![Sympathy for the Devil](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/d/da/Sympathy_for_the_Devil_cover.jpg)
Song
Sympathy for the Devil
The Rolling Stones
Album:
Beggars Banquet
Song Meaning of Sympathy For The Devil by The Rolling Stones
The Master and Margarita, a book by Soviet author Mikhail Bulgakov that depicts Satan having his way in 1930s Moscow, served as the source of inspiration for this hellish diversion. The lyrics centre on historical crimes from Satan's perspective, such as the trial and crucifixion of Jesus Christ, religious conflicts in Europe, the bloody 1917 Russian Revolution, the 1918 execution of the Romanov family during World War I, and World War II. The song's first line asked "Who shot Kennedy?" but was modified to refer to both assassinations following the death of Robert F. Kennedy on June 6, 1968.
Mick Jagger's ominous Dylan-like lyrics were a challenge for Keith Richards, who was confused "whether it should be a samba or a goddamn folk song," he later recounted.
As a result, the Stones gave the devil one of their best grooves, constructed on Rocky Dijon's congas and Bill Wyman's Maracas in the style of Bo Diddley. "Before, [the media] said, 'They're evil, they're evil,' when we were just innocent kids having fun," Richards recalled. "So that makes you begin to consider evil... Everyone is a Lucifer.
Sympathy For The Devil lyrics by The Rolling Stones
Please allow me to introduce myself
I'm a man of wealth and taste
I've been around for a long, long year
Stole many a man's soul and faith
I was 'round when Jesus Christ
Had his moment of doubt and pain
Made damn sure that Pilate
Washed his hands and sealed his fate
Pleased to meet you
Hope you guess my name
But what's puzzling you
Is the nature of my game
I stuck around St. Petersburg
When I saw it was a time for a change
Killed the Tzar and his ministers
Anastasia screamed in vain
I rode a tank
Held a general's rank
When the blitzkrieg raged
And the bodies stank
Pleased to meet you
Hope you guess my name, oh yeah
But what's puzzling you
Is the nature of my game, oh yeah
I watched with glee
While your kings and queens
Fought for ten decades
For the gods they made
I shouted out,
"Who killed the Kennedys?"
When after all
It was you and me
Let me please introduce myself
I'm a man of wealth and taste
And I laid traps for troubadours
Who get killed before they reach Bombay
Pleased to meet you
Hope you guessed my name, oh yeah
But what's puzzling you
Is the nature of my game, oh yeah, get down, hit it
Pleased to meet you
Hope you guessed my name, oh yeah
But what's confusing you
Is just the nature of my game
Just as every cop is a criminal
And all the sinners saints
As heads is tails
Just call me Lucifer
Cause I'm in need of some restraint
So if you meet me
Have some courtesy
Have some sympathy, and some taste
Use all your well-learned politesse
Or I'll lay your soul to waste
Um yeah
Pleased to meet you
Hope you guessed my name, um yeah
But what's puzzling you
Is the nature of my game
Um mean it, get down
Woo, who
Oh yeah, get on down
Oh yeah
Oh yeah!
Tell me baby, what's my name
Tell me honey, can ya guess my name
Tell me baby, what's my name
I tell you one time, you're to blame
Ooo, who
Ooo, who
Ooo, who
Ooo, who, who
Ooo, who, who
Ooo, who, who
Ooo, who, who
Oh, yeah
What's my name
Tell me, baby, what's my name
Tell me, sweetie, what's my name
Ooo, who, who
Ooo, who, who
Ooo, who, who
Ooo, who, who
Ooo, who, who
Ooo, who, who
Ooo, who, who
Oh, yeah
Release Date
1968
Songwriter/s
Jagger–Richards
Producer/s
Jimmy Miller
Label/s
Decca