Records and cut their first
single. With a Chuck Berrypenned A side (“Come On”)
and a Willie Dixon cover on
the flip (“I Want to Be
Loved”), this 45 set forth the
rock/blues dichotomy whose
eventual melding in the
Jagger/Richards songwriting
team would come to define
the Stones’ sound and
sensibility. Their second
single, “I Wanna Be Your
Man,” was provided to them
by the Lennon/McCartney
songwriting tandem, proving
from the outset that there no
hostilities existed between
the Beatles and the Stones.
However, a spirit of friendly
competition would serve each
band well throughout the
Sixties. The first half of 1964
saw the Rolling Stones
headline their first British
tour (with the Ronettes) and
release the single “Not Fade
Away” (a powerfully
retooled Buddy Holly cover)
and their eponymous first
album, retitled England’s
Newest Hitmakers/The
Rolling Stones for U.S.
release.
The Rolling Stones’
commercial breakthrough
came in mid-1964 with their
swinging, country-blues
rendition of the Valentinos'
“It’s All Over Now” (written
by Bobby Womack and
Shirley Womack) which went
to Number One on the British
chart and just missed the U.S.
Top 40. But it was in 1965
that the Stones discovered
their own voice with the
singles “The Last Time” and
“(I Can’t Get No)
Satisfaction.” The last of
these, built around a
compelling fuzztone guitar
riff from Richards, is more
than a standard; quite
possibly it is the all-time
greatest rock and roll song. It
also captured the Stones’
surly, impolite attitude,
which would bring them into
disfavor with rock-hating
elements in the