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: Little By Little

And little by little I’m losin’ my love for you/ Yeah, little by little I’ve found out you was untrue…

Written by: Jagger/Richard
Recorded: Regent Sounds and IBC Studios, London, England, Feb. 4 1964
Guest musicians: Gene Pitney (piano), Phil Spector (maracas)
*Data taken from Martin Elliott’s book THE ROLLING STONES COMPLETE RECORDING SESSIONS 1962-2012

*Click for MORE ROLLING STONES SONGS 1962-PRESENT

More about Little By Little by The Rolling Stones

Cognac, Chaos, and a Blues-Soaked Studio Jam

Before Little by Little ever hit a turntable, it was born in a haze of tension, booze, and brilliance. According to Gene Pitney, the Rolling Stones were at odds during the recording session—moody, stubborn, and stuck. Producer Andrew Loog Oldham had his hands full wrangling the band in a cramped Denmark Street studio. The breakthrough came courtesy of a bottle of cognac and an unorthodox family “tradition” Pitney introduced: every birthday, one glass each until the bottle was dry. The spirits sparked a wild, raw session where Pitney hammered out piano lines and Phil Spector kept rhythm with a half dollar on an empty cognac bottle. That night Little by Little—the B-side to Not Fade Away—was captured in all its gritty, blues-infused glory.

Borrowed Rhythms and Shared Credit

Though its lyrics explore slow heartbreak and betrayal, the musical DNA of Little by Little leans heavily on American blues roots—namely Junior Wells, Earl Hooker, and Jimmy Reed. The Stones lifted the title from Wells’ 1959 track and borrowed the easy, rolling groove of Reed’s Shame, Shame, Shame without officially acknowledging the inspiration. Still, the track stood apart lyrically, detailing a love story crumbling piece by piece after infidelity comes to light.

Songwriting credit went to “Nanker Phelge,” the Stones’ catch-all pseudonym for group compositions, combined with Phil Spector. The quirky “Nanker” nickname came from Brian Jones’ infamous grimace, while “Phelge” honored Jimmy Phelge, one-time flatmate of Jagger, Richards, and Jones. The name symbolized collaboration—and in the case of Little by Little, it captured a chaotic, booze-fueled moment where something real and bluesy emerged from the fog.

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!

COPYRIGHT © ROLLING STONES DATA
ALL INFORMATION ON THIS WEBSITE IS COPYRIGHT OF ROLLING STONES DATA. ALL CONTENT BY MARCELO SONAGLIONI.
ALL SETLISTS AND TICKET STUBS TAKEN FROM THE COMPLETE WORKS OF THE ROLLING STONES. 
WHEN USING INFORMATION FROM ROLLING STONES DATA (ONLINE OR PRINTED) PLEASE REFER TO ITS SOURCE DETAILING THE WEBSITE NAME. THANK YOU.