The Rolling Stones have released a new song for fans to enjoy, Rolling Stone magazine reported. “Scarlet” was recorded in October 1974 and features Led Zeppelin guitarist Jimmy Page and Blind Faith bassist Rick Grech.
As The Rolling Stones’ guitarist Keith Richards explained, the collaboration was a spontaneous one after The Stones and Zeppelin found themselves at the same recording studio.
“They were just leaving, and we were booked in next and I believe that Jimmy decided to stay. We weren’t actually cutting it as a track, it was basically for a demo, a demonstration, you know, just to get the feel of it, but it came out well, with a line up like that, you know, we better use it.”
Clocking in at 3:44 in length, the tune features a blues-rock sound with the guitars of Richards, Page, and Mick Taylor front and center. “Scarlet” is likely one of the final tracks Taylor ever did with the band, as he left The Stones in December 1974.
In a 1975 interview with Cameron Crowe of Rolling Stone , Page said he thought “Scarlet” would be released as a Stones’ B-side, but that never came to fruition.
“It sounded very similar in style and mood to those Blonde on Blonde tracks,” Page said. “It was great; really good. We stayed up all night and went down to Island Studios where Keith put some reggae guitars over one section. I just put some solos on it…”
The Led Zepp ax man also tweeted that “Mick (Jagger) made contact with me recently and I got to hear the finished version…It sounded great and really solid.”
As previously reported by The Inquisitr , Jagger was one of many musicians to pay tribute to Little Richard after his passing in May.
“Scarlet” was not the first time that members of the two iconic British classic rock bands came together. Prior to the 1968 formation of Led Zeppelin, Page collaborated with The Stones on their 1965 single “Heart of Stone.” Led Zeppelin multi-instrumentalist John Paul Jones was also credited with the strings arrangement on The Rolling Stones’ 1967 song “She Is a Rainbow.”
The Rolling Stones have announced plans to include “Scarlet” in the release of their upcoming Goats Head Soup box set, due out in September. The collection will also feature additional unreleased tracks, alternative takes and demos, as well as a complete concert recorded live from Brussels, Belgium, in 1973.
While the band has not recorded a new album in nearly four years, they recently released a new single titled “Living in a Ghost Town.” The song was inspired by the coronavirus pandemic and all of the social isolation it has created, which also forced the band to cancel their summer 2020 touring plans.