Bitch (The Rolling Stones song)



"Bitch" is a song by the English rock band the Rolling Stones from their 1971 album Sticky Fingers, first released one week before the album as the B-side to its advance single, "Brown Sugar". Despite not being used as an official single by itself, the tune has garnered major airplay from classic rock radio stations.

Written by Mick Jagger and Keith Richards, "Bitch" was recorded in October 1970 at London's Olympic Studios, and at Stargroves utilising the Rolling Stones Mobile studio.

Composition
Bitch was conceived during the Sticky Fingers sessions in October 1970. Richards was late that day, but when he arrived he transformed a loose jam into the trademark riff found on the released take. Andy Johns claims: "When we were doing Bitch, Keith was very late. Jagger and Mick Taylor had been playing the song without him and it didn't sound very good. I walked out of the kitchen and he was sitting on the floor with no shoes, eating a bowl of cereal. Suddenly he said, Oi, Andy! Give me that guitar. I handed him his clear Dan Armstrong Plexiglass guitar, he put it on, kicked the song up in tempo, and just put the vibe right on it. Instantly, it went from being this laconic mess into a real groove. And I thought, Wow. THAT'S what he does."

The song is also notable for its heavy brass section that punctuates the guitar riff after the choruses. Mick Jagger said: "The brass for me is great, especially on like Bitch. I mean as long as it's used sort of tastefully. I'm not saying I'd like to work with a band with sort of five or six brass. But I wouldn't mind a band with sort of 5 saxophones"

Personnel

 * Mick Jagger – lead vocals
 * Keith Richards – lead guitar, backing vocals
 * Mick Taylor – rhythm guitar
 * Bill Wyman – bass guitar
 * Charlie Watts – drums
 * Bobby Keys – saxophone
 * Jim Price – trumpet
 * Jimmy Miller – percussion

Other releases

 * Made in the Shade (1975)
 * Time Waits for No One: Anthology 1971–1977 (1979)
 * Jump Back: The Best of The Rolling Stones (1993)
 * Singles 1971–2006 (2011)
 * GRRR! (2012)