As Tears Go By

Andrew Loog Oldham locked Mick Jagger and Keith Richards in a kitchen with nothing but food and guitars, refusing to let them leave until they wrote an original ballad. That confinement produced As Tears Go By, the first official songwriting credit for the duo that would eventually define their career. Released as a single by Marianne Faithfull in December 1964, the track featured her fragile vocals over soft orchestral arrangements that stood in stark contrast to the band's usual rock and roll output.

Faithfull's version climbed to number nine on the UK Singles Chart and matched that peak in Ireland, proving she had serious artistic depth beyond her initial pop novelty status. The Rolling Stones recorded their own take later in 1965 for the US compilation album December's Children (And Everybody's). London Records issued the Stones' cut as a single in America where it reached number six on the Billboard Hot 100. [edit]