9th Grade Pre-AP English I
Mr. Alvarado
May 11th, 2016.
Angel Rodriguez
Mr.Alvarado
English I
May 13th 2016
"Paint it Black" by the Rolling Stones
The song "Paint it Black" was released as a single on May 6th, 1966 by The Rolling Stones. The song was later inserted into the album "Aftermath". The reception of the song was good as the song was unique with its own tone with a rebellious feel. It hit the #1 on the Billboard top 100 for 2 weeks in both the UK and the US.
The Rolling Stones, makers of this song, are an English band formed in 1962 in London, United Kingdom. They were known for their good music which gave off a rebellious feel. The song "Paint it Black" was written by the duo of Keith Richards and Mick Jagger. The group itself consisted of Brian Jones, Ian Stewart, Mick Jagger, Keith Richards, Bill Wyman, and Charlie Watts. The name of the band came from a song called "Rollin Stone." Since 1962 when the group was formed, the Rolling Stones have produced over 55 albums and sold over 200 million records. "Paint it Black" by the Rolling Stones, was a song released during the Vietnam War that tied in with depression and the depression soldiers felt during and after the war.
The song "Paint it Black" was released in 1966, 11 years after the beginning of the Vietnam War. During this time, the US was in trouble. Support of the war was low and everybody wanted the soldiers to come back. Many US soldiers on duty were going through troubles mentally and physically. Many soldiers became depressed after seeing terrible things on the battlefield. Out of 200,000 US troops, many suffered from PTSD after the war. The song also ties in with depression itself because the song is about a man who lost his lover and is becoming depressed. Paint it Black ties in with depression because the man was depressed since his lover had died he was full of grief and did not want to live a happy life anymore. When the song was released people knew it tied in with the war because of how it portrayed how many soldiers had felt.
"Paint it Black" by the Rolling Stones was a song released during the Vietnam War and it tied into how many soldiers felt during the war.
Paint it Black was released in 1966 and it was received during turmoil because the Vietnam War had been going on for 10 years and it was still going strong. Many soldiers were depressed like the man in this song. The man was sad because he had lost a loved one and was becoming increasingly depressed. Many soldiers were depressed since the war had taken a toll on them physically and mentally. The song has ties with depression. Many people in that time would go into depression and not be taken seriously. In the song we can see how the man wants everything to be black because he is depressed. Depression is something that happens after someone important to you dies and this is what this man is feeling. At the time in London it was rare for music to be as rebellious as Paint it Black was. This song took the world by storm by how closely related it was to soldier's depression during the war in Vietnam. This song and depression are related because soldiers and families were sad that their husbands were going off to war. The soldiers themselves were also sad because they didn't know what would come during their duty. The song relates to the Vietnam War in 2 reasons. One reason was that the song was put in the ending credits to "Full Metal Jacket". Another reason was that the song portrayed the soldiers feelings of depression and despair. We can see these connections to the historical setting in "No colors anymore I want them to turn black" this line shows how depressed the man was and many soldiers had felt the same way since a lot of them had PTSD. "I see the girls walk by dressed in their summer clothes, I have to turn my head until my darkness goes" this line shows how he will not look at other girls and that he will stay loyal. The first line of the song "I see a red door and I want it painted black" shows how he is starting to become depressed which means his lover had recently died. "Black as night" shows how he wants everything to become depressing and as dark as night. "With flowers and my love both never to come back" shows how he will never see his lover again and "flowers" signifies how he will never see beauty ever again. "I look inside myself and see my heart is black" means that when he looks inside himself he will never be happy again he will just life a sad depressing life and feels nothing anymore. "I could not foresee this thing happening to you" the man can't imagine that his lover would die before him. "If I look hard enough into the setting sun my love will laugh with me before the morning comes" the man can still imagine and hear his lovers laugh if he thinks hard enough.
The overall tone of the song is very dark and depressing. You can see a consistent pattern of the word black which emphasizes his darkness inside him. The song itself is very abstract
because he isn't able to hear his lovers laughter or he doesn't actually paint anything black. The song appeals to a listener's emotions because we can feel how the man in the song feels we sympathize with him. Something intangible can be described in this song because his lover doesn't actually laugh with him. The song is about a man who is becoming depressed since his lover has died. I initially thought that the song was about a painter expressing his love for the color black but after some research I discovered otherwise. The band who made this song "The Rolling Stones" made this song in May 1966. In the song we see figurative language with a simile when the artist says "I see people turn their heads and quickly look away, like a newborn baby it happens everyday" it's a simile in which he compares himself to a newborn baby. The overall purpose of the song is to show how a man became depressed after his lover died. The use of the word black adds to the song because black is a color known for death and sad things. It allows us to know he feels. Coal is a picture of imagery because it signifies his heart. His heart is coal because coal has no feelings and so does his heart. Coal is also how black he wants everything to become. Coal is non-living: he probably wants to die. Another piece of imagery is a black heart. The black heart symbolizes his heart because he feels black inside. His heart is black because he has no reason to live anymore. He feels dead inside from all the sadness he has. Another piece of imagery that goes with the song is a dark night sky. A dark night sky goes with the line "I wanna see the sun blotted out from the sky" he means that he doesn't want anything to be bright anymore. The dark sky shows how he wants everything to become. It shows darkness which is how he feels inside. An injured soldier can be a piece of imagery tying in to the
Vietnam War. The picture shows that all soldiers went through pain through the war. A lot of soldiers felt hopeless knowing that they might die and never see their family again. Many thought of their families and wonder if they were doing alright and they would stress out. The families of the soldier could also not know that the soldier had died until they were told so it was very nerve-wracking to them.
The song "Paint it Black" ties in with depression and the Vietnam War because of the soldiers feelings during and after the war. The song was important to depression because it showed how people felt when they became depressed. It showed how soldiers felt during the war and why a lot got PTSD after everything they went through. The song itself ties into depression as well because many people felt the same way as the man and we learn that depression is very dangerous. The song played in the ending credits of "Full Metal Jacket" only added to the tie ins between the Vietnam War and Paint it Black. The song describes the context of depression in a way that people can see how a depressed person feels. The Rolling Stones made a great song expressing the troubles of depression and it perfectly ties in with how many soldiers felt during that war. The song made a mark on the world and it is still listened to worldwide today. Recently many artists, like Ciara, have made covers of Paint it Black. In conclusion, the song made a mark on the world during the Vietnam War and made people more aware of what depression feels like.
WORKS CITED
1. Jack Doyle. "Paint it Black 1996-2000". January 6th, 2016. "The Pop History Dig LLC." April 18th, 2016."
MLA Citation: This article gave an overview of how the song "Paint it Black" by the "Rolling Stones" had an effect on the world as it was released during Vietnam War. This source was helpful because I wanted to know how this song affected people during the Vietnam War period. This information might be used as how the context of the song might show what it was about.
2. Joel Williams. 7 super song facts about "Paint It, Black" by the Rolling Stones. March 4th, 2014. "Ink Tank". April 18th, 2016.
7 super song facts about “Paint It, Black” by The Rolling Stones
MLA Citation: This article gave me interesting facts about the song "Paint it Black". This source was not very helpful because it did have some information, but for the most part it was not very helpful. I would use this source as a little extra fun facts or something.
3. Andy Greene. Flashback: The Rolling Stones play "Paint it Black" in 1966. "April 29th, 2014. "Rolling Stone." April 18th, 2016.
http://www.rollingstone.com/music/videos/flashback-the-rolling-stones-play-paint-it-black-in-1966-20140429
MLA Citation: This article gave me some information on the competition that the Rolling Stones faced when they were peaking as a band. It was helpful because it shows that even with competition the Rolling Stones still had a hit song that was #1 on the charts. I would use this to explain how meaningful this song was to their success.
4. Richard A. Friedman, M.D."A New Focus on Depression". December 23, 2013. " The New York Times." April 19th, 2016.
MLA Citation: This article showed how depression is being studied and if there is a chance to stop it from happening. This was helpful because in the song the man was depressed since his lover has died and now we can see how he was feeling. This would go when I explain the meaning of the song.
5. Ben Cosgrove. "America in Vietnam, 1963: Deeper into War". October 18th, 2014. "Life Magazine." April 19th, 2016.
http://time.com/3881225/vietnam-1963-life-magazine-color-photos-from-a-deepening-conflict
MLA Citation: This article showed me how the Vietnam War was affecting people, not just soldiers. This article was helpful because it gives me a bit of history from the Vietnam War through pictures.I would use this for the context of the song.
6. Jennifer L. Price, PhD. "Findings from the National Vietnam Veterans' Readjustment Study.
February 23, 2016. "U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs." April 19th, 2016.
http://www.ptsd.va.gov/professional/research-bio/research/vietnam-vets-study.asp
MLA Citation:This article shows how vietnam veterans were affected after the war and how PTSD affected the veterans. This article was helpful because it shows how some veterans felt after the war had ended. I would use this in a aftermath of the war because a lot of soldiers were affected by the war and some got ptsd.
7. The Nebraska Department of Veterans' Affairs."What is PTSD (Posttraumatic Stress Disorder)? 2007. "Nebraska Department of Veterans' Affairs." April 22nd, 2016.
http://www.ptsd.ne.gov/what-is-ptsd.html
MLA Citation: This article is explaining what PTSD(Post Traumatic Stress Disorder) is. This article is helpful because it helps understand how some soldiers felt after the Vietnam War. I would use this article to explain how a lot of soldiers felt after the war had ended