Lyrics for You Can't Always Get What You Want as interpreted by oofus

You Can't Always Get What You Want Lyrics
I saw her today at the reception
A glass of wine in her hand
I knew she would meet her connection
At her feet was a footloose man

No, you can't always get what you want
You can't always get what you want
You can't always get what you want
But if you try sometime you find
You get what you need

I saw her today at the reception
A glass of wine in her hand
I knew she was gonna meet her connection
At her feet was a footloose man

You can't always get what you want
You can't always get what you want
You can't always get what you want
But if you try sometimes well you might find
You get what you need

And I went down to the demonstration
To get my fair share of abuse
Singing, We're gonna vent our frustration
If we don't we're gonna blow a 50-amp fuse

You can't always get what you want
You can't always get what you want
You can't always get what you want
But if you try sometimes well you just might find
You get what you need

I went down to the Chelsea drugstore
To get your prescription filled
I was standing in line with Mr. Jimmy
And man, did he look pretty ill
We decided that we would have a soda
My favorite flavor, cherry red
I sung my song to Mr. Jimmy
Yeah, and he said one word to me, and that was dead
I said to him

You can't always get what you want
You can't always get what you want
You can't always get what you want
But if you try sometimes you just might find
You get what you need

You get what you need, yeah, oh baby

I saw her today at the reception
In her glass was a bleeding man
She was practiced at the art of deception
Well I could tell by her blood-stained hands
You can't always get what you want
You can't always get what you want
You can't always get what you want
But if you try sometimes you just might find
You just might find
You get what you need

You can't always get what you want
You can't always get what you want
You can't always get what you want
But if you try sometimes you just might find
You just might find
You get what you need

Interaction
Mail to a friend Send Lyrics to a Friend
Share on Facebook

Stumble It
Add to Del.icio.us Add to Del.icio.us




  • 58 Comments
  • Printer Friendly Lyrics
oldest first     Expand All
surrogatehobby
08-21-2008

Rated 0 
I don't understand any of this song's references but I do understand that the main meaning is that you always get what you want but never what you need. :)

Log in to reply
browsacookiemonsta
11-23-2008

Rated 0 
it's the other way around, surrogatehobby! what we want isn't always what we need. like for example, he uses that really hot woman with a glass of wine in her hand that every guy wants, but her hands were bloodstained from being so deceptive, as posing as what every man wants when in reality, it's not. also, with the protest, fighting for something might not completely change things into however you want, but it's the feeling of fighting for an idea that changes it into a feeling you need, that you actually did something about it.

one of the best rolling stones songs ever

Log in to reply
Eatapch4pce
01-10-2009

Rated 0 
Considering you guys have no idea what you are talking about, you shouldn't be posting about the songs. Mr. Jimmy was their producer. The drummer at the time Charlie Watts wasn't able to play along with the groove that the song had and so Jimmy Miller (their producer) sat in and played the drums on the recording. This, in turn, caused the Rolling Stones to refer to their manager Mr. Jimmy as respect for filling in on the song

Log in to reply
Wendy26
02-01-2009

Rated 0 
Since there are a few people backing it up, I definitely think that the story of Jimmy the handicapped man is worth considering, but I do not, however, think that this means the song is about him. His being alive does not prove that the song is not about death. He is just a metaphor. And, if there is any validity in the Jimi Hendrix story, there is a possibility that the name was used because it could refer to both of them. Often times songs, even songs about a single character, are not about a single real-life person. If Jimmy and Jimi both inspired this song, the important aspects of each, as well as perhaps some made-up things could have been combined to get a point across. The metaphor used is not always, or often, the real subject.

Just an interesting point: in the movie High Fidelity, they say this song is about death. Not that they cannot be wrong, but I tend to believe them. I came here to find out specifically how it is about death or what point it is making about death.

Log in to reply
Wendy26
02-01-2009

Rated 0 
Eatapch4pce, I am not trying to argue, I mean this as a legitimate question. If it was this song that Jimmy Miller played the drums in, the song must have been written before they decided to put him in it as some sort of respectful gesture. So there must have been a meaning to that verse that had nothing to do with that man in particular. So was the name just used as a meaningless name to replace whatever other name they might have had there before (or did they alter or add the verse for him)? Your theory (or facts) doesn't really tell us what the song is about, and, therefore, hardly discounts other people's opinions--though I understand that Mr. Jimmy did not likely refer to Jimmy Miller and Jimmy from Minnesota.

Log in to reply
mrbradley
04-28-2009

Rated 0 
what a relatable message! i like how they took the sometimes frustrating feeling of not always getting what you want and turned it into a playful song!

Log in to reply
Badass123
09-10-2009

Rated 0 
There are those who know this stuff and their probably right but the song to me is that you cant alaways get what you want like he cant get the girl in the beginning but in the end it turns out she was a bad lady so he got a lesson in which he needed. Iv applied it to my life and iv found that its a saying that has helped me move on about the sad things in life knowing that if i try hard things will work out for me in the end. for example i didnt go to Prom with the girl i wanted but by trying i met her cute friend who i took to Prom and had a great time. Thats just my 2 cents

Log in to reply
guitarherohero10
10-17-2009

Rated 0 
I love this song so much, it always makes me feel better when I don't get what I want....


As for the meaning, I'm guessing it's about how you can't always get what you want (but if you try sometimes, you can get what you need).

Log in to reply




  • Add Your Comments
What does this song mean to you?

You must be logged in to post your comments.

Feel free to create an account with us, or log in with your existing account, to start adding your comments to songs.





Popular
Top:   Lyrics, Artists, Albums
Random:   Lyric, Artist, Album

Your Ad Here