The Real Meaning Behind “Paint It Black” by the Rolling Stones

While even diehard fans might not know the real meaning behind The Rolling Stones song “Paint It Black”, they definitely understand the attitude from which it was written in the mid-1960s.

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“Cynical, nasty, sceptical, rude,” Keith Richards once said. “We seemed to be ahead in this respect at the time. There was trouble in America, all these young American kids, they were being drafted to Vietnam.”

Naturally, on the surface, the meaning behind the 1966 song “Paint It Black” had a meaning that anyone with ears and eyes could resonate with. It was a dark time, though an explosive time for music. But with the Vietnam War raging on and attitudes about the war in general changing, plenty of young (and old) people around the world were angry and wanted change.

When we get into specifics, “Paint It Black” is a bit enigmatic. The images the lyrics conjure are fascinating, and the whole instrumentation and melody of the song are captivating. Few songs from that era are quite as ambiguous and yet direct as “Paint It Black”.

The Real Meaning Behind “Paint It Black” by The Rolling Stones

So, is there a deeper meaning? There simply has to be. 

Mick Jagger and Keith Richards wrote this song from a number of improvised melodies that Brian Jones played on the sitar. The whole of the band contributed, in one way or another, to the final arrangement. The lyrics were written, more or less, during the band’s 1966 Australian tour. 

In general, the lyrics explore grief experienced by someone who has suddenly lost a partner. It’s hopeless and sad, but it’s likely not just about being bereaved from a lover. Rather, plenty of interpretations through the years have pointed to the song being about everything from a protest of the Vietnam War to having a bad acid trip.

It certainly doesn’t help that none of The Rolling Stones have said, directly, what the song is about. And that’s likely very much intentional. The most we’ve gotten was Mick Jagger saying the following in response to being asked why he wrote a song about death: “I don’t know. It’s been done before. It’s not an original thought by any means. It all depends on how you do it.”

That’s likely the real meaning behind the song: Death. The grief, depression, hopelessness, and pain one experiences from loss. The previous interpretations aren’t mutually exclusive, either. People were losing loved ones left and right during the Vietnam War. The Rolling Stones just made a vague enough song for the bereaved to relate to.

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