View source for Their Satanic Majesties Request

{{Use British English|date=June 2011}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=May 2020}}
{{Infobox album
| name       = Their Satanic Majesties Request
| type       = studio
| artist     = [[the Rolling Stones]]
| cover      = Rolling Stones - Their Satanic Majesties Request - 1967 Decca Album cover.jpg
| alt        =
| released   = 8 December 1967
| recorded   = 9 February{{snd}}23 October 1967
| studio     = [[Olympic Studios|Olympic]], London
| genre      =
*[[Psychedelic pop]]<ref name="today">{{cite web|last1=Popkin|first1=Helen A.S.|title=The Stones may be old, but they can still rock|url=http://www.today.com/popculture/stones-may-be-old-they-can-still-rock-wbna8985740|website=Today|date=17 August 2005 |access-date=6 March 2017|archive-date=6 March 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170306210956/http://www.today.com/popculture/stones-may-be-old-they-can-still-rock-wbna8985740|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="Lester">{{cite news |last=Lester |first=Paul |author-link=Paul Lester |date=10 July 2007 |url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/musicblog/2007/jul/10/rehab |title=These albums need to go to rehab |work=[[The Guardian]] |access-date=21 July 2013 |location=London |archive-date=10 January 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140110191018/http://www.theguardian.com/music/musicblog/2007/jul/10/rehab |url-status=live }}</ref>
*[[acid rock]]<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2010-10-23/entertainment/sc-ent-1020-beatles-stones-20101023_1_stones-camp-satanic-majesties-request-beatles |title=''Chicago Tribune'' |access-date=25 January 2016 |archive-date=1 February 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160201055527/http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2010-10-23/entertainment/sc-ent-1020-beatles-stones-20101023_1_stones-camp-satanic-majesties-request-beatles |url-status=dead }}</ref>
*[[experimental rock]]<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=APmUFlgm0R4C&q=experimental%20rock%20satanic%20majesties|title=Listening to the Future: The Time of Progressive Rock, 1968–1978|last=Martin|first=Bill|date=1998|publisher=Open Court Publishing|isbn=9780812693683|access-date=17 September 2020|archive-date=4 May 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210504035803/https://books.google.com/books?id=APmUFlgm0R4C&q=experimental+rock+satanic+majesties|url-status=live}}</ref>
*[[psychedelic rock]]<ref name=Psych/>
| length     = 44:06
| label      = [[Decca Records|Decca]]
| producer   = The Rolling Stones
| chronology = [[The Rolling Stones]] UK
| prev_title = [[Between the Buttons]]
| prev_year  = 1967
| next_title = [[Beggars Banquet]]
| next_year  = 1968
| misc       = {{Extra chronology
| artist = [[The Rolling Stones]] US
| title = Their Satanic Majesties Request
| type = studio
| year = 1967
| prev_title = [[Flowers (Rolling Stones album)|Flowers]]
| prev_year  = 1967
| next_title = [[Beggars Banquet]]
| next_year  = 1968
}}
{{Singles
 | name        = Their Satanic Majesties Request
 | type        = studio
 | single1     = [[In Another Land]]" / "[[The Lantern (song)|The Lantern]]
 | single1date = 2 December 1967
 | single2     = [[She's a Rainbow]]" / "[[2000 Light Years from Home]]
 | single2date = 23 December 1967
}}
}}
'''''Their Satanic Majesties Request''''' is the sixth studio album by the English rock band [[the Rolling Stones]], released in December 1967 by [[Decca Records]] in the UK and by [[London Records]] in the United States. It was the first Rolling Stones album released in identical versions in both countries. The title is a play on the "Her Britannic Majesty requests and requires" text that appeared inside a [[British passport]].

The band experimented with a [[psychedelic music|psychedelic]] sound, incorporating unconventional elements such as [[Mellotron]], [[sound effect]]s, string arrangements, and [[Rhythm in Sub-Saharan Africa|African rhythms]]. The band members [[Music production|produced]] the album themselves as their manager/producer [[Andrew Loog Oldham]] had departed. The prolonged recording process was marked by drug use, court appearances, and jail terms by members of the band. The original LP cover features a [[Lenticular printing|lenticular]] image by the photographer [[Michael Cooper (photographer)|Michael Cooper]]. Following the release, the Rolling Stones abandoned their psychedelic style for a stripped-down return to their roots in [[blues]] music.

The album initially received mixed reviews.<ref name="pc46"/> It was criticised as being derivative of the contemporaneous work of [[the Beatles]], particularly their May 1967 release ''[[Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band]]'', with the similarities extending to the LP's cover.<ref>{{cite magazine|last1=Landau|first1=Jon|title=Their Satanic Majesty's Request [1968 Review]|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/albumreviews/their-satanic-majesties-request-19671208?page=2|magazine=Rolling Stone|access-date=19 August 2014|archive-date=19 August 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140819115649/http://www.rollingstone.com/music/albumreviews/their-satanic-majesties-request-19671208?page=2|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last1=duBrowa|first1=Corey|title=SOUND CHECK: BEATLES VS. STONES|url=http://www.magnetmagazine.com/2008/12/29/sound-check-the-beatles-vs-the-stones-2/|website=Magnetmagazine.com|date=29 December 2008 |publisher=Magnet Magazine|access-date=19 August 2014|archive-date=12 September 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140912123458/http://www.magnetmagazine.com/2008/12/29/sound-check-the-beatles-vs-the-stones-2/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=The Beatles Photos Hidden on the Rolling Stones "Their Satanic Majesties Request" Album Cover|url=http://www.feelnumb.com/2010/01/29/the-rolling-stones-returned-the-sgt-pepper-album-cover-tribute-to-the-beatles/|website=Feel Numb|access-date=19 August 2014|archive-date=13 November 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161113180123/http://www.feelnumb.com/2010/01/29/the-rolling-stones-returned-the-sgt-pepper-album-cover-tribute-to-the-beatles/|url-status=live}}</ref> In subsequent decades, however, the album's reception has been more favorable.<ref name="AM"/> 

==Recording==
Recording of ''Their Satanic Majesties Request'' began just after the release of ''[[Between the Buttons]]'' on 20 January 1967.
Because of court appearances<ref name="pc46">{{Gilliland |title=Show 46: Sergeant Pepper at the Summit – The very best of a very good year (part 2, segment 5) |series=Pop Chronicles |station=[[KRLA 1110|KRLA]] |location=[[Pasadena, CA]] |url=https://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc19813/m1/}} via the Digital Library of the [[University of North Texas]]. {{retrieved|access-date=2012-08-23}}</ref> and jail terms, the entire band was seldom present in the studio at one time, making recording of the album lengthy and disjointed. Band members frequently arrived with guests in tow, further interfering with productivity. One of the more level-headed members of the band during this time, [[Bill Wyman]], wary of psychedelic drugs, wrote the song "[[In Another Land]]" to parody the Stones' current goings-on.<ref name=Psych>{{cite book |last=DeRogatis |first=Jim |author-link=Jim DeRogatis |title=Turn on Your Mind: Four Decades of Great Psychedelic Rock |publisher=Hal Leonard Corporation |location=Milwaukee |year=2003 |pages=55–60 |isbn=0-634-05548-8}}</ref> In his 2002 book ''Rolling with the Stones'', Wyman describes the situations in the studio:

{{blockquote|Every day at the studio it was a lottery as to who would turn up and what{{snd}}if any{{snd}}positive contribution they would make when they did. Keith would arrive with anywhere up to ten people, Brian with another half-a-dozen and it was the same for Mick. They were assorted girlfriends and friends. I hated it! Then again, so did Andrew (Oldham) and just gave up on it. There were times when I wish I could have done, too.<ref>{{cite magazine |last1=Taylor |first1=Tom |title=The Rolling Stones album that Keith Richards hates |url=https://faroutmagazine.co.uk/the-rolling-stones-album-keith-richards-hates/ |magazine=Far Out |date=11 August 2021}}</ref>}}

[[File:Jagger and Richards (cropped).png|thumb|[[Mick Jagger]] (left), [[Brian Jones]] (back, center) and [[Keith Richards]] (right) in April 1967]]
The Stones experimented with many new instruments and sound effects during the sessions, including [[Mellotron]], [[theremin]], short wave radio static, and string arrangements by then-future [[Led Zeppelin]] bassist [[John Paul Jones (musician)|John Paul Jones]].<ref name=Psych/> Their producer and manager [[Andrew Loog Oldham]], already fed up with the band's lack of focus, distanced himself from them [[The Rolling Stones' drug bust|following their drug bust]] and finally quit, leaving them without a producer. As a result, ''Their Satanic Majesties Request'' would be the Stones' first self-produced album. [[Mick Jagger]] later opined this was not for the best, while expressing disdain for some of the tracks.<ref name=Dodd>{{cite book |last=Dodd |first=Philip |author-link=Philip Dodd (author) |title=According to The Rolling Stones |publisher=Chronicle Books |location=Italy |year=2003 |pages=[https://archive.org/details/accordingtorolli00jagg/page/113 113–114] |isbn=0-8118-4060-3 |url=https://archive.org/details/accordingtorolli00jagg/page/113 }}</ref>

In another interview, Brian Jones stated:
{{blockquote|It's really like sort of got-together chaos. Because we all panicked a little, even as soon as a month before the release date that we had planned, we really hadn't got anything put together. We had all these great things that we'd done, but we couldn't possibly put it out as an album. And so we just got them together, and did a little bit of editing here and there.<ref name="pc46jones">{{cite episode |title=Show 46: Sergeant Pepper at the Summit – The very best of a very good year (part 2, segment 5) |date=January 1968 |series=Pop Chronicles |station=[[KRLA 1110|KRLA]] |location=[[Pasadena, CA]] |credits=[[Brian Jones|Jones, Brian]] |url=https://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc19813/m1/ |access-date=2012-08-23 |publisher=Digital Library of the [[University of North Texas]] |archive-date=10 July 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170710134738/https://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc19813/m1/ |url-status=live }}</ref>}}

Some of the album's songs were recorded under various working titles, some appearing radically different from the final titles. These working titles include: "Acid in the Grass" ("In Another Land"), "I Want People to Know" ("2000 Man"), "Flowers in Your Bonnet" ("She's a Rainbow"), "Fly My Kite" ("The Lantern"), "Toffee Apple" ("2000 Light Years from Home"), and "Surprise Me" ("On with the Show").<ref name=Psych/> In 1998, a [[bootleg recording|bootleg]] box set of eight CDs with [[outtakes]] from the ''Satanic'' sessions was released, and it shows the band developing the songs over multiple takes as well as the experimentation that went into the recording of the album.

==Title and packaging==
{{More citations needed|date=November 2021}}
The [[working title]] of the album was ''Cosmic Christmas'', or ''The Rolling Stones' Cosmic Christmas'' –<ref name="MargotinGuesdon2016"/> in the hidden coda titled "Cosmic Christmas" (following "[[Sing This All Together#Sing This All Together (See What Happens)|Sing This All Together (See What Happens)]]"), a slowed-down version of the tune "We Wish You a Merry Christmas" is played on an oscillator. The album was released in [[South Africa]] and the [[Philippines]] as ''The Stones Are Rolling'' because of the word "Satanic" in the title.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://eil.com/shop/moreinfo.asp?catalogid=361602 |title=The Stones are Rolling |work=Eil.com |access-date=16 November 2007 |archive-date=5 December 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081205111630/http://eil.com/shop/moreinfo.asp?catalogid=361602 |url-status=live }}</ref>

One proposed cover, a photograph of Jagger naked on a [[crucifixion|cross]], was scrapped by the record company for being "in bad taste".<ref>{{cite magazine |title=Jagger 'Fed-Up', Producing Own Album |magazine=Rolling Stone |volume=1 |issue=3 |date=14 December 1967 |page=18}}</ref> The initial LP{{efn|Duplicated by Ampex for London Records, catalogue no. LPM 70141 and [[reel-to-reel]] releases.<ref>London Records, catalogue no. NPS-2.</ref>}} of the album featured a three-[[dimension]]al picture of the band on the cover by photographer [[Michael Cooper (photographer)|Michael Cooper]]. When viewed in a certain way, the [[lenticular image]] shows the band members' faces turning towards each other, with the exception of Jagger, whose hands appear crossed in front of him. Looking closely at its cover, one can see the faces of each of the four Beatles, reportedly a response to the Beatles' inclusion of a [[Shirley Temple]] doll wearing a "Welcome the Rolling Stones" sweater on the cover of ''Sgt. Pepper''. Later editions replaced the glued-on three-dimensional image with a photograph due to high production costs. A limited edition LP version in the 1980s reprinted the original 3D cover design; immediately following the reissue, it was claimed that the master materials for reprinting the 3D cover were intentionally destroyed, implying that faithful recreations of the cover would no longer be possible, but this has since been proven false by numerous re-issues. The lenticular album cover was featured, although shrunk down, for a (Japanese) SHM-CD release in 2008.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2020-11-30 |title=The Cover Uncovered: The story behind The Rolling Stones album 'Their Satanic Majesties Request' - Far Out Magazine |url=https://faroutmagazine.co.uk/the-rolling-stones-their-satanic-majesties-request-cover-story/ |access-date=2024-02-26 |website=faroutmagazine.co.uk |language=en-US}}</ref>{{clarify|reason=if the master had been destroyed in 1985, then...?|date=July 2020}}

The original cover design called for the lenticular image to take up the entire front cover,<ref>{{cite news | url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/3652916/The-very-image-of-the-sixties.html | location=London | work=The Daily Telegraph | first=Dominic | last=Sandbrook | title=The very image of the sixties | date=4 June 2006 | access-date=3 April 2018 | archive-date=6 January 2018 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180106192920/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/3652916/The-very-image-of-the-sixties.html | url-status=live }}</ref> but finding this to be prohibitively expensive it was decided to reduce the size of the photo and surround it with the blue-and-white graphic design.

The entire cover design is elaborate, with a dense photo collage filling most of the inside cover (along with a maze) designed by Michael Cooper, and a painting by Tony Meeuwissen on the back cover depicting the [[Classical element|four elements]] (Earth, Water, Fire, and Air).  In some editions, the blue-and-white wisps on the front cover are used in a red-and-white version on the paper inner sleeve.  The inner-cover collage has dozens of images, taken from reproductions of old master paintings ([[Ingres]], [[Poussin]], [[da Vinci]], among others), Indian mandalas and portraits, astronomy (including a large image of the planet Saturn), flowers, world maps, etc.  The maze on the inside cover of the UK and US releases cannot be completed: a wall at about a half radius in from the lower left corner means one can never arrive at the goal labelled "It's Here" in the centre of the maze.

It was the first of four Stones albums to feature a novelty cover; the others were the zipper on ''[[Sticky Fingers]]'' (1971), the cut-out faces on ''[[Some Girls]]'' (1978), and the stickers on ''[[Undercover (The Rolling Stones album)|Undercover]]'' (1983).

At some point around 1997, rumors were first heard that the album existed as a promo version, including a silk padding.<ref name="stonesondecca.com">{{Cite web |url=http://stonesondecca.com/4A10_Satanic_Samplecovers.html |title=Stonesondecca.com |access-date=29 July 2015 |archive-date=20 July 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170720061500/http://stonesondecca.com/4A10_Satanic_Samplecovers.html |url-status=live }}</ref> A pink padded version was presented by photo accompanied by a letter from the Decca Copyright Department,<ref name="stonesondecca.com"/> but it was shown that the letter does not match the album it was intended to authenticate making it almost entirely certain that this was a forgery.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.kvart-bolge.com/#!Remarkable-Vinyl-The-Silk-Pink-Padded-Satanic-Majesties-Promotional-Album-Debunked/c1rr6/55b7e6b10cf26fc16f30e6c2 |title=Kvart-bolge.com |access-date=29 July 2015 |archive-date=17 October 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171017180247/https://www.kvart-bolge.com/#!Remarkable-Vinyl-The-Silk-Pink-Padded-Satanic-Majesties-Promotional-Album-Debunked/c1rr6/55b7e6b10cf26fc16f30e6c2 |url-status=usurped }}</ref>

==Release and reception==

Released in December 1967, ''Their Satanic Majesties Request'' reached No. 3 in the UK and No. 2 in the US (easily going gold), but its commercial performance declined rapidly. It was soon viewed as a pretentious, poorly conceived attempt to outdo [[the Beatles]] and ''[[Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band]]'' (released in May 1967), often explained by drug trials and excesses in contemporary musical fashion, although [[John Lennon]] and [[Paul McCartney]] did provide backing vocals (uncredited) on "[[We Love You]]" (recorded during the ''Their Satanic Majesties Request'' sessions, but released as a single a few months before the album).<ref>{{cite web|url=http://ultimateclassicrock.com/45-years-ago-the-rolling-stones-their-satanic-majesties-request-album-released/|title=The Time the Rolling Stones Went Technicolor With 'Their Satanic Majesties Request'|work=[[Ultimate Classic Rock]]|last=Gallucci|first=Michael|date=8 December 2015|access-date=2 February 2017|archive-date=3 April 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210403114546/https://ultimateclassicrock.com/45-years-ago-the-rolling-stones-their-satanic-majesties-request-album-released/|url-status=live}}</ref> The Wyman-composed "In Another Land" was released as a single, with the artist credit listed as Bill Wyman, rather than the Rolling Stones (the B-Side, "[[The Lantern (song)|The Lantern]]", was credited to the Rolling Stones).<ref>''[[In Another Land]]'' single cover</ref>

The production, in particular, came in for harsh criticism from [[Jon Landau]] in the fifth issue of ''[[Rolling Stone]]'',<ref>{{Cite magazine |title=New LP Put Stones' Status in Jeopardy |magazine=[[Rolling Stone]] |last=Landau |first=Jon |author-link=Jon Landau |issue=5 |date=10 February 1968}}</ref> and [[Jimmy Miller]] (recommended by the album's engineer, [[Glyn Johns]]) was asked to produce the Stones' subsequent albums, on which they would return to the hard-driving [[blues]] that earned them fame early in their career. In an April 1968 album review, [[Richard Corliss]] of the ''[[New York Times]]'' was also critical of the production value stating "... their imagination seems to have dried up when it comes to some of the arrangements. While still better than their previous ones, the arrangements are often ragged, fashionably monotonous and off-key." Despite this he gave the album an overall positive review, going as far as calling it a better concept album than ''[[Of Cabbages and Kings (album)|Of Cabbages and Kings]]'' (1967, by [[Chad & Jeremy]]), ''[[The Beat Goes On (Vanilla Fudge album)|The Beat Goes On]]'' (1968, by [[Vanilla Fudge]]) and even ''Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band'' (1967, by [[the Beatles]]).<ref>{{Cite news |last=Corliss |first=Richard |author-link=Richard Corliss |title=The Stones: Heady Promises |newspaper=The New York Times |location=New York, NY |pages=D29 |date=28 April 1968}}</ref> In a 1970 ''Rolling Stone'' interview, Lennon commented on the album: "''Satanic Majesties'' is ''Pepper''. 'We Love You'{{nbsp}}... that's '[[All You Need Is Love]]'."<ref>{{Cite book |last=Wenner |first=Jann |author-link=Jann Wenner |title=Lennon Remembers |publisher=Rolling Stone Press |year=2000 |pages=67 |isbn=1-85984-376-X}}</ref>

== Legacy and reappraisal ==
{{Album ratings
| title = Retrospective professional reviews
| rev1 = [[AllMusic]]
| rev1score = {{Rating|4|5}}<ref name="AM"/>
| rev2 = ''[[Encyclopedia of Popular Music]]''
| rev2score = {{Rating|3|5}}<ref>{{cite book|first=Colin|last=Larkin|title=The Encyclopedia of Popular Music|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=_NNmFiUnSmUC&q=Between+the+Buttons|publisher=Omnibus Press|location=London|year=2011|isbn=978-0-85712-595-8|page=2005|access-date=29 October 2020|archive-date=4 May 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210504035804/https://books.google.com/books?id=_NNmFiUnSmUC&q=Between+the+Buttons|url-status=live}}</ref>
| rev3 = ''[[Entertainment Weekly]]''
| rev3Score = C<ref>{{cite magazine|last=Browne|first=David|author-link=David Browne (journalist)|date=20 September 2002|url=https://ew.com/article/2002/09/20/satisfaction/|title=Satisfaction?|magazine=[[Entertainment Weekly]]|access-date=30 November 2018|archive-date=28 November 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181128164556/https://ew.com/article/2002/09/20/satisfaction/|url-status=live}}</ref>
| rev4 = ''[[The Great Rock Discography]]''
| rev4Score = 5/10<ref>{{cite book|last=Strong|first=Martin |title=The Great Rock Discography |publisher=Canongate|year=2004|isbn=978-1841956152|page=993}}</ref>
| rev5 = ''[[Louder Sound|Louder]]''
| rev5Score = {{Rating|4|5}}<ref>{{cite web|last=Needs|first=Kris|date=6 September 2017|url=https://www.loudersound.com/reviews/the-rolling-stones-their-satanic-majesties-request-album-review|title=The Rolling Stones – Their Satanic Majesties Request...album review|website=[[Louder Sound|Louder]]|access-date=9 February 2020|archive-date=5 March 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200305100222/https://www.loudersound.com/reviews/the-rolling-stones-their-satanic-majesties-request-album-review|url-status=live}}</ref>
| rev6 = ''[[NME]]''
| rev6Score = 8/10<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.cduniverse.com/search/xx/music/pid/4938933/a/their+satanic+majesties+request.htm|title=The Rolling Stones – Their Satanic Majesties Request CD Album|publisher=[[Muze]]|access-date=17 March 2017|archive-date=12 August 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200812184832/http://www.cduniverse.com/search/xx/music/pid/4938933/a/their+satanic+majesties+request.htm|url-status=live}}</ref>
| rev7 = ''[[Pitchfork (website)|Pitchfork]]''
| rev7score = 7.8/10<ref name=p4/>
| rev8 = ''[[Record Collector]]''
| rev8score = {{Rating|4|5}}<ref>{{cite web|url=https://recordcollectormag.com/reviews/album/satanic-majesties-request-50th-anniversary-edition|title=Their Satanic Majesties Request: 50th Anniversary Edition|publisher=Diamond Publishing Ltd|location= Vantage London, Great West Road, Brentford|access-date=12 September 2017|archive-date=11 November 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221111000000/http://recordcollectormag.com/reviews/album/satanic-majesties-request-50th-anniversary-edition}}</ref>
| rev9 = ''[[The Rolling Stone Album Guide]]''
| rev9score = {{Rating|4|5}}<ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/artists/the-rolling-stones/albumguide|title=Album Guide: The Rolling Stones|magazine=[[Rolling Stone|rollingstone.com]]|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110412195111/http://www.rollingstone.com/music/artists/the-rolling-stones/albumguide |archive-date=12 April 2011|access-date=17 March 2017}}</ref>
| rev10 = ''[[The Village Voice]]''
| rev10Score = B+<ref name="Christgau">{{cite news|last=Christgau|first=Robert|date=20 December 1976|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=6N9LAAAAIBAJ&pg=6134,4535773|title=Christgau's Consumer Guide to 1967|newspaper=[[The Village Voice]]|page=70|location=New York|access-date=25 December 2013|archive-date=22 February 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170222001558/https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=6N9LAAAAIBAJ&sjid=RYsDAAAAIBAJ&pg=6134,4535773|url-status=live}}</ref>
}}
[[Keith Richards]] himself has been critical of the album in later years. While he likes some of the songs ("[[2000 Light Years from Home]]", "Citadel", and "[[She's a Rainbow]]"), he stated, "the album was a load of crap."<ref>{{cite book |first=Mick |last=St Michael |title=Keith Richards – In His Own Words |publisher=Omnibus Press |year=1994 |page=[https://archive.org/details/keithrichardsinh00rich/page/27 27] |isbn=0-7119-3634-X |url=https://archive.org/details/keithrichardsinh00rich/page/27 }}</ref> Mick Jagger disavowed the album in 1995, saying:  "it's not very good. It had interesting things on it, but I don't think any of the songs are very good. There's two good songs on it. The rest of them are nonsense."<ref>{{Cite magazine|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/mick-jagger-remembers-92946/|title=Mick Jagger Remembers|last1=Wenner|first1=Jann S.|date=1995-12-14|magazine=Rolling Stone|language=en-US|access-date=2019-03-19|archive-date=3 April 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190403174836/https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/mick-jagger-remembers-92946/|url-status=live}}</ref> There are only two songs from the album which the Stones performed live, "2000 Light Years from Home" (1989–90 world tour, 2013 Glastonbury Festival), and "She's a Rainbow" (1997–98 Bridges to Babylon Tour and occasionally on concert tours in the late 2010s.)<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.udiscovermusic.com/news/rolling-stones-revive-shes-a-rainbow-in-new-jersey/|title=Rolling Stones Revive 'She's A Rainbow' As 'No Filter' Tour Hits New Jersey|last=Sexton|first=Paul|date=2019-08-03|website=uDiscover Music|language=en-US|access-date=2019-08-03|archive-date=3 August 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190803160427/https://www.udiscovermusic.com/news/rolling-stones-revive-shes-a-rainbow-in-new-jersey/|url-status=live}}</ref>

The album has been reassessed positively by critics. In a retrospective 1977 review, [[Robert Christgau]] of the ''[[Village Voice]]'' stated that the album "no doubt contains several great songs" despite negative reception from some.<ref name="Christgau"/> [[Stephen Thomas Erlewine]] of ''[[Pitchfork (website)|Pitchfork]]'' wrote that "Perhaps [[psychedelia]] wasn't a natural fit for the earthbound Stones, but the dissonance between their gritty rhythms and ornate, precocious arrangements is enthralling, not in the least because there's no other record—by the Stones or anybody else—that sounds quite like this."<ref name=p4>{{cite web|title=Their Satanic Majesties Request review|url=https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/the-rolling-stones-their-satanic-majesties-request/|website=Pitchfork|access-date=23 September 2017|archive-date=23 September 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170923103554/https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/the-rolling-stones-their-satanic-majesties-request/|url-status=live}}</ref> [[AllMusic]]'s Bob Eder called the mono mix of the album a distinct improvement over the stereo version, describing it as transforming the maligned album into "superb, punky psychedelia."<ref>{{AllMusic|class=album|id=r540362|pure_url=yes}}</ref> [[Richie Unterberger]] of [[AllMusic]] writes:

{{blockquote|Without a doubt, no Rolling Stones album – and, indeed, very few rock albums from any era – split critical opinion as much as the Rolling Stones' psychedelic outing. Many dismiss the record as sub-''Sgt. Pepper'' posturing; others confess, if only in private, to a fascination with the album's inventive arrangements, which incorporated some African rhythms, [[Mellotron]]s, and full orchestration.  What's clear is that never before or after did the Stones take so many chances in the studio…In 1968, the Stones would go back to the basics, and never wander down these paths again, making this all the more of a fascinating anomaly in the group's discography.<ref name="AM">{{AllMusic|class=album|id=r16807 |title=''Their Satanic Majesties Request'' |publisher=[[AllMusic]] |first=Richie |last=Unterberger |access-date=19 November 2007}}</ref>}}

In August 2002, ''Their Satanic Majesties Request'' was reissued in a new remastered [[CD]], [[LP album|LP]] and [[Direct Stream Digital|DSD]] by [[ABKCO Records]].<ref name=Billboard>{{Cite news |last=Walsh |first=Christopher |title=Super audio CDs: The Rolling Stones Remastered |newspaper=Billboard |pages=27 |date=24 August 2002}}</ref> In 2008, the album was released in [[SHM-CD]] for Japan using the same 2002 remaster, and in December of that year it was reissued (also as a SHM-CD Japanese only release)  with the original lenticular cover for the first time in that format. In May 2011, the album was reissued on SHM-[[Super Audio CD|SACD]].{{citation needed|date=February 2020}} In 2017, a set containing two LPs (mono/stereo) as well as two [[Super Audio CD|SACDs]] (mono/stereo) was released, with another new remastering for the stereo version.<ref>{{cite web|title=Rolling Stones Announce 50th-Anniversary 'Their Satanic Majesties Request' Box Set|url=https://www.udiscovermusic.com/news/rolling-stones-50th-anniversary-satanic-majesties-box-set/|website=uDiscoverMusic|date=31 July 2017 |access-date=2 May 2018|archive-date=3 May 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180503041429/https://www.udiscovermusic.com/news/rolling-stones-50th-anniversary-satanic-majesties-box-set/|url-status=live}}</ref> In 2018, the album was reissued as part of the [[Record Store Day]]. The release contained the 2017 remastered stereo version of the album pressed on transparent coloured vinyl (180g) and also featured the 3D-style sleeve.<ref>{{cite web|title=RECORD STORE DAY 2018 > The Rolling Stones – Their Satanic Majesties Request|url=https://recordstoreday.com/SpecialRelease/10199|website=Record Store Day|access-date=2 May 2018|archive-date=3 May 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180503041516/https://recordstoreday.com/SpecialRelease/10199|url-status=live}}</ref>

==Track listing==
{{Tracklist
| all_writing   = [[Mick Jagger]] and [[Keith Richards]], except "In Another Land" by [[Bill Wyman]]
| headline      = Side one
| title1        = [[Sing This All Together]]
| length1       = 3:46
| title2        = Citadel
| length2       = 2:50
| title3        = [[In Another Land]]
| length3       = 3:15
| title4        = 2000 Man
| length4       = 3:07
| title5        = [[Sing This All Together#Sing This All Together (See What Happens)|Sing This All Together (See What Happens)]]
| note5         = [[hidden track]] "Cosmic Christmas" starts at 7:54
| length5       = 8:33
| total_length  = 21:31
}}

{{Tracklist
| headline      = Side two
| title6        = [[She's a Rainbow]]
| length6       = 4:35
| title7        = [[The Lantern (song)|The Lantern]]
| length7       = 4:24
| title8        = Gomper
| length8       = 5:08
| title9        = [[2000 Light Years from Home]]
| length9       = 4:45
| title10       = On with the Show
| length10      = 3:40
| total_length  = 22:32
}}

==Personnel==
Source:<ref name="MargotinGuesdon2016">{{cite book|last1=Margotin|first1=Philippe|last2=Guesdon|first2=Jean-Michel|title=Rolling Stones All the Songs: The Story Behind Every Track|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=KwEsDAAAQBAJ|date=25 October 2016|publisher=Hachette Books|isbn=978-0-316-31773-3|pages=203–237|access-date=24 July 2017|archive-date=19 August 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200819140434/https://books.google.com/books?id=KwEsDAAAQBAJ|url-status=live}}</ref>

'''The Rolling Stones'''
* [[Mick Jagger]] – lead vocals {{small|(all but 3)}}, backing vocals {{small|(1, 3, 6)}}, percussion {{small|(8)}}, [[maraca]]s {{small|(2, 9–10)}}, tambourine {{small|(6)}}
* [[Keith Richards]] – electric guitar {{small|(all but 3)}}, backing vocals {{small|(1, 3, 7–9)}}, acoustic guitar {{small|(3-4, 6-7)}}, bass guitar {{small|(1-2, 9-10)}}
* [[Brian Jones]] – [[Mellotron]] {{small|(1–3, 5–7, 9–10)}}, saxophone {{small|(1-2)}}, [[vibraphone]], [[Jew's harp]] and flute {{small|(5)}}, organ {{small|(7)}}, [[electric dulcimer]] {{small|(4, 8-9)}}, [[recorder (instrument)|recorder]] {{small|(8)}}, [[backing vocals]] {{small|(1)}}, [[harp]] {{small|(10)}}
* [[Bill Wyman]] – bass guitar {{small|(3-8)}}, lead vocals and organ {{small|(3)}}, [[backing vocals]] {{small|(1)}}, [[Electronic oscillator|oscillator]] {{small|(9{{sfn|Babiuk|Prevost|2013|p=267}})}}
* [[Charlie Watts]] – drums {{small|(all but 8)}}, [[tabla]] {{small|(8)}}

'''Additional personnel'''
* [[Nicky Hopkins]] – piano {{small|(1, 3-4, 6-7, 9-10)}}, organ {{small|(4)}}, [[harpsichord]] {{small|(3, 6)}}
* [[John Paul Jones (musician)|John Paul Jones]] – string arrangement {{small|(6)}}
* [[Ronnie Lane]] and [[Steve Marriott]] – backing vocals {{small|(3)}}
* [[Eddie Kramer]] – claves {{small | (9)}}
* Others, including [[Marianne Faithfull]] – probable backing vocals {{small | (1)}}

== Charts ==
{| class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders"
|-
! Chart (1968)
! Peak<br/>position
|-
! scope="row"| Australian Albums ([[Kent Music Report]])<ref name=AUS>{{cite book|last=Kent|first=David|author-link=David Kent (historian)|title=Australian Chart Book 1970–1992|edition=illustrated|publisher=Australian Chart Book|location=St Ives, N.S.W.|year=1993|isbn=0-646-11917-6}}</ref>
| align="center"| 1
|-
! scope="row"| Finland ([[The Official Finnish Charts]])<ref name=FINI>{{cite book|last=Pennanen|first=Timo|title=Sisältää hitin – levyt ja esittäjät Suomen musiikkilistoilla vuodesta 1972|edition=1st|publisher=Kustannusosakeyhtiö Otava|location=Helsinki|year=2006|isbn=978-951-1-21053-5| language= fi}}</ref>
| align="center"| 7
|-
{{Album chart|Germany|4|id=21041|artist=The Rolling Stones|album=Their Satanic Majesties Request|rowheader=true|accessdate=22 December 2022}}
|-
!scope="row"|Japanese Albums ([[Oricon]])<ref name="JPN">{{cite book|title=Oricon Album Chart Book: Complete Edition 1970–2005|publisher=[[Oricon|Oricon Entertainment]]|location=Roppongi, Tokyo|year=2006|isbn=4-87131-077-9|language=ja}}</ref>
| align="center"| 99
|-
{{Album chart|Norway|2|artist=The Rolling Stones|album=Their Satanic Majesties Request|rowheader=true|accessdate=22 December 2022}}
|-
{{Album chart|UK|3|artist=The Rolling Stones|album=Their Satanic Majesties Request|rowheader=true|accessdate=22 December 2022}}
|-
{{Album chart|Billboard200|2|artist=The Rolling Stones|rowheader=true|accessdate=22 December 2022}}
|}

{| class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders"
|-
! Chart (2017)
! Peak<br/>position
|-
{{Album chart|Flanders|137|artist=The Rolling Stones|album=Their Satanic Majesties Request|rowheader=true|accessdate=22 December 2022}}
|-
{{Album chart|Wallonia|189|artist=The Rolling Stones|album=Their Satanic Majesties Request|rowheader=true|accessdate=22 December 2022}}
|-
{{Album chart|Netherlands|84|artist=The Rolling Stones|album=Their Satanic Majesties Request|rowheader=true|accessdate=22 December 2022}}
|}

{| class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders"
|-
! Chart (2018)
! Peak<br/>position
|-
{{Album chart|Portugal|46|artist=The Rolling Stones|album=Their Satanic Majesties Request|rowheader=true|accessdate=22 December 2022}}
|}

==Certifications==
{{Certification Table Top}}
{{Certification Table Entry|region=United Kingdom|artist=Rolling Stones|title=Their Satanic Majesties Request|award=Silver|type=album|relyear=2006|certyear=2019|id=15961-44-2|access-date=18 October 2019|note=release of 2006}}
{{Certification Table Entry|region=United States|artist=The Rolling Stones|title=Their Satanic Majesty's Request|award=Gold|type=album|relyear=1967|certyear=1967|access-date=18 October 2019}}
{{Certification Table Bottom|nosales=true | streaming=true}}

==Notes==
{{Notelist}}

==References==
{{reflist|30em}}

===Sources===
{{refbegin}}
* {{cite book |last1=Babiuk |first1=Andy |last2=Prevost |first2=Greg |author1-link=Andy Babiuk |title=Rolling Stones Gear: All the Stones' Instruments from Stage to Studio |date=2013 |publisher=Backbeat Books |location=Milwaukee |isbn=978-1-61713-092-2}}
{{refend}}

==Further reading==
* {{Pop Chronicles|46|5|Brian Jones & Mick Jagger}}

== External links ==
* {{Discogs master|type=album|54327}}

{{The Rolling Stones}}
{{The Rolling Stones albums}}

{{Authority control}}

[[Category:1967 albums]]
[[Category:The Rolling Stones albums]]
[[Category:Decca Records albums]]
[[Category:London Records albums]]
[[Category:Albums recorded at Olympic Sound Studios]]
[[Category:ABKCO Records albums]]
[[Category:Psychedelic rock albums by English artists]]
[[Category:Psychedelic pop albums]]
[[Category:Acid rock albums]]
[[Category:Experimental rock albums by English artists]]