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Jones left the band shortly before his death in 1969, having been replaced by guitarist Mick Taylor.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

Let Me Go
The Rolling Stones Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

You're gonna get it straight from the shoulder
Can't you see the party's over
Let me go

Can't you get it through your thick head
This affair is finished dead
Hey, let me go

I tried giving you the velvet gloves
I tried giving you the knockout punch
Hey, let me go
Let me go
Let me go
Let me go
Let me go

I find it hard to be cruel
I find it hard to be cruel
With a smile, don't you?
You'll never find that perfect love
That you read about that you dream about

Maybe I'll become a playboy
Hang around in gay bars
And move to the west side of town

You're gonna get it straight from the shoulder
Can't you see the party's over
Hey, let me go
Let me go

So you think I'm giving you the brush off
Well I'm just telling you to shove off
Hey, let me, let me go

This ain't no time to waste my breath
We're going into sudden death
Hey, let me go

Can't you get it through your thick head
This affair is dead as a doornail
Hey, baby won't you let me go

The bell has rung, and I've called time
The chair is on the table, out the door baby
Baby won't you let me go
Let me go
Baby won't you let me go
Let me go
Baby won't you let me go
Let me go
Let me go

Let me go
Let let let (let me go)

Overall Meaning

The Rolling Stones' "Let Me Go" is a song about a man wanting to leave a relationship that's already finished. The lyrics express his desire to end the affair and move on, yet the other person seems to be in denial and unable to let him go. Despite his attempts to be gentle, he reaches a point where he feels the need to be blunt to get his message across. He explains that he's tried being nice and giving the other person a chance, but it's not working out. He also expresses that he finds it hard to be cruel and doesn't want to hurt the other person, but he needs to leave.

The song's lyrics convey the struggle between wanting to be kind and not wanting to hurt someone, yet needing to end a relationship that's not fulfilling. The singer is ready to move on, become a playboy, and hang around in gay bars, but is stuck with someone who won't let him go. The lyrics are straightforward and to the point, emphasizing the straightforwardness of the message that the singer wants to convey.

Overall, "Let Me Go" is a song that expresses the difficulty of ending relationships and the emotions that come with it. The lyrics are reflective of the pain and confusion that can be present when trying to move forward in a relationship.

Line by Line Meaning

You're gonna get it straight from the shoulder
I am going to be direct and honest with you

Can't you see the party's over
Our relationship is over and it's time to move on

Let me go
Please let me go and move on with my life

Can't you get it through your thick head
You are not understanding what I am saying

This affair is finished dead
Our relationship is completely and irrevocably over

Hey, let me go
Please let me go and move on with my life

I tried giving you the velvet gloves
I tried to be gentle and kind to you

I tried giving you the knockout punch
I also tried being more direct and forceful with you

I find it hard to be cruel
I don't want to hurt you, but I need to be honest with you

With a smile, don't you?
Despite my attempt to be kind, I know you don't believe me

You'll never find that perfect love
You've been seeking something that doesn't exist

That you read about that you dream about
The idea of love that you've been reading and dreaming about isn't real

Maybe I'll become a playboy
Perhaps I will become single and live a fun, carefree life

Hang around in gay bars
I might even frequent places where people go to socialize and have a good time

And move to the west side of town
I might even move to a different area, to get a fresh start

So you think I'm giving you the brush off
You might think that I am ending things abruptly, but that's not the case

Well I'm just telling you to shove off
I am simply asking you to move on

This ain't no time to waste my breath
I don't want to continue talking about this

We're going into sudden death
Our relationship is rapidly coming to an end

Hey, let me go
Please let me go and move on with my life

This affair is dead as a doornail
Our relationship is completely over and there is no chance of it rekindling

Hey, baby won't you let me go
Please let me go and move on with my life

The bell has rung, and I've called time
Our relationship has reached its end and it's time to move on

The chair is on the table, out the door baby
I am leaving you and moving on with my life

Baby won't you let me go
Please let me go and move on with my life

Let me go
Please let me go and move on with my life

Baby won't you let me go
Please let me go and move on with my life

Let me go
Please let me go and move on with my life

Let let let (let me go)
I am asking you multiple times to let me go and move on with my life

Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Universal Music Publishing Group, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Mick Jagger, Keith Richards

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind

To comment on or correct specific content, highlight it

TRACKS