Play with Fire (The Rolling Stones song)
Encyclopedia
"Play with Fire" is a song by English rock and roll
band The Rolling Stones
, originally released as B-side to the song "The Last Time
". It was later included on the American release of their 1965 album Out of Our Heads
.
"Play with Fire" is credited to Nanker Phelge
, a pseudonym used when tracks were composed by the entire band, even though lead singer Mick Jagger
and guitarist Keith Richards
are the only Rolling Stones to appear on the track. The song was recorded late one night in January 1965 while the Stones were in Los Angeles
recording with Phil Spector
at the RCA Studios. Richards performed the song's acoustic guitar
opening while Jagger handled vocals and tambourine (enhanced using an echo chamber). Spector played bass (actually a tuned-down electric guitar), and Jack Nitzsche
provided the song's distinctive harpsichord
arrangement and tamtams. The Stones left for a tour of Australia the following day.
The song's lyrics talk of the singer's relationship with a high society girl, disparaging the lifestyle much in the same way that "19th Nervous Breakdown
" would in a more up-tempo feel.
In a 1995 interview with Jann Wenner
for Rolling Stone
entitled "Jagger Remembers", Jagger said, ""Play with Fire" sounds amazing—when I heard it last. I mean, it's a very in-your-face kind of sound and very clearly done. You can hear all the vocal stuff on it. And I'm playing the tambourines, the vocal line. You know, it's very pretty." An unreleased version of the song, entitled "Mess with Fire", was also recorded. It featured a much more upbeat, soul-oriented feel.
"Play with Fire" was the b-side to "The Last Time
" and went to #96 on the US chart. It was also featured on the US version of Big Hits (High Tide and Green Grass)
(1966), Hot Rocks
(1971) and Singles Collection: The London Years
.
The song was performed in concert during the Rolling Stones' tours of 1965 and 1966, and was revived on their 1989-1990 Steel Wheels/Urban Jungle Tour
.
An extended live version can be found on the 1974 release Live 'n' Kickin'
by West, Bruce and Laing
.
"Play with Fire" was featured in the 2007 film The Darjeeling Limited
, directed by Wes Anderson
; it also appears on the soundtrack album.
In July 2008, "Play with Fire" became the subject of a lawsuit when ABKCO Music Inc., which owns the rights to the Rolling Stones' early catalogue, filed a suit against Lil Wayne
, asserting that the rapper's song "Playing With Fire" is based on the Rolling Stones' song.
In May 2011, "Play with Fire" was featured prominently in the season 6 finale of the show Supernatural
.
covered "Play with Fire" in a reggae style on their 2007 album Mighty High
and directly reference the Rolling Stones 1965 version in the intro.
"Play with Fire" was covered by Dum Dum Girls
in 2009 as a B-Side to the Jail La La single and as a Japanese bonus track for their debut album I Will Be.
American Idol
contestant Didi Benami
performed the song to good reviews from the judges, in the 2009-2010 season.
Jonee Earthquake Band
have made this a regular part of their act, usually closing with it. They play it in a much faster punk rock style.
Tír na nÓg
conceived an acoustic folk version of the song with a guitar/violin arrangement that they played live on their 2010 album Live at Sirius
.
Rock and roll
Rock and roll is a genre of popular music that originated and evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s, primarily from a combination of African American blues, country, jazz, and gospel music...
band The Rolling Stones
The Rolling Stones
The Rolling Stones are an English rock band, formed in London in April 1962 by Brian Jones , Ian Stewart , Mick Jagger , and Keith Richards . Bassist Bill Wyman and drummer Charlie Watts completed the early line-up...
, originally released as B-side to the song "The Last Time
The Last Time (song)
In 1967, after the imprisonment of Mick Jagger and Keith Richards, on drugs charges, The Who recorded covers of "The Last Time" and "Under My Thumb" as a single. The intention was to help Jagger and Richards make bail, but by the time the single was made available, they had been released. The...
". It was later included on the American release of their 1965 album Out of Our Heads
Out of Our Heads
- American release:Initially issued in July 1965 in America - American release:Initially issued in July 1965 in America - American release:Initially issued in July 1965 in America (featuring a shot from the same photo session that graced the cover of 12 X 5 and The Rolling Stones No...
.
"Play with Fire" is credited to Nanker Phelge
Nanker Phelge
Nanker Phelge was a collective pseudonym used between 1963 and 1965 for several Rolling Stones group compositions. Stones bassist Bill Wyman explained the origins of the name in his 2002 book, Rolling with the Stones:...
, a pseudonym used when tracks were composed by the entire band, even though lead singer Mick Jagger
Mick Jagger
Sir Michael Philip "Mick" Jagger is an English musician, singer and songwriter, best known as the lead vocalist and a founding member of The Rolling Stones....
and guitarist Keith Richards
Keith Richards
Keith Richards is an English musician, songwriter, and founding member of the Rolling Stones. Rolling Stone magazine said Richards had created "rock's greatest single body of riffs", and placed him as the "10th greatest guitarist of all time." Fourteen songs written by Richards and songwriting...
are the only Rolling Stones to appear on the track. The song was recorded late one night in January 1965 while the Stones were in Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
recording with Phil Spector
Phil Spector
Phillip Harvey "Phil" Spector is an American record producer and songwriter, later known for his conviction in the murder of actress Lana Clarkson....
at the RCA Studios. Richards performed the song's acoustic guitar
Acoustic guitar
An acoustic guitar is a guitar that uses only an acoustic sound board. The air in this cavity resonates with the vibrational modes of the string and at low frequencies, which depend on the size of the box, the chamber acts like a Helmholtz resonator, increasing or decreasing the volume of the sound...
opening while Jagger handled vocals and tambourine (enhanced using an echo chamber). Spector played bass (actually a tuned-down electric guitar), and Jack Nitzsche
Jack Nitzsche
Bernard Alfred "Jack" Nitzsche was an arranger, producer, songwriter, and film score composer. He first came to prominence in the late 1950s as the right-hand-man of producer Phil Spector, and went on to work with the Rolling Stones, Neil Young and others...
provided the song's distinctive harpsichord
Harpsichord
A harpsichord is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. It produces sound by plucking a string when a key is pressed.In the narrow sense, "harpsichord" designates only the large wing-shaped instruments in which the strings are perpendicular to the keyboard...
arrangement and tamtams. The Stones left for a tour of Australia the following day.
The song's lyrics talk of the singer's relationship with a high society girl, disparaging the lifestyle much in the same way that "19th Nervous Breakdown
19th Nervous Breakdown
"19th Nervous Breakdown" is a song by the English rock band The Rolling Stones.The song was written by Mick Jagger and Keith Richards during their 1965 tour of the United States. The song was recorded during the Aftermath sessions between 3 and 8 December 1965 at RCA Recording Studios in Hollywood,...
" would in a more up-tempo feel.
In a 1995 interview with Jann Wenner
Jann Wenner
Jann Simon Wenner is the co-founder and publisher of the music and politics biweekly Rolling Stone, as well as the owner of Men's Journal and Us Weekly magazines.-Childhood:...
for Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone is a US-based magazine devoted to music, liberal politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J...
entitled "Jagger Remembers", Jagger said, ""Play with Fire" sounds amazing—when I heard it last. I mean, it's a very in-your-face kind of sound and very clearly done. You can hear all the vocal stuff on it. And I'm playing the tambourines, the vocal line. You know, it's very pretty." An unreleased version of the song, entitled "Mess with Fire", was also recorded. It featured a much more upbeat, soul-oriented feel.
"Play with Fire" was the b-side to "The Last Time
The Last Time (song)
In 1967, after the imprisonment of Mick Jagger and Keith Richards, on drugs charges, The Who recorded covers of "The Last Time" and "Under My Thumb" as a single. The intention was to help Jagger and Richards make bail, but by the time the single was made available, they had been released. The...
" and went to #96 on the US chart. It was also featured on the US version of Big Hits (High Tide and Green Grass)
Big Hits (High Tide and Green Grass)
Big Hits is the first official compilation album by The Rolling Stones, released on 28 March 1966, on London Records in the US and on 4 November 1966, by Decca Records in the UK. The two releases featured different cover art and track listing...
(1966), Hot Rocks
Hot Rocks 1964–1971
Hot Rocks 1964–1971 is the first compilation album of Rolling Stones music released by former manager Allen Klein's ABKCO Records after the band's departure from Decca and Klein...
(1971) and Singles Collection: The London Years
Singles Collection: The London Years
Singles Collection: The London Years is a compilation album of Rolling Stones music released by former manager Allen Klein's ABKCO Records after the band's departure from Decca and Klein....
.
The song was performed in concert during the Rolling Stones' tours of 1965 and 1966, and was revived on their 1989-1990 Steel Wheels/Urban Jungle Tour
Steel Wheels/Urban Jungle Tour
The Rolling Stones' Steel Wheels Tour was a concert tour which was launched in North America in August 1989 to promote the band's album Steel Wheels; it continued to Japan in February 1990, with ten shows at the Tokyo Dome. The European leg of the tour, which featured a different stage and logo,...
.
An extended live version can be found on the 1974 release Live 'n' Kickin'
Live 'n' Kickin'
Live 'n' Kickin' is a live album by the power trio West, Bruce and Laing, released in 1974. It was the band's final album, as they disbanded shortly before its release....
by West, Bruce and Laing
West, Bruce and Laing
West, Bruce and Laing were a blues-rock power trio super-group consisting of Leslie West , Jack Bruce and Corky Laing . In 2009 West and Laing teamed up with Jack Bruce's son, Malcolm, and began touring as West, Bruce Jr...
.
"Play with Fire" was featured in the 2007 film The Darjeeling Limited
The Darjeeling Limited
The Darjeeling Limited is a 2007 comedy-drama film directed by Wes Anderson, and starring Owen Wilson, Adrien Brody, and Jason Schwartzman. It was written by Anderson, Schwartzman, and Roman Coppola...
, directed by Wes Anderson
Wes Anderson
Wesley Wales Anderson is an American film director, screenwriter, actor, and producer of features, short films and commercials....
; it also appears on the soundtrack album.
In July 2008, "Play with Fire" became the subject of a lawsuit when ABKCO Music Inc., which owns the rights to the Rolling Stones' early catalogue, filed a suit against Lil Wayne
Lil Wayne
Dwayne Michael Carter, Jr. , better known by his stage name Lil Wayne, is an American rapper. At the age of nine, Lil Wayne joined Cash Money Records as the youngest member of the label, and half of the duo, The B.G.'z, with B.G.. In 1997, Lil Wayne joined the group Hot Boys, which also included...
, asserting that the rapper's song "Playing With Fire" is based on the Rolling Stones' song.
In May 2011, "Play with Fire" was featured prominently in the season 6 finale of the show Supernatural
Supernatural (TV series)
Supernatural is an American supernatural and horror television series created by Eric Kripke, which debuted on September 13, 2005 on The WB, and is now part of The CW's lineup. Starring Jared Padalecki as Sam Winchester and Jensen Ackles as Dean Winchester, the series follows the brothers as they...
.
Legacy
Gov't MuleGov't Mule
Gov't Mule is a Southern rock jam band formed in 1994 as an Allman Brothers Band side project by Warren Haynes and Allen Woody.The band released their debut album Gov't Mule in 1995...
covered "Play with Fire" in a reggae style on their 2007 album Mighty High
Mighty High
Mighty High is an album released by Gov't Mule on October 16, 2007. Mighty High features reggae and dub versions of classic Mule covers and originals with special guest appearances by reggae legends Michael Franti, Toots Hibbert, and Willi Williams...
and directly reference the Rolling Stones 1965 version in the intro.
"Play with Fire" was covered by Dum Dum Girls
Dum Dum Girls
Dum Dum Girls are an American indie pop band from California that formed in 2008. Their name comes from both The Vaselines' album Dum Dum and the Iggy Pop song "Dum Dum Boys"...
in 2009 as a B-Side to the Jail La La single and as a Japanese bonus track for their debut album I Will Be.
American Idol
American Idol
American Idol, titled American Idol: The Search for a Superstar for the first season, is a reality television singing competition created by Simon Fuller and produced by FremantleMedia North America and 19 Entertainment...
contestant Didi Benami
Didi Benami
Vered "Didi" Benami is an American singer/songwriter from Knoxville, Tennessee, who was the tenth place finalist on the ninth season of American Idol.-Early life:...
performed the song to good reviews from the judges, in the 2009-2010 season.
Jonee Earthquake Band
Jonee Earthquake Band
- Overview :Jonee Earthquake Band Is an American punk band that originally started in 1979, opening for GG Allin and The Jabbers. The band got back together in 1998 and have been playing since...
have made this a regular part of their act, usually closing with it. They play it in a much faster punk rock style.
Tír na nÓg
Tír na nÓg (band)
Tír na nÓg are an Irish folk band formed in Dublin, Ireland, in 1969 by Leo O'Kelly and Sonny Condell. They are often considered as one of the first progressive folk bands with other artists like Nick Drake or group like Pentangle...
conceived an acoustic folk version of the song with a guitar/violin arrangement that they played live on their 2010 album Live at Sirius
Live at Sirius
-Personnel:*Sonny Condell – vocal, guitar, jews harp, Moroccan pottery drums*Leo O'Kelly – vocal, guitar, violin, drum programmingProduction* Louise McCormick – recording, mixing at Manor Studio, Cobh* John Crone – recording* David O'Toole – cover design...
.