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Rolling Stones unreleased: Broken Head Blues
BROKEN HEAD BLUES: THE STONES RAW & UNRELEASED Back in fall ’77, the Rolling Stones were jamming away in France, crafting what would become Some Girls. Out of those sessions came Broken Head Blues, a gritty, no-frills track that never saw an official release. Packed with stripped-down blues grooves and raw energy, it’s the kind of jam that makes you feel like you’re right there in the studio with them. Rough, loose, and totally infectious—this is the Stones at their unpolished, badass best.
*Early version of Black Limousine, also known as You Don’t Have to Go Written by: Jagger/Richard Recorded: EMI Pathé-Marconi Studios, Boulogne-Billancourt, France, Oct. 10-Dec. 26 1977 (Some Girls sessions)
From Martin Elliott’s book THE ROLLING STONES COMPLETE RECORDING SESSIONS 1962-2012: Black Limousine is actually a Jagger/Richard song created in 1973 and was offered to Ronnie Wood in exchange for his songwriting work on It’s Only Rock’n Roll (But I Like It) Ronnie worked on it and it was later recorded in 1978. Broken Head Blues (a bootlegger’s title) is an instrumental track with the same type of Muddy Waters/Jimmy Reed boogie approach but less harmonica.
In the fall of 1977, tucked away in the EMI Pathé-Marconi Studios in France, the Rolling Stones were busy shaping what would become Some Girls. Among the takes, jams, and experiments from those sessions emerged a raw, gritty track that fans only later came to know through bootlegs as Broken Head Blues. Though never officially released, the recording embodies the Stones’ fascination with stripped-down blues grooves.
Driven by a Muddy Waters and Jimmy Reed–style boogie, the piece stands out for its muscular rhythm and absence of harmonica, relying instead on guitar grit and swagger to carry the mood. There are no lyrics to tell a story—just the band locked in a swampy, hypnotic flow, a glimpse of their love for the roots of American blues. While it might have been shelved at the time, the track has lived on as a cult favorite for die-hard Stones collectors.
Fram Trade-Off to Corporation
The origins of Broken Head Bluestie back to another Stones number—Black Limousine. First conceived by Jagger and Richards in 1973, the song was later handed to Ronnie Wood as part of a creative trade for his input on It’s Only Rock ’n Roll (But I Like It). Wood developed the idea further, and the band eventually recorded it in 1978, polishing it into the rough-edged rocker we know today. Yet, Broken Head Blues feels like a sibling that never fully left the basement: loose, unrefined, and bursting with the raw spirit of experimentation. It shows the Stones at a moment when they were channeling old blues heroes, mixing improvisation with instinct. In the end, the song may have been sidelined, but it remains a fascinating window into the band’s creative process during one of their most restless and inspired eras.
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