Nanker Phelge / 2:32
Musicians
Mick Jagger: tambourine
Keith Richards: rhythm guitar, lead guitar
Brian Jones: harmonica
Bill Wyman: bass
Charlie Watts: drums
Ian Stewart: organ
Recorded
Regent Sound Studios: February 4, 1964
Technical Team
Producer: Andrew Loog Oldham
Sound Engineer: Bill Farley
“Now I’ve Got a Witness” is a number conceived by the whole group, hence the Nanker Phelge credit. The Rolling Stones also had the support of various handpicked guests, however, hence the subtitle “Like Uncle Phil and Uncle Gene”—more specifically, “Uncle” Phil Spector and “Uncle” Gene Pitney, who attended some of the recording sessions for this debut album. Ian Stewart also plays for the first time on the record. Credited on the sleeve with guest status in exactly the same way as Spector and Pitney, Stewart was nevertheless a full-fledged member of the Rolling Stones.
“We used to put out instrumentals from the very first album—‘Now I’ve Got a Witness’—just let a band have a blow once in a while,”11 reveals Keith Richards. This instrumental was recorded on February 4, following “Can I Get a Witness.” This explains a number of things, not least the shared tempo and keyboard part—this time played not by Gene Pitney on the piano but by Ian Stewart on the organ. Brian Jones again plays a wonderful harmonica, as if straight out of Chess Studios. It is just a shame that it has been mixed down. Keith Richards, for his part, slots a pleasant but not exactly unforgettable solo on his Harmony Meteor H70 into this classic blues framework. Mick Jagger abandons his role as singer for once, modestly picking up a tambourine instead. However, it is the rhythm section that really shines, with Charlie Watts and Bill Wyman complementing each other to great effect, the latter choosing to support the drums on the upper reaches of his fingerboard. “Now I’ve Got a Witness” is the first original, group-credited number on the album and benefits from good production. A fact perhaps not unconnected with Phil Spector’s presence at the session…