1987Released
4:25

Did You Know?

Interesting facts and trivia about Rag Doll. By Songfacts®.

Like many other Aerosmith songs, this one is about sex. Most of the lyrics were written by Steven Tyler and Jim Vallance, who is a Canadian songwriter whose credits include "Summer Of '69" and several other Aerosmith songs, including "Deuces Are Wild." Aerosmith guitarist Joe Perry came up with the riff and Vallance with the bass line.

The song was originally called "Rag Time," a title inspired by the New Orleans feel to the music and by Steven Tyler's assortment of scarves. As detailed in Walk This Way: The Autobiography of Aerosmith, Geffen Records guru John Kalodner loved the song but hated the title and subject matter, insisting that "Rag Time" means nothing to kids. After rejecting many other suggestions provided by Tyler and Vallance, he called for help, hiring the hit songwriter Holly Knight to fly to Vancouver to work on the song. She came up with the idea to change the title to "Rag Doll," and received a songwriting credit for her efforts.

Some of Holly Knights other credits include "The Best" and "Love Is A Battlefield." She told Songfacts about working on "Rag Doll": "I was brought in to sort of fix it, be the doctor. And I don't really like doing that. I don't like just walking in and changing something that someone felt was the right thing to write, and then I'm supposed to come in, because sometimes they can be resentful of that in the future. But it used to have another title, and I came in and changed a few words. The song was written, and I always was regretful of the fact that I didn't get to write more with them and show them what I could do. But I've had many, many people tell me that the contribution I made is what made it a hit. Sometimes just turning the screw is what makes all the difference."

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Song Analysis

Key, BPM (tempo) and time signature of Rag Doll.
EKey
MajorMode
4/4Time Signature
93BPM

Album

The album Rag Doll is released on.

Released By

The record label that has released Rag Doll.
Geffen
© 1987 Geffen Records Inc.
℗ 1987 Geffen Records

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