On December 25, 1948, Merry Clayton was born.

[mahatmakanejeeves]

Last edited Sat Dec 27, 2025, 05:09 PM - Edit history (2)

Merry Clayton


Clayton in 2012

Background information
Born: December 25, 1948 (age 77); New Orleans, Louisiana, U.S.
Years active: 1962–present

Merry Clayton (born December 25, 1948) is an American soul and gospel singer. She contributed vocals to numerous tracks and worked with many major recording artists for decades, including a duet with Mick Jagger on the Rolling Stones song "Gimme Shelter". Clayton is prominently featured in 20 Feet from Stardom, the Oscar-winning documentary about background singers and their contributions to the music industry.

{snip}

Career

{snip}

1970s
In 1970, Clayton recorded her own version of "Gimme Shelter", and it became the title track of her debut solo album, released that year. Her solo version peaked at No. 73 on the pop charts. Her version would be the first of five singles under her name to crack the Billboard Hot 100. That same year, she performed a live version of "Lift Every Voice and Sing" for the soundtrack for the Robert Altman film, Brewster McCloud, and also contributed vocals to Donald Cammell and Nicolas Roeg's film, Performance.

{snip}

Gimme Shelter

{snip}

"Gimme Shelter" is a song by the English rock band the Rolling Stones. Written by Jagger–Richards, it is the opening track of the band's 1969 album Let It Bleed.[3][4] The song covers the brutal realities of war, including murder, rape and fear. It features prominent guest vocals by American singer Merry Clayton.

American author, music journalist and cultural critic Greil Marcus, writing for Rolling Stone magazine at the time of its release, praised the song, stating that the band has "never done anything better". "Gimme Shelter" has placed in various positions on many "best of" and "greatest" lists including that of Rolling Stone magazine. In 2021 "Gimme Shelter" was ranked at number 13 on Rolling Stone's list of the "500 Greatest Songs of All Time".

Background
"Gimme Shelter" was written by the Rolling Stones' lead singer Mick Jagger and guitarist Keith Richards, the band's primary songwriting team. Richards began working on the song's signature opening riff in London while Jagger was away filming Performance with Richards' girlfriend, Anita Pallenberg. In his autobiography Life, Richards revealed that the tension of the song was inspired by his jealousy at seeing the relationship between Pallenberg and Jagger, and his suspicions of an affair between them.

When speaking of Clayton's inclusion in the recording, Jagger stated in the 2003 book According to the Rolling Stones that the Rolling Stones' producer Jimmy Miller thought of having a female singer on the track and told fellow producer Jack Nitzsche to contact one, "The use of the female voice was the producer's idea. It would be one of those moments along the lines of 'I hear a girl on this track – get one on the phone.'"

Recording
The song was recorded in London at Olympic Studios in February and March 1969; the vocals were recorded in Los Angeles at Sunset Sound Recorders and Elektra Studios in October and November that same year. Nicky Hopkins played piano, Jimmy Miller played percussion, Charlie Watts played drums, Bill Wyman played bass, Jagger played harmonica and sang backup vocals with Richards and Merry Clayton. Clayton was summoned from bed around midnight by Nitzsche, Clayton – about four months pregnant – made her recording with just a few takes and then returned home to bed. Guitarist Brian Jones was absent during these sessions, Richards being credited with rhythm and lead guitars on the album sleeve. Upon returning home, Clayton suffered a miscarriage, attributed by some sources to her exertions during the recording.

For the recording, Richards used an Australian-made Maton SE777, a large single-cutaway hollowbody guitar, which he had previously used on "Midnight Rambler". The guitar barely survived the recording before literally falling apart. "[O]n the very last note of 'Gimme Shelter,'" Richards told Guitar World in 2002, "the whole neck fell off. You can hear it on the original take."

Clayton's performance remained the most prominent contribution to a Rolling Stones track by a female vocalist for 54 years, until the October 2023 release of "Sweet Sounds of Heaven" on their album Hackney Diamonds, featuring Lady Gaga, whom producer Andrew Watt described as "almost embodying Merry Clayton" on the track. Merry Clayton's name was mistakenly written 'Mary' on the original release (her given name is "Merry" due to her being born on Christmas Day). Her name is also listed as "Mary" on the 2002 Let It Bleed remastered CD.

{snip}

WTMD in Towson MD just finished playing this. I'd never heard this version before now. It sounded a lot newer than something from 1970. In fact, I didn't even know who the vocalist on "Gimme Shelter" was until today.

Merry Clayton - Gimme Shelter (1970) HD

Adam Terran
6.53K subscribers

298,643 views Mar 20, 2016
No description has been added to this video.

Music
1 songs

Gimme Shelter
Merry Clayton
Gimme Shelter

[justaprogressive]

1. Nice Bio for a true star