Back to rock 'n' roll. On July 10, 1965, (I Can't Get No) Satisfaction by The Rolling Stones climbed to the top of the Billboard charts. It was the band's first Number 1 hit in the United States.
Why is this important? Only because Rolling Stone magazine ranked the track second on its 500 Greatest Songs of All Time, while VH1 placed it at the top of its 100 Greatest Songs of Rock & Roll list. It was also added to the US Library of Congress National Recording Registry in 2006.
Not bad for a song whose guitar riff reportedly popped into the head of Stones guitarist Keith Richards while he was asleep! Apparently, Richards woke up, recorded the riff and the words 'I can't get no satisfaction' on a tape recorder, then fell asleep once more.
For something that sounds so innocuous today, it is worth remembering what the critic Paul Gambaccini once pointed out -- that its lyrics were threatening to an older audience, and the song was perceived as an attack on the status quo.
We're just glad to have it on our Mp3 players.
Photograph: Dave Hogan/Getty Images
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