The Rolling Stones song Carlos Santana hates: “I never identify with the lyric”
Rock and roll has long since been referred to as ‘the devil’s music’ by a variety of religious fundamentalists and worried authority figures. Even rock stars have often found themselves worried about the effects their music might have on religion, with figures like Jerry Lee Lewis even stepping back from the music industry to repent for their sins. So, when The Rolling Stones released their defining anthem, ‘Sympathy for the Devil’, in 1968, they certainly ruffled a few feathers.
From their foundations in the blues rock scene of early 1960s London, The Rolling Stones had always been the archetypal rock rebels. At points, the band seemed to be out to deliberately shock audiences, and they did so with stunning results. By its very nature, rock challenged the status quo of society and the establishment, so much of the older generation were understandably sceptical about the effects of such a rebellious rock band dominating popular youth culture.
Seemingly, though, The Rolling Stones’ critics were not just limited to the stuffy older generation. Even their fellow rock and rollers sometimes thought the Mick Jagger-fronted outfit went a little too far. As the 1960s progressed, the band’s material grew more and more daring, channelling the spirit of the counterculture age. This heightened rebellion eventually resulted in the writing of ‘Sympathy for the Devil’, which would quickly become one of the band’s most profound and divisive efforts.
Referencing Satan himself is relatively commonplace within modern music, with everybody from pop star Lil Nas X to Swedish black metal outfit Dark Funeral regularly drawing upon the influences of the man downstairs. Back in the 1960s, though, the general populations of both the UK and the USA were generally much more pious in their beliefs, and references to the devil only served to confirm their suspicions about the dangers of rock and roll music.
Not all of the criticism for ‘Sympathy for the Devil’ came from anxious Bible bashers, however. Rock icon and guitar hero Carlos Santana harboured a particular dislike for the track, once revealing to the NME, “I don’t have no sympathy for the devil. I like the beat of the song but I never identify with the lyric. Jagger and Richards don’t really know the full extent of what they’re talking about. If they knew what they were getting into when they sing that song they would not be doing it.”
“The devil is not Santa Claus. He’s for real,” Santana added. The guitarist was on the bill alongside the Stones during the disastrous Altamont Free Concert in 1969. Storied by extreme violence and multiple fatalities, the event is among the most infamous concert disasters in the history of modern music. Santana affirms that he felt a “demonic presence” on the day of the festival, refusing to allow the Stones to use any footage of his band in the documentary film Gimme Shelter.
Of course, the tragic events of Altamont were the result of myriad factors, including the hiring of Hell’s Angels as security forces. The fact that the Stones had written a song called ‘Sympathy for the Devil’ probably did not enter into proceedings. Nevertheless, Santana has always kept a healthy distance from that song.
