You Gotta Move

St Barts Church, Bristol, Nov 2010

You Gotta Move is a song written by Fred McDowell and the Reverend Gary Davis, and recorded for the first time by Fred McDowell in 1965. Fred McDowell (12/01/1904-3/07/1972) known by his stage name, Mississipi Fred McDowell, was a band singer and a guitar player in the North Mississipi Style.

Being a well-known song of McDowell, You Gotta Move was most famously recorded by The Rolling Stones and is featured on their 1971 album Sticky Fingers. Their version has a haunting and raw acoustic blues-riff and the lyrics has a clear touch of gospel, as Mick Jagger sings as if he were imitating a Southern African American dialect. It’s a rustic, Delta Blues song that’s led on by Charlie Watts minimalistic drumming and cymbal smashing.