The Rolling Stones cover more Rolling Stones than the original
There aren’t many groups more iconic than The Rolling Stones, and one of their biggest strengths as a group was their ability to make their music instantly recognisable to listeners. Whether it’s the attitude of Mick Jagger’s vocals or a simple yet effective guitar line from Keith Richards, the band have always appeared to have a formula for writing timeless rock songs, and while formulaic writing can often be frowned upon, you can hardly complain when said formula delivers time and time again.
Their instantly recognisable style was of course part of the band’s charm, and a large amount of their success is down to them having carved a striking identity for themselves. It wasn’t just in the music that this distinctiveness shone through either, as their stage presence and live performances were also carefully crafted in such a way that they would etch themselves into the consciousness of observers around the world, and carve themselves a fanbase in doing so.
However, with all successful acts come imitators, and while many might have thought they had it in them to be able to emulate the sound, style and success of The Rolling Stones, very few were actually able to replicate it in a way that felt authentic. There’s taking inspiration from an established act, and then there’s creating a carbon copy that drains every bit of personality from the originators, and unfortunately for the Stones, they were of a level where so many sub-standard impersonators were constantly trying to steal their crown.
Surely, given all of this, it’s almost impossible to outplay The Rolling Stones at their own game. They were undeniably masters of their craft, and they offered the edgier side to the British Invasion that The Beatles opted not to show through their music. There was absolutely no way that anyone would be able to surpass them.
However, one way of catching the attention of a band and doing justice to their music and style is to perform a cover version, and while this can sometimes lead to even more catastrophic acts of attempted one-upmanship, when an artist is able to nail a cover version while adding their own unique charm to it, it’s far more of a compliment to the original performers than simply copying what they did with zero effort applied.
One song by the Rolling Stones that often gets covered is ‘(I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction’, and while some have really gone the extra mile to change the song so dramatically to the point of it almost being a different song altogether, with Devo being a prime example, others have taken the route of dialling up the frenzied delivery.
Otis Redding was known for being able to outperform most of his peers, and the Rolling Stones certainly weren’t out of his sights. Despite being a soul singer trying to cover a rock tune, the bombast that Redding delivers on his rendition of ‘Satisfaction’ is far greater than that of Jagger’s, to the point that he feels like the imitator. It’s also been said that the inclusion of horns that belt out the signature riff that Richards plays on the original version is something that the band initially wanted to include in the track, and Redding’s decision to reinsert them adds another layer to the track that is missing from the Stones’ hit.
It’s no secret that Jagger and Richards were massively influenced by soul music, and it’s moments like this that help the listener understand the link between this style of music and what they were personally aiming to achieve in their earliest years. That being said, Otis Redding did manage to successfully outdo the Rolling Stones on their own work, and that’s an achievement that not many can claim to have done.
