To promote the single, the band shot two music videos: one in conventional style under director David Mallet, and another using thermographic imagery similar to the album cover. The latter was cutting-edge for 1980 but nearly unwatchable beyond a few seconds, while the former offered a more straightforward, colorful performance clip. Behind the scenes, the song’s production stretched across months of on-and-off studio work, with Jagger’s vocals and Bobby Keys’ sax parts added almost a year after the rhythm track. Despite — or perhaps because of — its unusual approach, Emotional Rescue became a major hit, reaching the Top 10 in both the US and UK. Yet it didn’t enjoy the long-term staying power of a Stones classic; its follow-up single She’s So Cold, much more traditional in style, ultimately defined the era more clearly. Still, Emotional Rescue stands today as a brave departure, a moment when the Stones dared to chase a groove rather than cling to a legacy.
Like what you see? Help keep it going! This site runs on the support of readers like you. Your donation helps cover costs and keeps fresh Rolling Stones content coming your way every day. Thank you!
