A collection of The Rolling Stones’ favourite reggae songs
When flicking through the Rolodex of The Rolling Stones influences, there is barely an alphabetised card that doesn’t feature one entry or another. The band may have charmed their way onto stages and airwaves with a brand blues-focused garage rock, but the world-dominating sound would soon lean on disco, soul and, of course, reggae as they cemented their unique brand.
Since the 1960s, the group has been infatuated with the sounds of world music. However, perhaps the Caribbean rhythms have most easily woven their way into the band’s lifeblood. Speaking to Rolling Stone, lead singer Mick Jagger opened up about the tropical inspirations that the group lent so heavily on: “I first heard Jamaican music in the 1960s, and it wasn’t called reggae then, but ‘blue beat.’ There were lots of Jamaicans in London, of course, and you’d hear blue beat, which eventually morphed into ska, and you’d hear calypso and other Caribbean music.”
Reggae would become not only an influence on the band but a comfort for its members. Jagger and his writing partner, Keith Richards, would often celebrate the genre and list the songs of the islands among their favourites. “What I love about reggae,” Richards told the Under the Influence documentary, “is that it’s all so natural, there’s none of this forced stuff that I was getting tired of in rock music.” He then goes on to clarify, “Rock & Roll I never get tired of, but ‘rock’ is a white man’s version, and they turn it into a march, that’s [the modern] version of rock. Excuse me, I prefer the roll.”
It might seem obvious, considering Richards’ home in Jamaica, that the guitarist was affected by the sounds, but there is something intrinsic to his connection to both reggae and its artists, most notably Gregory Isaacs, whom he once declared the writer of his most treasured song. He declared his love of Isaacs when speaking to BBC Radio 4’s Desert Island Discs, saying, “I’ve always thought that Gregory was one of the best songwriters that came out of that island and a sweet singer.” His love for ‘Extra Classic’ even stretches a step further as he states: ‘Extra Classic’ was a song where I met my old lady, so I thought I’d carry that through.”
However, Richards’ adoration of the sounds of the genre doesn’t fall only on Isaacs. During a 2010 interview with Rolling Stone, he also noted his appreciation for Little Walter, Big Bill Broonzy and even once described The Itals 1998 track ‘In a Dis Ya Time’ as “the perfect Reggae song.” Richards isn’t the only Stones member to love reggae.
Mick Jagger has also shared his appreciation for some of the classics, most notably Bob Marley, Tenor Saw, Ronnie Davis and, of course, the Stones’ frequent collaborator Peter Tosh. However, it wasn’t Tosh whom he believed to have established the foundation of modern reggae, that accolade was bestowed to Max Romeo and the Upsetters with their tune ‘War Ina Babylon’, which Jagger noted as the track that “established what you might call the tenet of reggae. Lee ‘Scratch’ Perry produced it – it’s essential reggae.”
Ronnie Wood was also a fan of reggae, and when speaking to Pattie Boyd on his TV show, where she suggested Bob Marley was every musician’s favourite artist, noted: “Bob broke through and made it [reggae] rellay popular worldwide.” But when working with Toots Hibbert, the late leader of Toots and the Maytals, he went one further and covered the classic ’54-46 Was My Number’ with the singer.
We’ve gathered a range of songs mentioned by members of The Rolling Stones in various interviews and TV shows across the years to create one perfect list of reggae essentials and a playlist to go with it.
The Rolling Stones’ favourite reggae songs:
- ’54-46 Was My Number’ – Toots Hibbert
- ‘Stagolee’ – Jesse Fuller
- ‘When Did You Leave Heaven’ – Big Bill Broonzy
- ‘It Hurts Me Too’ – Elmore James
- ‘Extra Classic’ – Gregory Isaacs
- ‘Key to the Highway’ – Little Walter
- ‘Piece of My Heart’ – Erma Franklin
- ‘In a Dis Ya Time’ – The Itals
- ‘Innocent People Cry’ – Gregory Isaacs
- ‘Memphis, Tennessee’ – Chuck Berry
- ‘32-20’ – Robert Johnson
- ‘Get Up, Stand Up / No More Trouble / War’ – Bob Marley
- ‘Pick Myself Up’ – Peter Tosh
- ‘You Don’t Love Me’ – Dawn Penn
- ‘Cream Of The Crop’ – Gregory Isaacs
- ‘War Ina Babylon’ – Max Romeo And The Upsetters
- ‘Brethern And Sisters’ – The Viceroys
- ‘Writing On The Wall’ – Ronnie Davis
- ‘Ring The Alarm’ – Tenor Saw
- ‘Marcus Garvey’ – Burning Spear
