Satisfaction

Written for Song Lyric Sunday –
“The Psychic Apparatus”
This is my response to the challenge.

This week at Jim Adams’ Song Lyric Sunday, the theme is “The Psychic Apparatus”. Our challenge is to write about a song related to Freud’s id exhibiting instinctual drives that seek immediate pleasure or gratification without regard for reality. Talk about a can of worms! There are so many different topics that fit this theme, from the salacious and sexual to the sentimental and saccharine. Here’s the direction I took.

“Under My Thumb” is a song by the Rolling Stones, written by Mick Jagger and Keith Richards, and released on their 1966 studio album Aftermath. The track marked a shift toward the band’s original compositions, as Aftermath was their first album featuring entirely self-written material. Though not issued as a single in the UK or US, the song became a concert staple and is ranked among the Rolling Stones’ most enduring tracks for its raw energy and rhythmic drive.

The lyrics describe the narrator’s satisfaction in gaining dominance over a previously assertive female partner, whom he likens to a “Siamese cat” and “squirming dog,” reflecting themes of relational power reversal drawn from Jagger’s own sexual experiences. This perspective has sparked ongoing debate, with critics labeling it misogynistic for endorsing control over women, while Jagger has rejected such readings, stating that “the whole idea [of feminist uproar] is absurd” and emphasizing the song’s basis in personal dynamics rather than advocacy. Despite the controversy, the song’s musical innovation and cultural impact have sustained its legacy, influencing covers by artists like the Who and Del Shannon, and cementing its place in rock history as a provocative piece of 1960s counterculture.

During the Stones’ performance at the Altamont Free Concert on December 6, 1969, at Altamont Speedway in Livermore, CA, “Under My Thumb” was playing when 18-year-old attendee Meredith Hunter, who was there with his girlfriend Patty Bredehoft, was fatally stabbed by Hells Angels member Alan Passaro. The event, intended as a West Coast counterpart to Woodstock with an estimated 300,000 attendees, devolved into chaos due to inadequate organization, overcrowding, and the decision to hire Hells Angels as security in exchange for $500 worth of beer, leading to widespread violence throughout the day. As the band took the stage around 8:00 p.m. amid escalating fights near the stage, Mick Jagger attempted to address the crowd’s aggression by urging everyone to “sit down, relax and be cool”. Hunter’s stabbing was captured in the documentary “Gimme Shelter” and shows Hunter …. described in autopsy reports as under the influence of methamphetamines …. approaching the stage, pulling a .22-caliber revolver from his jacket, and being tackled and stabbed by Passaro. Passaro claimed self-defense and was acquitted on August 12, 1971. The timing of the incident during “Under My Thumb” has since been invoked in analyses of Altamont as emblematic of the counterculture’s collapse, though links to the song’s lyrics remain interpretive rather than evidentiary, with violence predating and outlasting the performance.

An article in the Courier-Journal in 1971 considered the song among the “worst picture[s] of women … where sexual exploitation reaches unique heights.” Writing for the Lincoln Gazette in 1972, musician/journalist Dave Downing noted the concerns raised but considered stereotyping and oversimplification to be “very difficult to avoid” in rock music, calling “Under My Thumb” a “piece of art, not social doctrine”.

This is “Under My Thumb” by the Rolling Stones

“Under My Thumb” live from Altamont

The Psychic Apparatus

Big thanks to Jim Adams for hosting another great Song Lyric Sunday this week and every week. Be sure to follow the link and check out Jim’s site.

Thanks for stopping by and listening to some great music. I hope you enjoyed the theme for this week as well as the information and song I featured.

That’s all she wrote, kids. See you on the flip side. 😎

NAR©2026

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