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Jones left the band shortly before his death in 1969, having been replaced by guitarist Mick Taylor.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)

Break The Spell
The Rolling Stones Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

In the winter when the cold comes
And the wind blows with a scornful spite
And the hard ground feels barren
And the forest seems deathly quiet
And the whole world lies sleeping
There's a gypsy all dressed in white
Put my hand out, ask the question
Here's the silver, do you have the gift of sight

Can you break the spell
Can you ring the bell
Can you break the spell
It's cold black as night
I've got a hard heart
Since we've been apart
Can you break the spell
Break it all down tonight

In the springtime when the floods come
And the earth bursts with the terrible life
And the sun splash on the windows
There's a gypsy and he's all dressed in white
And my heart burns with the question
Can you break the spell
It's still hot as fire

Can you break the spell
Can you ring the bell
Can you break the spell

It's cold black as night
Cold black as night

Overall Meaning

The Rolling Stones's song "Break The Spell" is a track that speaks about a person seeking help in breaking a bad spell that was put on them. The lyrics use the winter and spring as metaphors to describe the singer's situation. In the winter, when everything is cold, barren, and quiet, the singer visits a gypsy who might have the gift of breaking spells. He presents silver to the gypsy in exchange for his help. The chorus of the song asks the gypsy if he can break the spell and ring the bell. The singer has a hard heart and wants the spell to be broken entirely that day.

In the spring, when things have come alive, the singer returns to the gypsy, who is still in his white outfit. The singer's heart is burning with the same question: can you break the spell? The second chorus repeats the same question as the first, emphasizing the singer's desperation. The song ends with a reminder of how dark the situation is, describing it as cold as black as night.

The song showcases some themes of mystery, the desire for change, and the power of magic. The singer is clearly going through a difficult and trying time, but he is willing to try anything to break the spell that will release him. Interestingly, this song was initially supposed to appear on their original album, “The Rolling Stones.” However, with the band not yet satisfied with how the song was recorded, it was removed and wasn't included in its initial release. Nevertheless, a few different recordings were made of the song, including an earlier version that appeared on the compilation album “Metamorphosis.”

Line by Line Meaning

In the winter when the cold comes
When the winter arrives with its cold temperatures

And the wind blows with a scornful spite
The wind blows forcefully and with malicious intent

And the hard ground feels barren
The soil is too compact and unyielding

And the forest seems deathly quiet
The forest appears eerie and lifeless

And the whole world lies sleeping
The world is at rest and everything appears inactive

There's a gypsy all dressed in white
A gypsy is seen wearing white clothing

Put my hand out, ask the question
I want to extend my hand and ask the gypsy a question

Here's the silver, do you have the gift of sight
I am offering money to the gypsy to ask if they have clairvoyant skills

Can you break the spell
Are you able to undo or reverse a curse?

Can you ring the bell
Can you create a positive change or breakthrough?

It's cold black as night
The situation feels dark and hopeless