GIMMIE SHELTER

I've talked about this before, but we'll do it again. This song/video keeps getting taken down because record companies hate fun and don't want anyone to hear any music without money funneling into their pockets—even if the song is over 40 years old.

Anyway, this is the isolated vocal track for one of the best Rolling Stones songs of all time, "Gimmie Shelter."

I've been listening to a lot of Rolling Stones over the past few weeks and the album this song is on, Let It Bleed, might be my favorite. It's a close call though. They have a lot of great records (and a few bad ones too. i.e. Steel Wheels, Voodoo Lounge...).

But on to "Gimmie Shelter."

When the Stones were recording it, the producer suggested a female back-up singer to give the track a little something more, and gospel singer Merry Clayton was brought in and killed it. She gives the song so much soul that it's hard to imagine what it would have been like without her.

There was a downside to it though.

Clayton was six months pregnant when she recorded the track and suffered a miscarriage the very next day. Some attribute the miscarriage to the strain Clayton suffered while reaching the high notes, which made it hard for the singer to perform her own version of the song later in life.

Heartbreaking story for an amazing performance.

Listen to it.

P.S. It takes about 15 seconds to kick in once the video starts. Don't panic.