Watch The Rolling Stones Live Unplugged Performance Of “Beast of Burden”

Even though all of them are in their ripe, old age now, the Rolling Stones are still one of the most exciting rock bands of all time. Despite their reputation as one of the most hyperactive bands in history (Mick Jagger would’ve been handed that title alone), The Stones have often proven that they can tone down the intensity of their live shows by replacing the electric guitar with an acoustic, a technique that ultimately led to the creation of one of their finest live recordings.

Presented below, is a video of Stones playing the unplugged version of their hit, “Beast of Burden.” The song was released on the album Some Girls, and around the time when Mick Jagger was running the band and Keith Richards was heavily dosed up on his heroin addiction.

“Beast of Burden” was made between October and December of 1977. Although the song’s framework was written before the Stones entered the studio, Jagger improvised much of the recording’s lyrics to complement the effortlessly flowing guitars of Keith Richards and Ronnie Wood.

In an interview, Jagger explained: “Lyrically, this wasn’t particularly heartfelt in a personal way. It’s a soul-begging song, an attitude song. It was one of those where you get one melodic lick, break it down and work it up; there are two parts here which are basically the same.”

You can watch the fantastic performance of Rolling Stones here.