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Jones left the band shortly before his death in 1969, having been replaced by guitarist Mick Taylor.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)
Beast of Burden
The Rolling Stones Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
My back is broad but it's a-hurting
All I want for you to make love to me
I'll never be your beast of burden
I've walked for miles, my feet are hurting
All I want for you to make love to me
Am I hard enough?
Am I rich enough?
I'm not too blind to see
I'll never be your beast of burden
So let's go home and draw the curtains
Music on the radio
Come on baby make sweet love to me
Am I hard enough?
Am I rough enough?
Am I rich enough?
I'm not too blind to see
Oh, little sister
Pretty, pretty, pretty girls
Ooh, you're a pretty, pretty, pretty, pretty, pretty, pretty girl
Pretty, pretty, such a pretty, pretty, pretty girl
Come on, baby, please, please, please
I'll tell ya
You can put me out
On the street
Put me out
With no shoes on my feet
But put me out, put me out
Put me out of misery, yeah
All your sickness, I can suck it up
Throw it all at me
I can shrug it off
There's one thing, baby
I don't understand
You keep on telling me
I ain't your kind of man
Ain't I rough enough? Ooh, honey
Ain't I tough enough?
Ain't I rich enough? In love enough?
Ooh, please
I'll never be your beast of burden
I'll never be your beast of burden
Never, never, never, never, never, never, never be
I'll never be your beast of burden
I've walked for miles, my feet are hurting
All I want is you to make love to me
Yeah
I don't need no beast of burden
I need no fussing
I need no nursing
Never, never, never, never, never, never, never be
In the song "Beast of Burden," The Rolling Stones explore the concept of love and relationships, and how one person cannot be expected to be everything for their partner. The lyrics speak to the singer's desire to be loved and desired physically but also express their refusal to be a "beast of burden," a term previously used to describe the workhorses responsible for carrying heavy loads. The singer is declaring that they will not be the one to carry all the emotional and physical weight of the relationship alone. They ask their partner if they are "hard enough, rough enough, rich enough" to satisfy their desires, yet they never receive a response.
The chorus is repeated throughout the song, emphasizing the singer's assertion that they will not be a "beast of burden." The use of repetition also reinforces the point that no matter how much pressure is put on the individual, they will not break or become something they are not. The reference to "little sister" and "pretty girls" is a nod towards the objectification of women in rock music, but the singer still makes it clear that they will not let women or anyone else put them in a box or demand too much from them.
Line by Line Meaning
I'll never be your beast of burden
I refuse to be your emotional punching bag
My back is broad but it's a-hurting
I'm tired of carrying the weight of our relationship and it's causing me pain
All I want for you to make love to me
Physical affection is the only thing that still keeps me hanging on
I've walked for miles, my feet are hurting
I've gone through a lot of hardship for you and it's taken a toll on me
Am I hard enough?
Do I meet your expectations of being tough?
Am I rough enough?
Am I living up to your image of being rugged?
Am I rich enough?
Do I have enough wealth to satisfy you?
I'm not too blind to see
I'm aware of what you want and I'm trying to meet those expectations
So let's go home and draw the curtains
Let's have some privacy and intimacy
Music on the radio
Setting the mood for a romantic encounter
Come on baby make sweet love to me
Let's have physical intimacy to try to salvage our relationship
Oh, little sister
Referring to a female lover or partner
Pretty, pretty, pretty girls
Expressing desire for attractive women
Ooh, you're a pretty, pretty, pretty, pretty, pretty, pretty girl
Complimenting the physical beauty of a woman
Pretty, pretty, such a pretty, pretty, pretty girl
Reinforcing that the woman is attractive
You can put me out
You can abandon me
On the street
Leaving me homeless
With no shoes on my feet
Without any possessions or support
But put me out, put me out
If that's what you want, go ahead and do it
Put me out of misery, yeah
End my suffering caused by this relationship
All your sickness, I can suck it up
I'm willing to deal with all of your problems and shortcomings
Throw it all at me
I can handle whatever you are going through
I can shrug it off
I won't let your issues weigh me down
There's one thing, baby
There's something I don't understand
I don't understand
I don't comprehend
You keep on telling me
You repeatedly say it to me
I ain't your kind of man
I don't meet your expectations of what a man should be
Ain't I rough enough? Ooh, honey
I thought I was tough enough for you
Ain't I tough enough?
A repeat of the previous question with emphasis
Ain't I rich enough? In love enough?
Am I not wealthy or loving enough for you?
Ooh, please
An appeal for acceptance and validation
I don't need no beast of burden
I don't want to be someone's emotional punching bag
I need no fussing
I don't require constant attention or care
I need no nursing
I don't need to be nursed back to emotional health
Never, never, never, never, never, never, never be
I will never accept that role in this relationship
All I want is you to make love to me
Physical intimacy is the only remaining desire for me in this relationship
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: Keith Richards, Mick Jagger
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@lueysixty-six7300
That's a lie. – you're as old as you are!
It's just...late 40's Ain what we thought.
We thought it was boring, and serious and responsibilities...
Well, we certainly weren't all wrong!😆
But what we considered "daggy", and "stuck in their time " in our fathers..is really just revisiting our youth via nostaligia, and revisiting our fave tunes, bands..tv shows, movies..games, toys etc. — after working hard for 35 years, raising a family...🤷♂️
And, just like our fathers to us, we are "daggy" and "stuck in our time " to our sons ,& daughters.
And just like we see them as "lost" (",the kids of today..." Etc etc!!), and having terrible taste in music...and being thoroughly performative & melodramatic with their histrionics...??
→ Our father's & mothers thought the same of us when they were 49 and we were 16. 🤷♂️
@StormSong8
Black guy here who's too young to know the Stones, and whose parents didn't listen to rock, so I heard this song for the first time today. I was listening to old Howard Stern shows and laughing my ass off when He led into a segment with this cut. The beautiful opening rifts reminded me of the soulful blues I grew up on, prompting me to Google the words "I don't wanna be your beast of burden." Imagine my shock when the Rolling Stones popped up! A rock group? Can't be the same song! Well, it was the same song- and every bit as charming, simply complicated, soulfully melodic, and deeply delightful as any blues I'd ever heard!
My lesson for the day? Don't judge a book by it's cover. Stereotyping can make you miss out on some great stuff!
@averagejohnson3985
I guess you are not too seeeeeeeeee
@lukapejkovic918
Hell yeah man, music connects everyone
@throatbruise
My dad's dad who died before I was born hated rock music. My dad played this track for him without telling him it was The Stones and got my g-pa to admit it was good.
@laurabruckner1763
@@throatbruise my dad, born in 1927, loved the Beatles. He grew up on Rockabilly. Music truly does connect everyone and this is a classic!
@chrisjudge1645
@stormsong8 The stones were serious students of the blues and unabashed cultural appropriators. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z3Or7huOK7o
@cecilhammjr
I am 74 and loved The Rolling Stones in Vietnam and were very popular then unlike music of today
@waynepolk4179
This song is on my list of perfect rock songs. Everything comes together all at once: lyrics, vocals, pacing, guitars, drums, playing. What a masterpiece!
@mxwells216
Which makes me wonder why I sit here today and see why so many people dislike this video
@memorygil1127
can you share me the playlist pls