Miss You (Rolling-Stones-Lied)

"Miss You" is a 1978 hit song by The Rolling Stones, from their album Some Girls.

Inspiration and recording

"Miss You" was written by singer Mick Jagger while jamming with keyboardist Billy Preston during rehearsals for the March 1977 El Mocambo club gigs (yielding Side Three of the Love You Live album). Although guitarist Keith Richards is credited for co-writing, Jagger is generally regarded as the principal composer.

Several of the songs on 1976's Black and Blue had been influenced by dance music. "Miss You" was the first Rolling Stones single with prominent disco influences, most noticeably in Charlie Watts' thumping, four-on-the-floor drum beat, and in Bill Wyman's funky, grooving bass-lines, which provide another riff in addition to the main melody. That melody, sung in playful falsetto by Jagger, or else intoned by a chorus of dreamy, borderline-campy backup singers, forms the principal hook used throughout the track, often underlined by Sugar Blue's harmonica lines and incisive solos. The funky beat and the rapping during the verses are reminiscent of hip-hop, although it would be a couple of years before hip-hop was commonly recognized as a distinct genre in its own right.

Unlike most of the Stones songs on Some Girls, "Miss You" features several studio musicians. In addition to Sugar Blue, Ian McLagan supplies electric piano, which fits into the overall groove of the song to the point that it is barely audible, and Mel Collins provides the glitzy saxophone solos heard during the instrumental break.

Personnel

• Mick Jagger – vocals
• Charlie Watts – drums
• Bill Wyman – bass
• Keith Richards – guitar, background vocals
• Ron Wood – guitar, background vocals
• Ian McLagan – electric piano
• Mel Collins – saxophone
• Sugar Blue – harmonica

Release and aftermath

"Miss You" would be one of the highly successful Stones singles, becoming their eighth number-one hit in the U.S. on its initial release in 1978. The song was originally nearly nine minutes long, but was edited to four-and-a-half minutes for the album version, and to three-and-a-half minutes for the radio single. The B-side of the single was another album track, "Far Away Eyes", a light-hearted country and western tune sung by Jagger in a pronounced drawl.

A live recording was captured during the Stones' 1989-1990 Steel Wheels/Urban Jungle Tour and released on the 1991 live album Flashpoint. Justin Timberlake collaborated with The Stones for a live performance of "Miss You" at the Toronto Rocks festival. Jagger inserted the chorus of Timberlake's hit "Cry Me a River" during the song's breakdown.

In 2004, Rolling Stone magazine rated "Miss You" number 496 in its list of The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.

Cover versions

Etta James, in her "Matriarch of the Blues" 2000 album, covered Miss You.
It was covered by neo-soul singer Musiq Soulchild for his 2003 album Soulstar. In this version, the reference to "Puerto Rican girls" is replaced with "pretty girls".
It was covered in an instrumental jazz version by E Street Band member Danny Federici for his 2006 album Out Of A Dream. It was released as the first and only single from the album.
American band Black Eyed Peas made a cover of this song in Fashion Rocks 2008.
Japanese singer-songwriter UA collaborated with the band Little Creatures for her 2005 album Nephew and covered "Miss You" in a downbeat, experimental style.

Appearances in popular culture

"Miss You" was used in the opening scene of the pilot episode of Miami Vice, which first aired on September 16, 1984. The song was used in the 1986 Sean Penn crime drama, At Close Range. It was remixed by west coast hip-hop producer Dr. Dre for the soundtrack to Austin Powers in Goldmember.
The song was featured in a viral video skit known as "Jagg Off" where two men have to compete by doing "their best Jagger" as in imitating his on-stage dancing to the tune of this song.

See also

• Hot 100 number-one hits of 1978 (United States)

External links

• Complete Official Lyrics