the rolling stones beggars banquet sessions 1968unreleased

ROLLING STONES UNRELEASED: ‘DID EVERYBODY PAY THEIR DUES?’ (1968)

Rolling Stones unreleased: Did Everybody Pay Their Dues?
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*Early version of ‘Street Fighting Man’
Also known as: ‘PRIMO GRANDE’, ‘PAY YOUR DUES’
Written by: Jagger/Richard
Recorded: Rolling Stones Mobile, Redlands, Sussex and Olympic Sound Studios, London, England, March 17-31 1968
Guest musicians: Nicky Hopkins, Dave Mason, Ric Grech, Jim King, Roger Chapman

From Martin Elliott’s book THE ROLLING STONES COMPLETE RECORDING SESSIONS 1962-2012:
Keith Richard’s new house in the country, Redlands, was used as a base for rehearsing songs and laying ideas onto cassette in February 1968. The tapes were then played to Jimmy Miller for suggestions and eventually the would set about transferring the track from cassette to four track in the studio. Primo Grande was the first working title for Did Everybody Pay Their Dues?, until it eventually turned into Street Fighting Man. Did Everybody Pay Their Dues? has a different set of lyrics which sound quite stilted and cumbersome compared with the well-known official release.

Some of the backing track was carried through to Street Fighting Man such as Nicky Hopkins’ piano, Keith Richard’s acoustic and Charlie Watt’s percussion. There is an up front lead guitar which blisters through the track. Other instruments include Brian Jones on sitar, Dave Mason on shenani and Ric Grech on violin. Backing vocals were performed by Jim King and Roger Chapman. They were all members of the group Family who were in the same studios recording their debut album Music In A Doll’s House. This was produced by Jimmy Miller and engineered by Eddie Kramer and George Chkiantz.

From the The Rolling Stones – All the Songs book:
Street Fighting Man was originally called “Did Everyone Pay Their Dues?” and was about with the brutality of adults. Jagger and Richards then wrote new words that became “Street Fighting Man” after the London demonstration and the riots in the Latin Quarter in Paris. The lines What can a poor boy do/Except to sing for a rock ’n’ roll band are by Keith and Mick and the verses are by Mick.

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