| "I'm Free" | |
|---|---|
| Song bythe Rolling Stones | |
| from the albumOut of Our Heads | |
| A-side | "Get off of My Cloud" (US) |
| Released | 25 October 1965 |
| Recorded | 6 September 1965 |
| Studio | RCA, Hollywood, California |
| Genre | |
| Length | 2:24 |
| Label | London |
| Songwriter | Jagger/Richards |
| Producer | Andrew Loog Oldham |
"I'm Free" is a song by English rock bandthe Rolling Stones, written byMick Jagger andKeith Richards, and first released as the final track on their third album,Out of Our Heads (1965). It was also released at the same time as a single in the US and later included on the AmericanDecember's Children (And Everybody's) album.
The Rolling Stones recorded a re-workedacoustic version for their 1995 albumStripped, and performed a live version in the 2008 filmShine a Light, which was included on the accompanyinglive album. The song was also performed at the free concert in Hyde Park, London, on 5 July 1969, released on the DVDThe Stones in the Park in 2006.
In 2007, aremixed version of the original recording was used in a television commercial for theChase Freedom credit card and in 2008 it was used in a UK commercial for aRenault SUV.
The original vinyl bootlegLive'r Than You'll Ever Be included a live version recorded in Oakland, California, in November 1969.
It appears on the Rolling Stones live albumGet Yer Ya-Ya's Out! as a re-release bonus track, following "Under My Thumb" without a break.
Rolling Stone magazine ranked "I'm Free" as the 78th greatest Rolling Stones song, saying: "A tambourine-spangled folk rocker with chime-y,Byrds-like guitar, this offhandedly libertarian tune wasn't a big hit, but it's one of the Sixties' most pliant anthems."[2]The Guardian identified the song as an example of the improving songwriting of Jagger and Richards at the time, describing the song as "gleefully hymning the arrogance of youth".[3]
Cash Box described it as a "raunchy, hard-driving emotion-packed romancer".[4]
| "I'm Free" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Single bythe Soup Dragons featuringJunior Reid | ||||
| from the albumLovegod | ||||
| Released | 1990 | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length |
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| Label | Big Life | |||
| Songwriter | Jagger/Richards | |||
| Producers |
| |||
| The Soup Dragons singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
Scottish alternative rock/dance bandthe Soup Dragons rearranged the song in 1990. Their version interpolatesDonovan's 1969 song "Barabajagal"[citation needed] and contains atoasted verse byJunior Reid. The single was released by labelBig Life and became the band's biggest hit, reaching the top ten in the UK, Australia and New Zealand, and charted in other countries as well. The Soup Dragons' version was featured in the filmsBig Girls Don't Cry... They Get Even,The World's End andRenfield.
Reviewing the single, David Giles ofMusic Week stated that the Soup Dragons "have fashioned a thoroughly contemporary piece of music that could well pay off at a commercial level".[7]
| Chart (1990–1991) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Australia (ARIA)[8] | 9 |
| Austria (Ö3 Austria Top 40)[9] | 26 |
| Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)[10] | 38 |
| Europe (Eurochart Hot 100)[11] | 16 |
| France (SNEP)[12] | 33 |
| Ireland (IRMA)[13] | 15 |
| Luxembourg (Radio Luxembourg)[14] | 4 |
| Netherlands (Dutch Top 40 Tipparade)[15] | 9 |
| Netherlands (Single Top 100)[16] | 52 |
| New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)[17] | 6 |
| UK Singles (OCC)[18] | 5 |
| UK Dance (Music Week)[19] | 6 |
| USBillboard Hot 100[20] | 79 |
| USAlternative Airplay (Billboard)[21] | 2 |
| USDance Club Songs (Billboard)[22] | 20 |
| Chart (1990) | Position |
|---|---|
| UK Singles (OCC)[23] | 40 |
| US Modern Rock Tracks (Billboard)[24] | 12 |
| Chart (1991) | Position |
|---|---|
| Australia (ARIA)[25] | 61 |
| Region | Date | Format(s) | Label(s) | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| United Kingdom | 1990 |
| Big Life | |
| Japan | 25 October 1990 | Mini-CD | Polydor | [26] |
| Australia | 5 November 1990 |
|
| [27] |
| 3 December 1990 | 12-inch vinyl | [28] | ||
| 18 February 1991 | CD | [29] |
