The Rolling Stones have new music out, their first since 2023’s Hackney Diamonds.
It’s a cover of “Zydeco Sont Pas Sales,” recorded originally by the zydeco pioneer Clifton Chenier, fittingly released on what would have been his 100th birthday.
The track is part of a new album celebrating the music of Chenier titled Tribute to the King of Zydeco, which also features contributions from Lucinda Williams, Jimmie Vaughan, Steve Earle and many more.
You can listen to the song below.
The Rolling Stones’ Zydeco Influence
Zydeco is a Louisiana Creole style of music with French-sung vocals and a heavily syncopated feel, and the Stones were drawn to it in their early days.
“We never just listened to the blues,” Keith Richards recently explained to Rolling Stone. “Zydeco has been a part of what we always listen to, the Mississippi blues, and it’s not a long way from there to Louisiana. We were always listening to stuff from down there. You listen to American music wherever it came from, even if it was in French.”
READ MORE: The 20 Most-Covered Rolling Stones Songs
In addition to the Stones, the Grammy-winning accordion player Steve Riley also played on the track. Each of the Stones recorded their parts separately, with the overall project being produced by C.C. Adock, a Louisiana native himself.
“The difficult thing is the bar length,” Mick Jagger admitted to Rolling Stone. “It’s a little tricky, because it’s not a straight 12-bar, but that’s the charm of it.”
“Zydeco Sont Pas Sales” is being released digitally, but also as a limited edition 7″ vinyl that has the Stones cover on one side and a 1965 version by Chenier on the other. That vinyl, plus the full album, Tribute to the King of Zydeco, is set to be released on June 27.
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Gallery Credit: Bryan Wawzenek
