The Rolling Stones have always worked in tandem and complemented the greatest aspects of each other’s musicality. They know one another almost better than they know themselves, especially regarding their artistry. For this reason, Keith Richards spent years begging Mick Jagger to sing one song that he later transformed into a classic.
The track in question isn’t an original track by The Rolling Stones, but a cover of Bob & Earl’s 1963 song ‘Harlem Shuffle’. Upon its initial release, the R&B creation was a minor hit on the Billboard Hot 100, peaking at 44. However, Richards was enamoured by it, and decades later, he finally had the opportunity to record a version with his bandmates.
Bob & Earl got the title for their track from a dance popular within New York’s Black community, and ‘Harlem Shuffle’ allowed it to reach a wider audience. The original was also later sampled on ‘Jump Around’ by Hous of Pain, further cementing its status in popular culture.
During the recording process of 1986’s Dirty Work, Jagger agreed to attempt the ‘Harlem Shuffle’, and as Richards suspected, his voice fitted the song like a glove. They only needed two takes to reach perfection, with Bobby Womack assisting on backing vocals.
Following the release of the track as a single, Richards said: “I’ve been trying to get ‘Harlem Shuffle’ on an album, without actually telling Mick, for five or six years. I thought that was a natural number for him to sing – it was made for him. I’ve been giving him cassettes with ‘Harlem Shuffle’ stuffed in the middle somewhere for a long time, but I never got any real response.”
After years of making subtle hints to his bandmates, they eventually caved, and the completed track even exceeded Richards’ heightened expectations. The guitarist explained: “One night we were in the studio and Woody and I started plunking away at it. We were amazed at how simple the song was – about two chords.”
Richards added: :The band was just warming up on it, jamming, when Mick walked in and started singing. We realised, yeah. And we did it in two takes. So it paid off eventually, though it cost me a fortune in cassettes.”
The Rolling Stones elected the song as the lead single from Dirty Work, bucking their traditional trend. It marked the first time since 1965 that The Stones had not given this esteemed spot to one of their originals.
After not playing ‘Harlem Shuffle’ live for 29 years, The Rolling Stones re-integrated the classic back into their setlist in 2019 for one night only at New Jersey’s MetLife Stadium. Introducing the song, Jagger told the crowd: “Has anyone crossed two rivers to get here tonight? Anybody here from Queens? Anyone from Manhattan? Westchester? Staten Island? The Bronx? Hartford? Anyone here from New Jersey? We’re going to do a song sort of locally, vaguely, based. It’s called ‘Harlem Shuffle.’”
