The Sound of '67 :The Rolling Stones "We Love You"

THE ROLLING STONES-We Love You/Dandelion UK Decca F 12654 1967

1967 was probably the shittiest year for the Rolling Stones. It started with the controversy over their single "Let's Spend The Night Together", then they caused a furor over refusing to appear smiling and waving at the conclusion of the British variety program "Sunday Night At The London Palladium".  Then "Between The Buttons" was released to a lukewarm critical response and a month later the "News Of The World" ran a story about Mick Jagger openly doing drugs in a London night spot, of course it wasn't Mick but Brian Jones.  Mick appeared on TV and discussed the possibility of suing for libel. What immediately followed was the infamous police raid on Keith's house, Redlands, that saw Mick and Keith both facing drug charges (on a well placed tip from "News Of the World").  Brian too felt the long arm of the law and had his collar felt as well on the very same day while Mick and Keith were in court. After Mick and Keith's sentences were squashed in the appeals court the band continued work on their 13th single, a "thank you" to fans called "We Love You", the most psychedelic thing they ever recorded.

As photographed by Michael Cooper 1967

There are legions of people, myself among them, who sort of belong to this cult of Brian Jones.  The reasons why are too lengthy to devote here and are worthy of a separate piece on their own. One of the many reasons which we can discuss here is the color he gave many of the Stones records.  "We Love You" is among them and is like nothing anyone else did, ever.  Starting with rattling chains and a clanking prison door Nicky Hopkin's melodic piano piece begins with footsteps and the vocals (featuring anonymous Beatles John and Paul) and Jones quirky Mellotron. Various Stones bootlegs contain interesting takes of it where you can hear him cooking up what later became the finished masterpiece. It's seeped in layers of it that weave in and out of Hopkin's descending piano trills.  At times it sounds as though he's pounding out a rhythm on the keys, no mean feat as the Mellotron is played using keys that lack the "play" that a piano has and the thundering African drums giving it a worldly air.  Charlie's drums have never sounded better on a Stones record either!! The British 45 closes with vocal snippets of the flip side, "Dandelion", eerily playing backwards. Filmmaker Peter Whitehead shot an incredible promo film (see below) in July of 1967 with Mick playing Oscar Wilde, Keith as a judge and Marianne Faithfull playing Wilde's lover Lord Alfred Douglas interspersed with footage of the band working in the studio and infamously, Brian Jones out of his head barely able to keep his eyes open. "Tops Of The Pops" refused to air it citing it's like of suitability for their viewing audience. Their loss.

Brian during the "We Love You" sessions at Olympic with the Mellotron

"We Love You" charted at # 8 in Britain in August 1967 and a dismal #50 in the U.S. the following month where DJ's took to playing the flip side, "Dandelion" which eventually reached #14!! Curiously "We Love You" was not available on a Stones long player in the States until 1972's "More Hot Rocks: Big Hits And Fazed Cookies" compilation double LP that collected any remaining unreleased it the States Decca era cuts. It was on the 1969 octagonal shaped U.K. compilation album "Through The Past Darkly (Big Hits Vol Two)" but omitted from the US issue.

Special guest backing vocalist confers with Mick during the "We Love You" session

"Dandelion" was originally one of Keith's songs that first started life in 1966 as "Sometimes Happy, Sometimes Blue" and eventually evolved into "Dandelion", a pastoral play on both a child's rhyme and game of playing with dandelion flowers. Nicky Hopkin's harpsichord and Brian's oboe add a regal air to it meshing perfectly with the lush/high (in both ways) "Summer of Love" backing harmonies  care of Mick, Keith and Beatle's John and Paul. Charlie's thundering drums towards the fade out make for a brilliant conclusion when intertwined with the oboe and harpsichord and the chorus slowly fades like sunset on a sunny day. Trippy!

See Michael Whitehead's "We Love You" promo film:

https://youtu.be/klTw94kTstg

Hear an early take of "We Love You" with Brian working out the Mellotron:

https://youtu.be/ILq8kMBOUcM

Hear "Dandelion":

https://youtu.be/VcndxAyNDYw

Hear Keith's demo "Sometimes Happy, Sometimes Blue":

https://youtu.be/ZDKET-yEDnQ