The Rolling Stones have called in the big guns for their new song, “Sweet Sounds of Heaven.” Listen to Lady Gaga and Stevie Wonder help out the rock ‘n’ roll legends below.
“Sweet Sounds of Heaven” has a classic, slow-rolling blues vibe, as Wonder, at the behest of Jagger, lays down a smooth piano melody that melds with rousing horns and Keith Richards’ guitar. Jagger opens the track, paying tribute to the late Charlie Watts with lyrics like, “Bless the Father, bless the Son, hear the sound of the drums/ As it echoes through the valley and it bursts.”
Jagger is then joined by Gaga, who at first delivers restrained backing vocals on the second verse before letting it all hang out on the chorus. “No, I’m not, not goin’ to Hell/ In some dusty motel,” the duo sings. “And I’m not, not goin’ down/ In the dirt.”
Wonder recently spoke to Rolling Stone about his gospel-inspired contribution to the track. “I felt that the song needed a place of celebration, a celebration of the spirit of the rhythms and the spirit of just everybody coming together for that event,” he said. “It’s not saying, ‘Goodbye,’ to me, it’s saying, ‘Hello.'”
Meanwhile, Gaga ended up on “Sweet Sounds” when she was recording at the same studio and asked to stop by to say hello. As Ron Wood recalled, Gaga “was sitting there on the floor just digging it and singing along” to the in-progress song before Jagger requested that they “do it properly.”
“Sweet Sounds” is the Stones’ second offering from Hackney Diamonds, their first album of original new material in 18 years. In addition to Gaga and Stevie, the LP features contributions from Paul McCartney and Elton John, as well as the band’s former bassist Bill Wyman and late drummer Charlie Watts. They first previewed the album, due out October 20th, with the single “Angry.”
Though The Rolling Stones are still kicking, Mick Jagger is already thinking about a future without the band. In a recent interview, the singer declared that he was “open” to green lighting a “posthumous tour” using holograms of the group. In the meantime, see where the real life Stones rank in our list of the best concert films of all time.
