Miss You (Rolling Stones song)

"Miss You" is a song written by Mick Jagger and Keith Richards. It was released as a single by the Rolling Stones on Rolling Stones Records in May 1978, one month in advance of their album Some Girls, and peaked at number one on the Billboard Hot 100 and number three on the UK Singles Chart. An extended version, called the "Special Disco Version", was released as the band's first dance remix on a 12-inch single.

"Miss You"
Single by the Rolling Stones
from the album Some Girls
B-side	"Far Away Eyes"
Released	10 May 1978 (US) 26 May 1978 (UK)
Recorded	10 October – 21 December 1977[1]
Studio	Pathé-Marconi, Paris
Genre	Disco[2][3] soul[4] disco rock[5]
Length	4:48 (album version) 3:35 (7-inch)
Label	Rolling Stones
Songwriter(s)	Jagger/Richards
Producer(s)	The Glimmer Twins
The Rolling Stones singles chronology
"Hot Stuff" (1976) "Miss You" (1978) "Beast of Burden" (1978)
Music video
"Miss You" on YouTube
Some Girls track listing
10 tracks Side one "Miss You" "When the Whip Comes Down" "Just My Imagination (Running Away with Me)" "Some Girls" "Lies" Side two "Far Away Eyes" "Respectable" "Before They Make Me Run" "Beast of Burden" "Shattered"

Inspiration and recording

"Miss You" was written by Mick Jagger jamming with keyboardist Billy Preston during rehearsals for the March 1977 El Mocambo club gigs, recordings from which appeared on side three of double live album Love You Live (1977). Keith Richards is credited as co-writer as was the case for all Rolling Stones originals written by either partner or in tandem.

Jagger and Ronnie Wood insist that "Miss You" wasn't conceived as a disco song, while Richards said, "'Miss You' was a damn good disco record; it was calculated to be one." In any case, what was going on in discotheques did make it to the recording. Charlie Watts said, "A lot of those songs like 'Miss You' on 'Some Girls' ... were heavily influenced by going to the discos. You can hear it in a lot of those four-to-the-floor and the Philadelphia-style drumming."

For the bass part, Bill Wyman started from Preston's bass guitar on the song demo.[6] Chris Kimsey, who engineered the recording, said Wyman went "to quite a few clubs before he got that bass line sorted out", which Kimsey said "made that song".[7] Wyman recalled: "When I did the riff for 'Miss You' – which made the song, and every band in the world copied it for the next year: Rod Stewart, all of them – it still said Jagger/Richard. When I wrote the riff for 'Jumpin' Jack Flash', it became Jagger/Richard, and that's the way it was. It just became part and parcel of the way the band functioned."[8]

Unlike most of Some Girls, "Miss You" features several studio musicians. In addition to Sugar Blue who, according to Wood, was found by Jagger busking on the streets of Paris,[9] Ian McLagan plays understated Wurlitzer electric piano, and Mel Collins provides the tenor saxophone solo for the instrumental break.

The 12-inch single version of the song runs over eight minutes and features additional instrumentation and solos, particularly on guitar. It was remixed by Bob Clearmountain, then an up-and-coming mixer and engineer. This song, the first edit the Stones did for a 12-inch single, also contains tape repeats and an additional set of lyrics in the second verse, after the line "Hey, let's go mess and fool around you know, like we used to". The extended version can be found on the "Don't Stop" CD single and in edited form on the album Rarities 1971–2003 and on the 1990 CD single version of "Angie".

Personnel

Personnel per Some Girls CD credits.[10]

The Rolling Stones

• Mick Jagger – lead and backing vocals,[11] electric guitar
• Keith Richards – electric guitar, backing vocals
• Ronnie Wood – electric guitar, backing vocals
• Bill Wyman – bass guitar
• Charlie Watts – drums

Additional personnel

• Ian McLagan – Wurlitzer electric piano
• Mel Collins – tenor saxophone
• Sugar Blue – harmonica

Release and legacy

"Miss You" became the Rolling Stones' eighth and final number one hit in the United States on its initial release in 1978. It hit the top on 5 August 1978, ending the seven-week reign of "Shadow Dancing" by Andy Gibb. It also reached number three in the United Kingdom. The song was originally nearly nine minutes long, but was edited to nearly five minutes for the album version, and to three-and-a-half minutes for the radio single. In order to properly edit the radio single without audible bumps and glitches, a separate mix was constructed and then edited for continuity. The B-side of the single was another album track, "Far Away Eyes", a tongue-in-cheek country tune sung by Jagger in a pronounced drawl.

A live recording was captured during the Rolling Stones' 1989-1990 Steel Wheels/Urban Jungle Tour and released on the 1991 live album Flashpoint. Other live versions have been recorded and/or filmed, including a November 1981 performance included on Let's Spend the Night Together (1983), July 1995 performances released on Totally Stripped (2016), a July 2013 performance on Hyde Park Live, and a March 2016 performance included as a bonus track on Havana Moon.

In 2010, Rolling Stone magazine rated "Miss You" number 498 in its list of The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.[12]

Charts and certifications

Weekly charts Chart (1978) Peak position Australia (Kent Music Report)[13] 8 Austria (Ö3 Austria Top 40)[14] 13 Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)[15] 3 Canada Dance/Urban (RPM)[16] 4 Canada Top Singles (RPM)[17] 1 Finland (Suomen virallinen lista)[18] 19 Ireland (IRMA)[19] 3 Netherlands (Dutch Top 40)[20] 2 Netherlands (Single Top 100)[21] 3 New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)[22] 8 Norway (VG-lista)[23] 11 Sweden (Sverigetopplistan)[24] 6 Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade)[25] 11 UK Singles (OCC)[26] 3 US Billboard Hot 100[27] 1 US Billboard Hot Dance Club Play[27] 6 US Billboard Hot Soul Singles[27] 33 US Cash Box[28] 1 US Record World[29] 3 West Germany (Official German Charts)[30] 12

Year-end charts Chart (1978) Position Australia (Kent Music Report)[31] 41 Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)[32] 29 Canada (RPM 200 Singles)[33] 5 Netherlands (Dutch Top 40)[34] 12 Netherlands (Single Top 100)[35] 37 New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)[36] 42 US Billboard Hot 100[37] 16 US Cash Box[38] 10 Certifications and sales Region Certification Certified units/sales United Kingdom (BPI)[39] Silver 250,000^^ United States (RIAA)[40] Gold 1,000,000^^ ^^shipments figures based on certification alone

See also

• List of Billboard Hot 100 number-one singles of 1978
• List of Cash Box Top 100 number-one singles of 1978
• List of number-one singles of 1978 (Canada)

References

1. "Tim Hinkley at Pathé Marconi studios, 1978". IORR.org. 10 November 2009. Retrieved 8 June 2014.
2. Reynolds, Simon (2010). Totally Wired: Postpunk Interviews and Overviews. Soft Skull Press. p. 425. ISBN 978-1593763947. The Rolling Stones did funk and disco with 'Hot Stuff' and 'Miss You' respectively.
3. Werner, Craig Hansen (2006). A Change is Gonna Come: Music, Race & the Soul of America. Plume. p. 210. ISBN 0-452-28065-6. By the time the Rolling Stones cashed in with their disco minstrel classic "Miss You" – which comes complete with the obligatory, if ironic, stereotyping of black and Puerto Rican women as objects of sexual taboo
4. Janovitz, Bill. "The Rolling Stones – Miss You – Song Review". AllMusic. Retrieved 11 May 2019.
5. Bennun, David (14 June 2017). "Disco rock – 10 of the best". The Guardian. Retrieved 3 January 2021.
6. McPherson, Ian. "Miss You". Timeisonourside.com. Retrieved 8 June 2014.
7. Buskin, Richard (April 2004). "CLASSIC TRACKS: 'Start Me Up'". Sound on Sound. Retrieved 6 June 2014.
8. Fortnam, Ian (Christmas 2002). "Face off: Bill Wyman". Classic Rock. No. 48. p. 42.
9. Wood, Ronnie (13 August 2013). "Ronnie Wood talks about Sugar Blue and the harmonica". Retrieved 3 September 2016 – via YouTube.
10. Some Girls (rear sleeve credits). The Rolling Stones. Rolling Stones Records/A&M Records. 2011.CS1 maint: others (link)
11. The Best of the Rolling Stones: Jump Back '71 to '93 (CD liner notes). 1993.
12. "500 Greatest Songs of All Time: 498 – The Rolling Stones, 'Miss You'". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 8 June 2014.
13. "Forum – ARIA Charts: Special Occasion Charts – CHART POSITIONS PRE 1989". Australian-charts.com. Hung Medien. Archived from the original on 20 October 2013. Retrieved 8 June 2014.
14. "Austriancharts.at – The Rolling Stones – Miss You" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40. Retrieved 8 June 2014.
15. "Ultratop.be – The Rolling Stones – Miss You" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved 8 June 2014.
16. "Top RPM Dance/Urban: Issue 4603." RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved 12 May 2015.
17. "Top RPM Singles: Issue 6970a." RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved 12 May 2015.
18. Pennanen, Timo (2006). Sisältää hitin - levyt ja esittäjät Suomen musiikkilistoilla vuodesta 1972 (in Finnish) (1st ed.). Helsinki: Tammi. ISBN 978-951-1-21053-5.
19. "The Irish Charts – Search Results – Miss You". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved 6 June 2013.
20. "Nederlandse Top 40 – The Rolling Stones - Miss You" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40. Retrieved 8 June 2014.
21. "Dutchcharts.nl – The Rolling Stones – Miss You" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved 8 June 2014.
22. "Charts.nz – The Rolling Stones – Miss You". Top 40 Singles. Retrieved 8 June 2014.
23. "Norwegiancharts.com – The Rolling Stones – Miss You". VG-lista. Retrieved 8 June 2014.
24. "Swedishcharts.com – The Rolling Stones – Miss You". Singles Top 100. Retrieved 8 June 2014.
25. "Swisscharts.com – The Rolling Stones – Miss You". Swiss Singles Chart. Retrieved 8 June 2014.
26. "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 6 June 2013.
27. "Some Girls – Awards". AllMusic. All Media Network. Retrieved 6 June 2013.
28. "CASH BOX Top 100 Singles – Week ending JULY 29, 1978". Cash Box. Archived from the original on 4 October 2012.
29. "Record World Singles Chart" (PDF). Record World. 29 July 1978. p. 51. ISSN 0034-1622. Retrieved 17 September 2017.
30. "Offiziellecharts.de – The Rolling Stones – Miss You". GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved 15 March 2019.
31. "Forum – ARIA Charts: Special Occasion Charts – Top 100 End of Year AMR Charts – 1970s". Australian-charts.com. Hung Medien. Archived from the original on 6 November 2013. Retrieved 8 June 2014.
32. "Jaaroverzichten 1978" (in Dutch). Ultratop. Hung Medien. Retrieved 8 June 2014.
33. "Top 200 Singles of '78". RPM. Vol. 30 no. 14. Library and Archives Canada. 30 December 1978. Retrieved 5 August 2019.
34. "Top 100-Jaaroverzicht van 1978" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40. Retrieved 8 June 2014.
35. "Jaaroverzichten – Single 1978" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Hung Medien. Retrieved 8 June 2014.
36. "End of Year Charts 1978". Recorded Music New Zealand. Retrieved 11 February 2016.
37. "Top 100 Hits for 1978". The Longbored Surfer. Archived from the original on 26 January 2010. Retrieved 8 June 2014.
38. "The CASH BOX Year-End Charts: 1978". Cash Box. Archived from the original on 27 October 2012.
39. "British single certifications – Rolling Stones – Miss You". British Phonographic Industry. Select singles in the Format field. Select Silver in the Certification field. Type Miss You in the "Search BPI Awards" field and then press Enter.
40. "American single certifications – The Rolling Stones – Miss You". Recording Industry Association of America. If necessary, click Advanced, then click Format, then select Single, then click SEARCH.