Rolling Stones – Let It Bleed

"This Record Should Be Played Loud"

Vocalist Merry Clayton delivers hope in "Gimme Shelter" — December 5, 1969 — through a dark gospel plea wrapped with armageddon, her voice a thunder crack at 3:01, shaking the empty pews. Listen carefully to hear Mick Jagger's praise at 3:02, just one decisive second on an album released 54 years ago this month. The album is one of the Stone's most significant works, with "Gimme" quickly evolving into the greatest cross-generational rock anthem ever recorded.

The introduction of "Gimme Shelter" is a dark, cold opening that leaves hope for love.

I tell you love, sister

It's just a kiss away

The closing, "You Can't Always Get What You Want," commands the obvious, tucked neatly behind a thinly veiled debate between desire and need. The London Bach Choir adds to the angelic gravitas of a British band singing of the world as it was, the lies laid bare by the declining promise of the 1960s but also the promise of hope in the future.

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