Mick Jagger / Keith Richards / Ron Wood / 4:23
Musicians
Mick Jagger: vocals, percussion (?)
Keith Richards: rhythm and lead guitar, backing vocals
Ron Wood: rhythm and lead guitar, bass (?), saxophone (?), backing vocals
Bill Wyman: bass (?)
Charlie Watts: drums
Bobby Keys: saxophone
Michael Shrieve: percussion
Max Romeo: backing vocals
Recorded
EMI Pathé Marconi Studios, Boulogne-Billancourt, France: June 27–October 8, 1979
Electric Lady Studios, New York City: November–December 1979, April 1980
Technical Team
Producers: The Glimmer Twins
Associate producer: Chris Kimsey
Sound engineer: Chris Kimsey
Assistant sound engineers: Sean Fullan, Brad Samuelsohn, Ron “Snake” Reynolds, Jon Smith
With this opening song, the Rolling Stones make their intentions plain: to lead their fans onto the dance floor. The narrator (Mick Jagger, as it happens) asks himself what he is doing at the corner of West Eighth Street and Sixth Avenue in New York City, and then addresses Keith by name to tell him that the moment has come to get out and get into something new. From a musical point of view, this something new is the logical follow-up to “Hot Stuff” and “Miss You,” an irresistible rhythm that owes much to African American funk. Ron Wood came up with the original idea for the song: “‘Dance (Pt. 1)’ was one strong riff where Mick immediately took the bait, literally got up and danced to it, which was the whole idea of the track: it’s a catchy riff.”9 And he continues: “That was an example of a song that originated without words, just a groove with various changes, but never a chorus.”9
The first-ever number officially co-written by the Glimmer Twins and Ron Wood, “Dance (Pt. 1)” started life as an instrumental, to which Mick then wanted to add words. Keith would regret this: “He did a lot of work on it and he did a good job, but totally nullified the track. I said, ‘let’s make it an instru[mental,’ to which he replied], ‘I can’t waste time on an album with only ten tracks and instrumentals…’” 11 “Dance (Pt. 1)” is above all a rhythmic pulse, generated simultaneously by the excellent drumming (Charlie being completely at ease in the world of dance music), Bill’s bass (some commentators suggest that it is Ron on bass, which is not impossible), the assortment of percussion instruments played by the outstanding Michael Shrieve, but no doubt shared with Mick (congas, shaker, tambourine, cuíca), and the various funky guitar parts played by Ron and Keith. And all this under the watchful eye of Mick, who seems to take real pleasure in his singing. The voice of reggae singer Max Romeo can be made out in the vocal harmonies, along with those of Keith and Ron. Finally, the former member of the Faces is said by some sources to be playing not only the guitar on this track, but the sax too, accompanying Bobby Keys, who makes his long-awaited return to the band with a few (albeit modest) horn riffs.