The Rolling Stones is an English rock band formed in London in 1962. Active… Read Full Bio ↴The Rolling Stones is an English rock band formed in London in 1962. Active for six decades, they are one of the most popular and enduring bands of the rock era. In the early 1960s, the Rolling Stones pioneered the gritty, rhythmically driven sound that came to define hard rock. Their first stable line-up consisted of vocalist Mick Jagger, multi-instrumentalist Brian Jones, guitarist Keith Richards, bassist Bill Wyman, and drummer Charlie Watts. During their formative years, Jones was the primary leader: he assembled the band, named it, got them gigs, and drove their sound and image. After Andrew Loog Oldham became the group's manager in 1963, he encouraged them to write their own songs. Jagger and Richards became the primary creative force behind the band, alienating Jones, who had developed a drug addiction that interfered with his ability to contribute meaningfully.

Rooted in blues and early rock and roll, the Rolling Stones started out playing covers and were at the forefront of the British Invasion in 1964, becoming identified with the youthful and rebellious counterculture of the 1960s. They then found greater success with their own material, as "(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction" (1965), "Get Off of My Cloud" (1965), and "Paint It Black" (1966) became international number-one hits. Aftermath (1966) – their first entirely original album – is considered by The Daily Telegraph to be the most important of their formative records. In 1967, they had the double-sided hit "Ruby Tuesday"/"Let's Spend the Night Together" and experimented with psychedelic rock on Their Satanic Majesties Request. They returned to their rhythm and blues roots with hit songs such as "Jumpin' Jack Flash" (1968) and "Honky Tonk Women" (1969), and albums such as Beggars Banquet (1968), featuring "Sympathy for the Devil", and Let It Bleed (1969), featuring "You Can't Always Get What You Want" and "Gimme Shelter". Let It Bleed was the first of five consecutive number-one albums in the UK.

Jones left the band shortly before his death in 1969, having been replaced by guitarist Mick Taylor. That year they were first introduced on stage as "The Greatest Rock and Roll Band in the World". Sticky Fingers (1971), which yielded "Brown Sugar" and included the first usage of their tongue and lips logo, was their first of eight consecutive number-one studio albums in the US. Exile on Main St. (1972), featuring "Tumbling Dice", and Goats Head Soup (1973), yielding the hit ballad "Angie", were also best sellers. Taylor was replaced by Ron Wood in 1974. The band continued to release successful albums, including their two largest sellers: Some Girls (1978), featuring "Miss You", and Tattoo You (1981), featuring "Start Me Up". Steel Wheels (1989) was widely considered a comeback album and was followed by Voodoo Lounge (1994), a worldwide number-one album. Both releases were promoted by large stadium and arena tours, as the Stones continued to be a huge concert attraction; by 2007 they had recorded the all-time highest-grossing concert tour three times, and as recently as 2021 they were the highest-earning live act of the year. From Wyman's departure in 1993 to Watts' death in 2021, the band continued as a four-piece core, with Darryl Jones playing bass on tour and on most studio recordings, while Steve Jordan became their touring drummer following Watts' death. Their 2016 album, Blue & Lonesome, became their twelfth UK number-one album.

The Rolling Stones' estimated record sales of 200 million make them one of the best-selling music artists of all time. The band has won three Grammy Awards and a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award. They were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1989 and the UK Music Hall of Fame in 2004. Billboard magazine and Rolling Stone have ranked the band as one of the greatest of all time.

Full Wikipedia article: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Rolling_Stones

Studio albums
The Rolling Stones / England's Newest Hit Makers (1964)
12 X 5 (1964)
The Rolling Stones No. 2 / The Rolling Stones, Now! (1965)
Out of Our Heads (1965)
December's Children (And Everybody's) (1965)
Aftermath (1966)
Between the Buttons (1967)
Their Satanic Majesties Request (1967)
Beggars Banquet (1968)
Let It Bleed (1969)
Sticky Fingers (1971)
Exile on Main St. (1972)
Goats Head Soup (1973)
It's Only Rock 'n Roll (1974)
Black and Blue (1976)
Some Girls (1978)
Emotional Rescue (1980)
Tattoo You (1981)
Undercover (1983)
Dirty Work (1986)
Steel Wheels (1989)
Voodoo Lounge (1994)
Bridges to Babylon (1997)
A Bigger Bang (2005)
Blue & Lonesome (2016)
Hackney Diamonds (2023)

Back Of My Hand
The Rolling Stones Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

I hear a preacher on the corner
Ranting like a crazy man
He says there's trouble, troubles are coming
I can read it like the back of my hand

I see love, I see misery
Jamming side by side on the stage
In the wind some mournful melody

I can read it like the back of my hand

The back of my hand... Oh yeah
Oh yeah...
I see dreams, I see visions
Images I don't understand
I see Goya's paranoias
I can read it like the back of my hand

Well, read it like the back of my hand
Oh yeah, wow yeah

Wow yeah
Read it like the back of my hand

Overall Meaning

The lyrics of The Rolling Stones’ song, Back of My Hand, revolve around the theme of the singer’s perception and understanding of the world around him. He talks about a preacher on the corner, who is ranting like a crazy man and predicting that trouble is impending. The singer metaphorically alludes that he can read the signs of trouble, “like the back of his hand”. This implies that he knows the signs and patterns of trouble like the back of his hand, and he is not too worried about any prediction of impending trouble.

The singer further states that he sees love and misery side by side on stage, and he is well aware of the contradictory nature that exists in the world. In the wind, the melancholic melody is playing, and he can feel the mood change just by listening to the music. He adds that he sees visions that he cannot understand and images of Goya's paranoias. Goya’s artworks are known for their extreme nature, and the use of his name in the song indicates that the singer can comprehend even the weirdest of things.

Overall, The Rolling Stones’ song, Back of My Hand, is a commentary on the singer’s astute perception and insightful view of the world. The singer seems to be proud of his ability to understand and observe the world around him, which is evident from the repeated lines “I can read it like the back of my hand”. The lyrics suggest that the singer is confident in his ability to decipher the signs of imminent change or danger and is well prepared to face whatever the world throws at him.

Line by Line Meaning

I hear a preacher on the corner
I am within earshot of a preacher who is standing on a street corner and preaching loudly.

Ranting like a crazy man
The preacher is shouting and speaking in a wild and irrational manner.

He says there's trouble, troubles are coming
The preacher is warning that difficult times are ahead and there will be problems to face.

I can read it like the back of my hand
I am so familiar with the idea of difficult times that I can easily understand and predict the coming troubles.

I see love, I see misery
I observe and recognize both love and suffering in the world.

Jamming side by side on the stage
Love and misery coexist and appear together in people's lives.

In the wind some mournful melody
I hear a sad tune that is carried by the wind.

I can read it like the back of my hand
I am so experienced in the ways of the world that I can easily interpret and comprehend the sad tune.

I see dreams, I see visions
I perceive and visualize abstract concepts and ideas in my imagination.

Images I don't understand
Despite my ability to recognize and envision these abstract images, I still struggle to fully comprehend them.

I see Goya's paranoias
I am able to visualize and comprehend the surreal and disturbing artwork of Spanish artist Francisco Goya.

Well, read it like the back of my hand
I am so familiar and skilled in interpreting the world around me that I can easily understand and navigate the complexities of life.

Lyrics © BMG Rights Management
Written by: KEITH RICHARDS, MICK JAGGER

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind

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