It’s a tribute to black women! “Cajun”, “Creole”, “brown sugar” were common vocabulary in 1970. The Stones reverred the Mississippi Delta roots of rock music.
You are absolutely correct the stones loved brown sugar they also loved BB king howlin wolf John Lee hooker lightning Hopkins and muddy waters Keith and Mick was obsessed with the old time blues'players without them the stones would never have existed
It’s a history lesson, from the Gold Coast slaves to the tent show queens. The Stones wrote it to be provocative, and it was controversial, even in 1971 (recorded in 1969). With that said, it’s somewhat of a tribute to the black women in Jaggers life at the time, namely Claudia Lennear and Marsha Hunt. The latter is the mother of Jagger’s first born Karis Jagger.
As Kant said, "art can sublimate everything". The Stones made a lot of songs that told very dirty, very borderline stories, but made them beautiful and immersive with their melodies. They're geniuses.
I'm 63 and white, and have heard this song since it's release. It wasn't until 12 years ago, when I really started paying attention to the lyrics, that I knew what the song was about. And after analyzing them, and google searching, it was written from the perspective of people back then. Shocked me, because I've sang every word of this my whole life, not realizing it's meaning. Great reaction guys.
He’s English and he’s casting a light on what happened to slaves at a time when civil rights were a big deal. His singing that he was into ‘Brown Sugar’ in the last verse it was actually very brave - he was talking about hypocrisy and mixed relations were taboo, at the time he was in a mixed relationship and he was thumbing his nose at those attitudes. Basically “You did it behind closed doors and by force so don’t act like it’s a bad thing now.” They were absolute champions of great blues acts like Muddy Waters, Buddy Guy and Howlin’ Wolf using their fame to bring attention to those men. They announced a few months back that they were no longer performing it live because of the confusion.
Very well articulated, Jimi.. I picked up on the pointing out rapes carried out under slavery (which indeed happened worldwide), but adding the dichotomy of a celebration of love for “brown sugar” within the chorus and the latter verses of the song. It comes off as dipping a toe into BDSM imagery and the taboo of interracial sex and love as a sort of tongue in cheek kink to be shouted from the rooftops instead of kept in secrecy like the slave traders had.
From what I understood, the chorus lines about brown sugar were from the slave owners perspective, and exposing the evil justification of owning people and using them sexually. My favorite, and most cringy line, "The lady of the house wondering when it's gonna stop", tells you how rampant and accepted this was by white men. And I'm sure they "lady of the house" blamed the exploited women for "enticing" the men, who couldn't and didn't have to control themselves. The Rolling Stones have no filter and revel in making catchy songs about taboo subjects. Unfortunately, the music is so good that most people miss the message. Love you both! 🤙🏻✌🏿
@@caneidaho2737 you missed the next line after the one you mentioned. Read that one and you’ll see the lady of the house has her own indiscretions around midnight.
This reaction is a masterpiece in many ways. First the song...wow, I never really knew the full range and scope of the lyrics. And, Asia's reaction is interesting and intellectual. So is BJ's. You guys knocked it outta the park on this reaction. It could be used in a history class about actual history, or psychology, sexuality, not the least of which, the MUSIC. The Stones and Mick are amazing. So are you two. Great job.
I know... It's only Rock and Roll, but I like it! No reason to search for a deeper meaning to be offended by. It's Rock and Roll. I am sooooo glad that I wasn't raised in a time when everyone was looking for a reason to be offended and demanding apologies from others.
There is a lot of speculation that this was written about the attraction to heroin, which was called brown sugar. Several of the Stones had dabbled in that drug. Mick was also in a few relationships with black women, and in fact one of them was the mother of his first child. Some "insiders" say that it was written as a song berating the way slaves and black women in general were treated back in the day. All of Mick's exes talk of him being a great Dad. He has strong relationships with all of his kids still today.
@@bitchnguy Well, in the liner notes to the 'Jump back' album Jagger is quoted as saying, "The lyric was all to do with the dual combination of drugs and girls."
, "Brown Sugar" was primarily the work of Jagger, who wrote it in 1969.According to Marsha Hunt, Jagger's then-girlfriend and the mother of his first child Karis, he wrote the song with her in mind. Former Ikette Claudia Lennear disputes this claim, saying that it was written about her. In 2014, Lennear told The Times that she is the subject of the song because she was dating Jagger when it was written. Bill Wyman stated in his book Rolling with the Stones (2002) that the lyrics were partially inspired by Lennear.
Yes, this song was risk a, at that time, but it didn't stop one the greatest bands ever, from performing a lot of controversial songs. Love there music, always have. Seen the ROLLING STONES LIVE when I was 19 years old. Absolutely blew my mind. The weed was flowing, LOL!!! RIP - CHARLEY WATTS.
This 1971 song was influenced by Mick’s girlfriend at the time model and actress Marsha Hunt whom they share a son. Others say it was written about Ikette (Ike and Tina Turner) Claudia Lennear whom Mick was also involved with. Jagger has stated he would never write this song today that it is “too raw.” Note one of the great saxophone solos of all time by Bobby Keyes.
Respect y'all's opinions and you opened my eyes How people can take it out of context But Rolling stones have spoken out against Racism Songs also tell a story not necessarily the musicians story what I also hear is the hypocrisy of the men back in the day that did these things behind closed doors and judged others Elvis was told in 1965 to leave his Black backup singers behind he refused in the early 60s The Beatles were asked to do a segrated concert in Jacksonville Florida They refused saying either everyone can come are we won't be there They gave in to the Beatles and The Stones have spoke out on several occasions against Racism back in the day when some people would and did ostracized them
I was a white Scottish teenager, just turning 20 when this record came out and I understood it immediately. It has always been an anti-racism song to me, pointing out the practices inflicted on slaves by their white owners and the references to brown sugar were the attitudes of those performing those acts. We'd already had examples of The Stones educating the masses with Gimme Shelter, Sympathy for the Devil, Street Fighting Man etc. and knew to look beneath the surface of the lyrics and rocking beats to find the message. The Stones were anti-establishment rebels and while a lot of the old attitudes were being reflected in situation comedies and the like, the youth from the mid-60s to the mid 70s, whether in music, movies or the other arts, were waking up to the realities of class and race discrimination in their history and turning away from such programming, which is one of the reasons we all embraced the blues-infused sounds that bands like the Stones and the Animals were giving us. How could we subscribe to the old attitudes when the music we loved and respected was predominately black or MOBO? (although that term didn't exist at that time). Then of course the hedonistic 80s came along and that's a whole other story and a whole other generation.
❤️❤️❤️ You all amaze me at how you grasp the meaning of the songs !! BJ was spot on !! 👍👍👍✌🏻 You both do a amazing job at breaking things down. Love you!
When people say their offended the question should be “..and your argument is?” Back in the 60”s and 70’s we all mingled, danced , flirted with all races, no one was offended and the song I believe is actually about a girl he was dating , we did not take lyrics out of context because there was nothing to take out
I'll never stop playing this just because. I've always enjoyed the song, and never paid much attention to the meaning. It's a great rock song to dance to and the riffs are great.
The song has a double meaning in that Brown Sugar is also slang for Heroin back in the late 60s. If the Stones had said that the song was drug related then it would of been banned on radio back then.
@@markupton1417 context! Puerto Rican girls in the sense that they were easy and available. The 80s were a more cautious time. Yes, some of my boricua friends complained. While they were humming the tune.
The Rolling Stones have a deep catalogue to explore. Brown Sugar is just a great tune. I wouldn't read too much into it. Two different African American woman claim to be the inspiration for the song Brown Sugar and both regret seeing it taken off the Stones playlist last year. They just thought it was a great rock n' roll song, no controversy for them.
The Rolling Stones are considered the bad boys of rock & roll. I grew up with their early stuff. My favorite era of The Rolling Stones is from the 60's British Invasion. I loved the "Flowers" album. They had a lot of great early hits such as "(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction", "Get Off of My Cloud", "Paint It Black", "Ruby Tuesday", "Let's Spend the Night Together", "Jumpin' Jack Flash", "Honky Tonk Women", "You Can't Always Get What You Want", "Gimme Shelter", "Tumbling Dice" & "Brown Sugar".
Listened to the song most of my life. Never dissected it's content. At that age most of us wern't getting that deep into the lyrics of the song. We were just rocking out. Perhaps this is another perspective to the reason why the Rolling Stones were always referred to as the 'bad boys' of rock-and-roll. ;-) ;-) ;-)
I remember when they banned Lets Spend the Night Together from the radio. That song was the flip side of the 45rpm record with Ruby Tuesday being the A side.
Absolutely! Gotta start from the beginning. So many hits... Little Red rooster, Route 66, Time is on my side. However, their late 60s stuff is great too. She's a Rainbow, Lady Jane. Their Exile on main Street album, Goat's head soup
Simply one of the greatest rock and roll songs of all time. That honky tonk swagger and hip shaking groove are impossible not to get caught up to. I wouldn't put too much weight on those lyrics. Didn't Mick put them together quite quickly in the studio while the others were putting the rest of the song together? The lyrics did cause a but of controversy at the time, as did other songs on the album (STICKY FINGERS).
The Stones wrote lots of songs with controversial subject matter and lyrics - this one, Sympathy For the Devil, Midnight Rambler, Gimme Shelter and more - they wanted to engage the rock generation and culture in meaningful thought and discussions
"Under My Thumb"? "Stupid Girl"? They are just songs. The lyrics may occasionally display a certain brief lapse in taste but the music always rocks. Remember, they put the line "You'd make a dead man come" in "Start Me Up" and Microsoft bought the rights to that song for ads for Windows 95. For $3 million, allegedly. The history of the Rolling Stones is littered with astute business decisions. (And the odd marginal one. And a few questionable personal ones. Which, of course, they could afford...)
Ol' White Guy here... I take the song as a compliment to Black Women. My wife of many years is Black... (sof' skin actually the color of brown sugar). We love the song and dance to it.
I've heard this dozens of times over the years, but never really knew the lyrics until recently (and the first couple of dozen times I was a kid, and didn't have a clue what "brown sugar" meant). I'm going back to just loving the music and not knowing the lyrics.
@Penderyn It's not the historical aspect, because you're right, history is history, good, bad or indifferent. It's the "tastes just like a Black girl should" stuff, because I don't think Mick was talking history there, at least not ancient history. Yeah, it's sex, it's been going on forever, and it'll always go on, but as presented here, and based on the knowledge that a particular Black woman (possibly two) inspired the song, it's objectifying and dehumanizing, really. Can you guess I'm not a fan of a particular aspect of Rap music, too?
Mick said it was a pastiche of taboo subjects including slavery and drugs He said in a 1995 interview he would have censored himself with hindsight It was the track that first turned me on to the Stones it is a phenomenal recording I don’t think Mick was being deliberately cruel but I think he has a different perspective now on this subject matter and the Stones controversially dropped the song from their most recent tour
I always felt guilty about loving this song. It's an absolute rocker but the lyrics are like, WTF? In the end, I think it's just Mick trying to call out what happened and what may not have been widely known.
Why would you feel guilty? Do you feel guilty for loving “Midnight Rambler” since it speaks from the point of view of of a serial killer? Lyrics are often meant to be like dramatic scenes from a movie. Why does everyone these days arbitrarily always view them as morality tales or social commentary? Do you feel guilty
I have heard this song since I was a kid. The only thing I could understand was the chorus and had no idea what this song was about. As I got older, I realized this wasn't about the kind of brown sugar you put on a sandwich (I used to like brown sugar on peanut butter as a kid). Mick Jagger isn't an easy person to understand. I still don't know what half of the Rolling Stone's songs are saying. It wasn't easy to find out the lyrics to a song back then if they weren't on the album sleeve. It was only recently that I even learned what the words are and... they're weird. It's a weird song. Knowing the Rolling Stones, I don't believe it's meant the way it sounds but, it's weird. Just recently, the Rolling Stones announced that this song would be dropped from their shows.
i like the subversive nature of the song, it take a serious topic and tricks you into thinking about it with its catchy hook. Its like putting medicine in a dessert.
This song was recorded on December 2-4, 1969 and released on April 16, 1971, and it's the track 1 in the Sticky Fingers (1971). Please react Wild Horses, also performed by Rolling Stones. Keep it up guys.
I come from Liverpool where a lot of the slave ships docked on the way to America and am not proud of our history, but it was England that put a stop to slavery she had a naval presence around the world to stop slave ships and free the slaves
Keith Richards and Mick Jagger of The Rolling Stones have announced that they won't be playing their 1970s hit song “Brown Sugar” on tour anymore. This news comes after concerns about the 50-year-old song's reference to the “horrors of slavery” and other controversial topics
Holy shit Asia's eyes focused quick and it scared the shit outa me😂❤ and I been listening to this song my whole life and I'm only 56yrs and its part history lesson not just babbling
I heard an explanation of this once which said the song was supposed to be about inter-racial attraction basically always being a thing (even when it was taboo). It flits from historical slave trader's attraction and the 'house boy' with the lady of the house to Jagger's relationships and personal experiences(English blood runs hot). Like you say in the context and time period that it was written (and from a British perspective with different racial tensions and history) it probably wasn't intended to be as offensive as it now seems. I know the line 'whip the women' was re-recorded and changed to 'with the women' for UK radio to take the violence aspect out of it. It's a weird on for me as a white Brit because I used to love this song without really listening to the lyrics too closely. Then my girlfriend at the time (who was jamaican) explained it from her perspective. As a song, it's great.. full of energy but let's just say the lyrics didn't age well.
WW2.coloured soldiers where speechless being invited into the houses of white people to come and drink some tea with the English people!! No racisme in England!!
This is from Wikipedia " According to Marsha Hunt, Jagger's then-girlfriend and the mother of his first child Karis, he wrote the song with her in mind. Former Ikette Claudia Lennear disputes this claim, saying that it was written about her. In 2014, Lennear told The Times that she is the subject of the song because she was dating Jagger when it was written. Bill Wyman stated in his book Rolling with the Stones (2002) that the lyrics were partially inspired by Lennear."
to put these lyrics in some historical context, less than 10 years prior to this recording Van Morrison came out with the song, 'Brown eyed Girl' but the lyrics were supposed to be 'Brown skinned Girl' but the record company wouldn't put it out
The Stones dropped this from their show. See below: Keith Richards highlights this ambiguity in his comments on the removal of the song recently from their playlist. "I don’t know. I’m trying to figure out with the sisters quite where the beef is. Didn’t they understand this was a song about the horrors of slavery?" Richards’ mildly defensive tone fuels broadcaster Piers Morgan bellicose defence of Brown Sugar as a “song aimed at defending and supporting black women”. Morgan also draws attention to what he sees as a “double standard” for rap music where racist and misogynist tropes abound.
They could have kept the song in the setlist but dropped the slavery verse. Then it just becomes a rock n roll song about lust between black and white.
It is easy to take it out of context. However, I think it's always wise to take a moment and dig a little deeper when a lyric touches a nerve. Things are often not what they initially seem.
The Rolling Stones had a concert and Tina Turner came on stage and sung this song with Mick Jagger and the Rolling Stones it’s on the Internet you can find it just RU-vid Tina Turner and Mick Jagger Brown Sugar The rumor was Mick got some brown sugar from Tina
The backup singer was Claudia Lennear. You can find out more about Claudia and also the backup singer Merry Clayton from Gimme Shelter in a documentary here call Twenty Feet from Stardom.
Also as a white person I never really understood the context of this song especially coming from an English band whose country was anti slavery since early 1800's.
Asia understandably had a hard time with this one. What I'll say, is when this came out in the early 70s, even "Roots" was years away from coming out. People hadn't given much thought that this had gone on, and still goes on in slave countries. I think they were bringing attention to something that's hard for our 2022 ears to hear. Just like "All in the Family"on TV, and the movie "Blazing Saddles," which ripped racism ruthlessly, but they used that racial "word" throughout it.
@@donnawoods8039 My point probably wasn't very clear though. Blazing Saddles, for instance, was brutally anti-racist, but that "word" was all through the film. I think people were much more willing to take in the overall message back then, whereas these days we're instantly triggered by hearing a certain word. Hopefully that makes sense...
Your reactions touched me deeply on this tune. I grew up listening to this music, worked all my life as a pro musician, was married for 20 years to a beautiful black woman... But watching Asia's reaction to this one really hit a nerve; brought back a LOT of memories, and for that I thank you. I may never hear this song the same now. And that's good...
I'm 63, and remember when I first heard this song. It was at a bar with the door open, and someone dropped a quarter in the jukebox. I was just 11 or 12, but do remember that Keith Richard's guitar riff. I enjoyed y'alls opinion on this masterpiece.
This song is always tricky to deal with. Maybe it's a history lesson, but I think the music is just too damned fun to imagine that there's educational or moral lessons that you are supposed to get from this. I think it's just a raw song that will definitely get an eyebrow raise.
The point he’s making is that the white man has ALWAYS had a taste for “brown sugar” but have lied about that and continued to commit atrocities against black women and men. All the way up until he was a teen, people still looked down on interracial relationships in the daylight, but were seeking out some “brown sugar” under the cover of darkness. What this song represents is that he spoke aloud that secret most white men did not want said at that point in history. At the time this song came out it was highly controversial, at least with white conservatives , it was only a few years after the end of segregation in the US, during the free love movement of the early 70’s.
European colonizers have always "had a taste" for everything that was (and is) not theirs. This is what colonization is all about. And guess what? That "Colonizer" mentality has never gone away. Just imagine the fun to be had---if humans ever develop the means to travel to other worlds. Rest assured...they (we?) will most certainly export ALL of our socialization pathologies out into Captain Kirk's "space", ...the final frontier.
the English rockers of the 60s grew up listening to the glamorous African American female singing groups of the time and thought they were like goddesses. When they went to America they didn't have the same bias against mixed race relationships that American's did at the time and they REALLY liked the African American ladies. A great many dated their back-up singers as well who tended to be African American.
Tina Turner performed a live version with the Rolling Stones. She said at the time, it was a well written account of a history that however uncomfortable, is important to be told and not to be ignored.
It's a song about the cavalier brutality of slavery, but many people thought it was just racist, so the Stones said a while back that they'd never perform it again. Mick was narrating the part of a slave trader or slave master..
I looked up the lyrics to this one years ago, because I had the same reaction, "how did they get away with that?". But it appears that the whole thing is a question about how wrong some pieces of history have been. The statements written in first person were not the authors thoughts, but quotes from the individuals in the story. Similar to the viewpoint in Sympathy for the Devil.
Right on. The author is not necessarily the character in the song. Cross-reference NIrvana's "Polly" - the lyrics there are the thoughts of a sick kidnapper, a sadist, possibly a killer. But that's not Kurt Cobain talking as himself, that's Cobain feeding you the mind of a sick man to stimulate thought and discussion and awareness. It's definitely edgy, but this happens in books and films and songs all the time.
I love the Brown sugar. Oh yea, I was 19 and started construction in the city. Lived in an all white town. A black girl finally told me, "You know us black girls are partial to you red heads". Oh man. I loved it. And loved all those black girls who was partial to this red headed small town guy. Still have a soft spot for those beauties...
The woman's name is Marsha hunt and he has a daughter with her. This song was done in 1968 and released in 1971 and remember he's English and the civil rights movement in the USA was in there newspapers everyday. He wrote about things he was reading everyday and it's nothing racial at all.
The stones loved and took black culture to their hearts in every way thru their touring the States in the early days. Their love of the blues, Keith's love/obsession for Ronnie Ronette, living in Jamaica where the rastas treated him as family etc. I agree it don't sound good now at all. I like to think the verses were trying to tell a tale of history, but the chorus was a bit offensive in that context. A lot of their blues hero's wrote songs in this manner which wasn't their place to do and is no excuse. I think it's important to know the blues legends like muddy waters, buddy guy etc loved the stones coz they spread the word in Europe about the blues and covered/endorsed their music. The blues artists went from earning twenty bucks in the US for a gig to hundreds/thousands in Europe where they were worshipped as musical genius which they thoroughly deserved. The same happened for soul legends like Otis Redding. I could never understand why. At the end of the day the stones wouldn't exist without black culture n the blues which they would happily admit.
He was writing about model and singer Mesh Hunt who had already had a song written about her by John Mayall also tittled BROWN SUGER. She recorded a good version off WALK ON GLDED SPLINTERS.
the lyrics were from an article mick read about slaving in the south over a century ago. the stones brought the old blues artists from the south on tour with them in the early sixties when they had no credibility or recognition in the states. they managed to make a few quid at least before they left us. the rolling stones from the late sixties to the early seventies are legendary.
Asia is right to feel uncomfortable about this song. I’m a white guy and it makes me squirm. Some of you are giving Mick & Co. way more credit than they deserve. This is a vulgar song. But I still appreciate it. There are happy songs, there are sad songs, and there are angry songs. There’s thousands of them and everyone has their favorite. Then there’s songs like this, where some horrible truth is wrapped in a shiny, bouncy rhythm. Fortunate Son, Common People, Hey Ya!, All My Friends, and a hundred others that I can’t think of at the moment..
I am from that era and never listened to the words before...a little shocked after hearing them. Wasn't a stones fan back then. I guess that is why i mostly listened to bubblegum music.
This has always been one of my all time favorite RS songs... but I was WELL into my teens before I caught a glimpse at the lyrics and understood the dark nature of the lyrics and the middle finger Jagger throws up at in the last stanza. Good on him. You have to understand the times the song was written/recorded and the global social changes occurring at the time.... Great Britain was a major contributor to, and ultimately strongest adversary to the global slave trade.
The first part was about horror of slavery and how black women were used ! yes, Jagger had a relationship with a black woman and they had a Daughter! Now this is what I know from hearing Keith Richards explain the song!! Thank You
Song is talking about the man falling in love with the woman that forbidden fruit. That's why it says you should have heard him around midnight cuz they're sneaking together.😂😂
The Rolling Stones frontman Mick Jagger's first Child (Karis Jagger) was with Black American actress Marsha Hunt. Mick has always had a thing for Black women.
From the Wikipedia page about the song: "According to Marsha Hunt, Jagger's then-girlfriend and the mother of his first child Karis, he wrote the song with her in mind. Former Ikette Claudia Lennear disputes this claim, saying that it was written about her. In 2014, Lennear told The Times that she is the subject of the song because she was dating Jagger when it was written. Bill Wyman stated in his book Rolling with the Stones (2002) that the lyrics were partially inspired by Lennear." In the liner notes to the compilation album Jump Back (1993), Jagger says, "The lyric was all to do with the dual combination of drugs and girls. This song was a very instant thing, a definite high point". "Brown Sugar" can be seen as a commentary on the history, morality, and dynamics of white-male-on-black-female sex, and how power and status has influenced it-particularly in Western culture. In a December 1995 Rolling Stone interview, Jagger spoke at length about the song, its inspiration, and its success, and credited himself with its lyrics. Keith Richards also credits Jagger with the song in his autobiography. Jagger attributed the success of the song to a "good groove". After noting that the lyrics could mean so many lewd subjects, he again noted that the combination of those subjects, the lyrical ambiguity was partially why the song was considered successful. He noted, "That makes it... the whole mess thrown in. God knows what I'm on about on that song. It's such a mishmash. All the nasty subjects in one go... I never would write that song now." When interviewer Jann Wenner asked him why, Jagger replied, "I would probably censor myself. I'd think, 'Oh God, I can't. I've got to stop. I can't just write raw like that.'" However, in more recent times, Jagger has changed some of the more controversial lyrics when performing the song live. For example, the first verse line "I hear him whip the women just around midnight" has been replaced with the more simple "you should have heard him just around midnight." The lyrical subject matter has often been a point of interest and controversy. Described by rock critic Robert Christgau as "a rocker so compelling that it discourages exegesis", the song's popularity has often overshadowed its provocative lyrics, which explore a number of controversial subjects, including slavery, interracial sex, cunnilingus, and drug use. Fifty years later, critic Tom Taylor concludes that the song "does not offer one considered thought to the subject matter that it sings of..." and "the atrocity of the slave trade, rape and the unimaginable suffering therein should not be adorned with gyrating, glib lyrics, guitar solos and no redeeming features in the way of discerned appraisal." In 2021, the band announced that the song would be removed from the setlist of their US tour."
In Brazil there was a saying for a long time: "Black women for the kitchen, mulatta women for s3x, white women for marrying and having a family with." A former Brazilian president caught some flack for saying he had a "foot in the kitchen", suggesting he had some black African ancestry. About this song, I didn't fully understand the lyrics until later in life, but now that I do, it wasn't so much about Mick looking at black women as s3x objects but rather the historical slavers themselves.
I like that you’ll were listening to this and they are not racist! Watch The ROLLING STONES- OUT OF CONTROL live 97 (Official Music Video) or GIMMIE SHELTER live 97 (Official Music Video ) you’ll see how great they are !
Mick Jagger's first child was with his black girl friend, Marsh Hunt, in the late 60's. I believe his daughters name is Karis. None of the Stones were racist, just very blunt in their lyrics. Mick Jagger and Keith Richards built their whole sound and style around black music, mostly blues and soul music of the 50's and 60's. Their inspiration and musical heroes were all the blues legends like Muddy Waters, Buddy Guy and of course Chuck Berry.
Its been pull from the Stones playlist because of the slavery lyrics however "brown sugar" also refers to the raw uncut heroin that was coming into urban areas from southeast asia in the 70's.
I've heard this song for decades and never knew all these words were in this song. - Crazy Love you guys = edited to add: I always thought it was about partying in Louisiana.
This was written around 1969 in between the end of Mick Jagger’s relationship with his then girlfriend Marianne Faithful and before he met and married Bianca Jagger. He was having an affair with African American actress Marsha Hunt, who was performing in the musical Hair on Broadway at the time, and who was supposedly the inspiration for the song. She got pregnant and gave birth to his daughter and eventually had to sue Mick for patrimony because he refused to acknowledge the baby and help pay for her care. I believe he did eventually accept her, but she was well into her late teens/early 20’s at that point
Its Rock-n-Roll. Remember there was a trade circle of slaves, sugar/ molasses and Rum There are more types of brown sugar. He hints at 3 types of brown sugar. The drug The actual Sugar. And black girl. Hence the genius of the song writing.
This song came out in 71 on the Sticky Fingers album. It seems like it is more controversial now then it was back then. Go figure. Great reaction none the less.
