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TL;DR:

  • A drummer said The Rolling Stones’ “Honky Tonk Women” made him a big fan of the band.
  • He said “Honky Tonk Women” sounded like a funk song.
  • The drummer said the track features the band’s “seismic moment.
Mick Jagger with a microphone during The Rolling Stones' "Honky Tonk Women" period
The Rolling Stones’ Mick Jagger| Evening Standard/Getty Images

A drummer who worked with Keith Richards for many years said The Rolling Stones‘ “Honky Tonk Women” featured the band’s “seismic moment.” Notably, The Rolling Stones released the song shortly after Brian Jones’ death. Subsequently, the tune played an interesting role in a memorial service for the rock star.

A drummer who worked with The Rolling Stones was initially more of a fan of The Beatles

According to a 2021 Rolling Stone article, drummer Steve Jordan worked with Keith Richards for 35 years before touring with The Rolling Stones. He was asked when he became a Rolling Stones fan. “Probably about eight,” he said.

“I was more of a Beatles fanatic than a Stones fanatic at that age,” he added. “You had to choose between them. You couldn’t be a fan of both bands. It was forbidden. But the good songs broke through that.”

Subsequently, Jordan explained how he became more interested in The Rolling Stones. “I first became a real fan of the Stones when I heard “Honky Tonk Women,'” he said. “I thought that was an incredibly funky track. It was like funk. I said, ‘Wow, this is funky now. Wow, the fusion of the guitars with the drums …’ That’s when I became a Charlie Watts fan.”

Steve Jordan discussed the part of The Rolling Stones’ ‘Honky Tonk Women’ that amazed him

Jordan elaborated on the instrumentation of the track. “It’s really Keith Richards and Charlie Watts and Jimmy Miller on the cowbell,” he said. “That’s what you’re hearing. You’re not hearing anything else besides those three elements, and, of course, the lead vocal.

“But even before Mick comes in, you hear Keith, Charlie, and the cowbell,” he continued. “And it’s all over. End of discussion, end of story. Boom. That’s the seismic moment for me with the Stones.”

Jordan isn’t the only one who really liked “Honey Tonk Women.” During a 1989 interview with the Los Angeles Times, Mick Jagger and Keith Richards both said “Honky Tonk Women” was one of the best songs in the band’s catalog. Richards went so far as to say it was one of The Rolling Stones’ 10 best songs.

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‘Honky Tonk Women’ played a role in a memorial concert for Brian Jones that took place shortly after his death

“Honky Tonk Women” was significant beyond its quality. According to Stereogum, The Rolling Stones released “Honky Tonk Women” in the United Kingdom the day after founding member Brian Jones died.

The next day, The Rolling Stone played a free concert where they released butterflies in honor of Jones. All the volunteers who helped clean up following the concert received copies of “Honky Tonk Women.” Notably, the tune became the group’s final chart-topper in the U.K.

Jordan is a big fan of “Honky Tonk Women” and he was not the only one.

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