Little Red Rooster - Live / Remastered 2009

This is a blues standard written by Willie Dixon and first recorded by Howlin' Wolf in 1961 as "The Red Rooster." The Stones, who recorded a lot of blues covers in their early years, first heard it from Howlin' Wolf and Sam Cooke. Released as a single in the UK, it was their second #1 hit in that territory, following "It's All Over Now."

Brian Jones played the slide guitar on this track. A founding member of the band, he was their lead guitarist until drug problems and conflict with his bandmates forced him out of the group in 1969 just weeks before he was found dead in his swimming pool. Danny Garcia, director of the documentary Rolling Stone: Life and Death of Brian Jones, cites his work on "Little Red Rooster" as one of his key contributions. "Brian was a pioneer of the slide guitar in the UK," Garcia told Songfacts. "His goal was to help spread the blues in the UK and then in the rest of the world, something he accomplished early on."

The Stones' manager, Andrew Oldham, wanted them to record this in order to keep their image as a tough, naughty band, essentially the opposite of The Beatles. Their previous singles in the UK were "It's All Over Now," "Not Fade Away," and "I Wanna Be Your Man," all of which were successful, but moved them away from the blues and into a more pop direction. Recording this raw blues number was for their reputation.