Comments, input and alterations are very welcome!
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Off The Hook
(Mick Jagger / Keith Richards)

Regent Sound Studios, London, UK, September 2, 1964

Mick Jagger - lead vocals, backing vocals
Keith Richards - electric guitar, backing vocals
Charlie Watts - drums
Bill Wyman - bass
Brian Jones - electric guitar

Sittin' in my bedroom late last night
Got into bed and turned out the light
Decided to call my baby on the telephone
All I got was a busy tone
It's off the hook, it's off the hook
It's off the hook, it's off the hook
It's off the hook

Talkin' so long she upset my mind
Why are you talkin' such a long time
Maybe she's sleepin', maybe she's ill
Phones disconnected, unpaid bill
It's off the hook, it's off the hook
It's off the hook, it's off the hook
It's off the hook

Don't wanna see her, 'fraid o' what I'd find
Tired of lettin' her upset me all the time
Back into bed, started readin' my books
Take my phone right off the hook
It's off the hook, it's off the hook
It's off the hook, it's off the hook
It's off the hook

It's off the hook, it's off the hook
It's off the hook, it's off the hook
It's off the hook, it's off the hook

Produced by Andrew Loog Oldham

First released on:
The Rolling Stones - “Little Red Rooster / Off The Hook” 7” single
(Decca F 12014) UK, November 13, 1964

A nice song, but nothing more. They were developing and growing.

Love it as I do the whole No 2 album. By now Mick and Keith were writing their own r'n'b tunes and this song shows how well they appropriated the genre, absorbing that black rhythm in the backbone of their pulsebeat.

It's one of those songs that makes me think of their odd, quirky dance Mods used to do, where they would hit the dancefloor and stick their necks out back and forth like demented geese. See the Quadrophenia film or early The Who footage to see it in action.

How I would have loved to see the band in this era.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2013-07-15 13:40 by Silver Dagger.

I really like the Live-Version included on the "Charlie is my Darling" - CD!!! Great!!

Delightful early gem; dig that chugging rhythm from Bill and Charlie, Mick’s swaggering delivery, those subtle harmony vox from Keith, and Brian’s stinging guitar. Everything clicks. One of my favs from their second album.

Drew



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2013-07-15 13:27 by drewmaster.

One of my earliest favourites with Stones...and early brilliancy from Jagger-Richards....



2 1 2 0

Great early stones

I like the powerful parts Brian is playing on the Tami Show version!

Love that track and the whole of the american 'Rolling Stones Now!' album. Very gritty song, and sound (as is that whole album).

This fits in nicely with r & b covers the Stones did, and shows how quickly the Jagger-Richards songwriting team were adapting their early songs to fit in with other tracks on the early albums.

Ace!

Not a standout for me before I watched the killer TAMI show performance. Now it's one of my favorite early ones.

Early Filler. But I'll take it over Modern Era Filler.

It's a likeable enough early Jagger/Richards attempt, but it's lacking the spark of the great numbers they'd go on to pen in the forthcoming years.

That song reminds me so much of this song.


[url=http://www.youtube.com

[url]http://savoirfaire-hoorayforhollywood.blogspot.com/[/url]



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 2013-07-15 23:45 by bbkink.

"Inspired" by Bo Diddley once again...!

"Inspired" by Bo Diddley....like a million other bands from the 60's ...



ROCKMAN

I'd take that one as oppose to some of the stuff that's been played over and over

Quote
bbkink
That song reminds me so much of this song.

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2013-07-16 11:41 by His Majesty.

I reckon 'You Beat Me' sounds like it could have been the 'inspiration' behind 'off the hook'. The Stones have certainly had a few of these inspirations in the early days - such as

Stoned - Green Onions - Booker T and the MGs
Little By Little - Shame Shame Shame - Jimmy Reed
Good Times Bad Times - Key To The Highway (Broonzy or traditional)
West Coast Promo Man - Fanny May - Brown/Robinson

And probably more I haven't identified.

Perhaps it's regarded as a legit way for songwriters to learn the craft.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2013-07-16 10:38 by rumple21.

I had just turned a teenager in the early 90´s when I discovered the Stones, listening to my Dad´s vinyl and recorded tapes and then making my own tapes. And Off the hook was one of my very first favourites! We played it in the car, singing along on full volume. OTH will always have a special place in my heart due to this, along with those early Stones recordings (for instance Hitch hike, Can I get a witness, It´s all over now, and entire Aftermath).

So: Thanks, Dad! My parents went to London with me and saw the Stones in Hyde Park July 6, their 4th and 5th time (and my 14th). We are a Stones loving family!

Quote
nightskyman
Love that track and the whole of the american 'Rolling Stones Now!' album. Very gritty song, and sound (as is that whole album).

This fits in nicely with r & b covers the Stones did, and shows how quickly the Jagger-Richards songwriting team were adapting their early songs to fit in with other tracks on the early albums.

agreed... rolling stones now! is one of my favorite stones albums.

Hi I'm Ayler, from France (pardon my english...)
It's a great forum, with a lot of things to learn!

Quote
bbkink
That song reminds me so much of this song.

Am I wrong or did the Stones record "Off The Hook" before the Diddley single was released?



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2015-01-31 01:42 by Ayler.

Somebody Beat Me --- Recorded at 2120 South Michigan Ave Chicago April 1965



ROCKMAN

It's got a great hook. Nice to see Brian firing on all cylinders and Keith as the definitive lead guitar player. Another recent addition to my early Stones education.

peace

I think "Off The Hook" is one of their best early attempts to write original R&b numbers, before hitting the mark big time with "The Last Time" (for example, the best one from NO 2 album). Yeah, there is a lot of Bo's "Somebody Beat Me" there, but still the over-all feel of the song is very original, or different than Bo's. The translation from Chicago scene to London scene succesfully done. I especially like song's fresh, joyful atmosphere, and Mick sounds Mick.

I recall the story of some of the verses written by some of Mick's friends, and then Jagger 'buying' it by some deal, but I can't recall the details. Can anyone?

- Doxa



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2015-01-28 22:23 by Doxa.

Quote
Rockman
Somebody Beat Me --- Recorded at 2120 South Michigan Ave Chicago April 1965

A-ha! So the inspiration needs to go other way round - or there is some other Diddley song earlier that might have something in common for both of them (Bo's songs are usually rather family-related to each other).

- Doxa

Lovely song with great-sounding guitars

I knew there was a conflict beetween Chess records and the Stones publishings concerning one song in 64...but which ?? I think now it was apparently about "Somebody beat me"....

an early highlight. they'd move into much more interesting things very quickly but this is good fun.