#108 Beggars Banquet by The Rolling Stones

The 100 Greatest Albums of All Time

2025 Album Rank

108

2011 Album Rank

80

Total Points

590

Year Released

1968

Billboard 200 Chart Peak

5

Weeks at #1

N/A

RIAA Sales Certification

1,000,000 (Platinum)

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Beggars Banquet Album Details

Released on December 6, 1968, Beggars Banquet marked a critical turning point for The Rolling Stones, signaling a return to their blues and roots-rock foundations after dabbling in psychedelic experimentation. Produced by Jimmy Miller, the album pairs gritty, stripped-down instrumentation with sharp, socially charged lyrics, offering a raw and powerful portrait of late-1960s unrest.

Featuring tracks like "Sympathy for the Devil" and "Street Fighting Man", the album highlights the Stones' embrace of darker themes, while also showcasing acoustic blues, country influences, and swaggering rock. Beggars Banquet is widely seen as the beginning of the band's "golden era," establishing the harder-edged sound and rebellious spirit that would define their best work for years to come.

Interesting Facts about Beggars Banquet

• The original planned cover for Beggars Banquet featured a graffiti-covered bathroom wall, but Decca Records rejected it, leading to a simple invitation-style design for the initial release.
• Brian Jones' involvement in the album was minimal due to his personal struggles; however, he played unusual instruments like sitar and mellotron on several tracks.
• "Sympathy for the Devil" evolved significantly in the studio, originally starting as a folk ballad before transforming into the now-famous samba-driven anthem.
• The chaotic "woo-woo" backing vocals on "Sympathy for the Devil" were a spontaneous idea suggested during the recording sessions and involved almost everyone in the studio clapping and chanting.
• The politically charged "Street Fighting Man" was partially inspired by the Paris student riots of 1968, as well as growing unrest in the United States and the UK.
• Keith Richards recorded the main riff of "Street Fighting Man" using an acoustic guitar played into a cassette recorder to achieve a gritty, compressed sound.
• One of the hidden highlights of the album is "No Expectations", featuring one of Brian Jones' last major contributions to the band, with his haunting slide guitar work.
• Mick Jagger cited American country blues, particularly Robert Johnson, as a major influence on the feel and style of Beggars Banquet.
• Jimmy Miller, who began producing with this album, would go on to produce some of the Stones' most celebrated records, including Let It Bleed and Exile on Main St..
• When Beggars Banquet was finally released, it received critical acclaim, and many fans and critics consider it the true beginning of The Rolling Stones' classic period.
• The album was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 1999 for its cultural and historical significance.

Beggars Banquet Track List

1. Sympathy for the Devil
2. No Expectations
3. Dear Doctor
4. Parachute Woman
5. Jigsaw Puzzle
6. Street Fighting Man
7. Prodigal Son
8. Stray Cat Blues
9. Factory Girl
10. Salt of the Earth