The Rolling Stones’ First UK No. 1 Was a Bruce Springsteen Favorite and the First Guitar Solo He Learned

When he was kid, Bruce Springsteen once used his mother’s hair clips to pin his hair down flat while sleeping to match the perfect pageboy haircut of the Rolling Stones‘ Brian Jones. “I would sleep on it exactly right because I had Italian curly hair,” revealed Springsteen, “so I would pin it down until it was as straight as Brian Jones.”

The Stones were foundational for Springsteen, as he started learning guitar and trying to pick up on some Keith Richards’ solos. In his earliest rock and roll daydreams, he even imagined taking Mick Jagger’s place in the band.

“I fell asleep at night with dreams of rock and roll glory in my head,” said Springsteen in his 2016 memoir Born to Run. “Here’s how one would go: The Stones have a gig at Asbury Park’s Convention Hall, but Mick Jagger gets sick. It’s a show they’ve got to make; they need a replacement, but who can replace Mick?”

Springsteen continues, “Suddenly, a young hero rises, a local kid, right out of the audience. He can front. He’s got the voice, the look, the moves, no acne, and he plays a hell of a guitar. The band clicks, Keith is smiling, and suddenly, the Stones aren’t in such a rush to get Mick out of his sickbed. How does it end? Always the same: the crowd goes wild.”

After getting kicked out of his first band, the Stones also gave Springsteen the first guitar solo he ever learned,” Richards’ licks on the band’s 1964 cover of ‘It’s All Over Now,” which became their first UK No. 1.

Originally written by siblings Bobby and Shirley Womack and released by The Valentinos (featuring Bobby Womack) earlier in May of ’64. By July 1964, “It’s All Over Now” became the first No. 1 hit for the Rolling Stones in the U.K. that year.

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Telling the story of the end of a young love, “It’a All Over Now” was originally released with the B-side of “Good Times, Bad Times,” the band later released their cover of “It’s All Over Now” on their second album, 12 × 5 in 1964.

Well, baby used to stay out all night long
She made me cry, she done me wrong
She hurt my eyes open, that’s no lie
Tables turn and now her turn to cry

Because I used to love her, but it’s all over now
Because I used to love her, but it’s all over now

I put the record on, and I sat there all night until I was able to scrape up some relatively decent version of Keith’s solo.

Bruce Springsteen

Well, she used to run around with every man in town
She spent all my money, playing her high class game
She put me out, it was a pity how I cried
Tables turn and now her turn to cry

Well, I used to wake in the morning, get my breakfast in bed
When I’d gotten worried she’d ease my aching head
But now she’s here and there, with every man in town
Still trying to take me for that same old clown

“‘It’s All Over Now’ held a special place for me because when I got thrown out of my first band, I went home that night and I was pissed off,” shared Springsteen. “I said, ‘Alright, I’m going to be a lead guitar player,’ and for some reason that solo felt like something I might be able to manage.”

Springsteen continued, “I put the record on, and I sat there all night until I was able to scrape up some relatively decent version of Keith’s solo. It was a very important record for me as it was the first solo I ever learned

Photo: The Rolling Stones, 1964. (Dezo Hoffman/Shutterstock)