“Boing bang crash”: The Rolling Stones classic that almost passed Keith Richards by
He might not be as profound as Bob Dylan or as poetic as Leonard Cohen, but whichever way you spin it, Keith Richards is responsible for writing some of the most iconic rock and roll tracks of the 20th century. Alongside his songwriting partner, Mick Jagger, Richards penned some truly timeless riffs that have been forever committed to the rock and roll handbook. Seemingly, though, Richards never suffered from overthinking his compositions, instead just conjuring them up on the spot.
Every great songwriter throughout musical history has had their own unique methods and secrets when it comes to the world of composition. While some musicians choose to shut themselves away for months on end, focusing entirely and all-encompassingly on their work, others can draw inspiration from the most banal situations. In the case of Keith Richards, the archetypal rocker has had enough unique experiences and encounters during his time to write a plethora of incredible tracks, and, indeed, he has done.
Particularly during their early period, The Rolling Stones drew from the blues tradition of musical storytelling, whereas other groups at the time favoured short, sharp, often nonsensical rock and pop lyrics. Even when the songwriting partnership of Jagger and Richards forcibly took the reigns of the group from the blues devotee Brian Jones, this storytelling quality never completely fell out of The Stones’ discography.
As the group progressed, becoming more deeply entrenched in the rock and roll lifestyle that the group had come to define, their songwriting style adapted somewhat. As Richards himself shared, “Things like ‘Hand of Fate’ particularly, we got into a story. Others are just connections, almost stream-of-consciousness. One line doesn’t really connect to what’s gone before.”
Analysing the songwriting process in general, Richards continued, “People say they write songs, but in a way, you’re more the medium. I feel like all the songs in the world are just floating around; it’s just a matter of an antenna of whatever you pick up. So many uncanny things have happened,” adding, “A whole song just appears from nowhere in five minutes, the whole structure, and you haven’t worked at all.”
“You’re playing, and you’re bored stiff, and nothing’s happening,” Richards said, “oh dear, and you go out and ’ave a joint or something and euhuh! There it is. It’s just like somebody tuned in the radio. and you’ve picked it up. Some people equate good work with being difficult to do, but a lot of the time. it’s the easiest thing. It just sort of flashes by you so quick that people virtually tell you. You didn’t even see it yourself”.
Of course, not many artists have the gift of being able to pull incredibly successful rock songs out of the ether, let alone tracks as iconic as The Stones’ ‘(I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction’. “‘Satisfaction’ was the biggest hit we’ve ever had,” he shared, “and it just came boing bang crash, and it was on tape before I felt it.” Not bad for a number one single that went on to define the sound of The Stones.
