Paul Cavalconte's Cavalcade For May 16
The hits of the summer usually settle in by that spring. Jared & The Mill's "Hold On." Circa Waves' "T- Shirt Weather." SOAK's "Sea Creatures." My money's on them. All worthy of more spins, as the days trend longer and warmer. Expect them tonight on Paul Cavalconte's Cavalcade at 8, along with quality time spent on a huge music anniversary.
Fifty years ago, a nascent summer hit that would prove to be a perennial was recorded. "(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction" began life as a riff that Keith Richards awoke with during a hotel stay in Florida. Amazingly, the Rolling Stones' stay at the Fort Harrison Hotel in Clearwater on May 6, 1965 is documented in detail through photos that show the band's playful side as they unwind around a date in their American tour. Richards envisioned the five note vamp as a horn chart that would jazz up an otherwise dour set of lyrics about phoniness and striking out, that spin out over a folky blues melody.
The Stones made their first attempt at recording it a week later in Chicago's legendary Chess Studios, at a session dominated by covers of American R&B hits by Marvin Gaye, Otis Redding, Don Covay and The Temptations. That one original, "Satisfaction," even featured a harmonica part played by Brian. It's this arrangement (now gelled as a slinky bump'n'grind) that The Stones follow in their first live performance of the song on TV's "Shindig." The fuzz tone on Keith's guitar was only intended to simulate the way the notes would translate to a horn arrangement. R&B stars like Otis Redding and Aretha Franklin would accomplish just that, but that scratchy, overloaded guitar sound was a keeper on the Stones own version.
It's the second pass at the song, at LA's RCA Studios on May 12, 1965 that proves to be the take for the ages. "(I Cant Get No) Satisfaction" is arguably the point at which rock and roll suddenly morphs into Rock, with it's irony, disillusionment, leering sexuality and wickedly playful humor. The Beatles weren't even there yet. On the same day (May 10) that The Stones were re-inventing the wheel in Chicago, The Beatles were across the pond at EMI recording covers of Larry Williams' "Dizzy Miss Lizzy" and "Bad Boy." A month later, Bob Dylan would show up at Columbia's New York studios with a little atom bomb called "Like A Rolling Stone." In October, The Who continued this process of smelting Rock from rock and roll with their seminal "My Generation."
But "Satisfaction," and The Stones, were first. This time. For all of its animal magnetism, "Satisfaction" proved to be fodder for some astonishingly bland remakes. Al Ciaola, Mongo Santamaria, The Andrew Loog Oldham Orchestra, and Sandy "Teen Beat" Nelson all turned in Chicken-Rock covers, along with livelier passes by Manfred Mann, Paul Revere & The Raiders, The Swingin' Medallions, The Kingsmen, and even The Ventures. And that was just in 1965-66!
There are many, many, more, all running the gamut from bad to weird. I will play as many as I can stand. I also welcome a guest—Cavalcade's first—who will tell the real story of the May 12 RCA Hollywood recording session by The Rolling Stones. An eye and ear witness, he was in the room. I can say no more.
Missed the show? You can find Paul Cavalconte's "Cavalcade," which airs 8-10 p.m. EDT on Saturday nights, in the WFUV archives up to two weeks after broadcast.
