Bill's Groove

“Bill’s Groove” is a psychedelic instrumental outtake from Their Satanic Majesties Request, recorded in 1967 but left off the album until the 2002 reissue. The track features Brian Jones on Mellotron (that woozy, symphonic tape keyboard) and Keith Richards on bass, with Bill Wyman and Charlie Watts keeping a rubbery, locked-in groove. It sounds like a lost library music cue for a swinging London spy film — all loping bass, flute-like keys, and odd studio percussion.

Why was it cut? The sessions for Satanic Majesties were famously chaotic, fragmented by band infighting, legal troubles (drug busts, Richards’ heroin use), and a general lack of focus. The album itself was seen as the Stones’ awkward, forced psychedelic statement. “Bill’s Groove” was simply one of several instrumentals (like “Sing This All Together (See What Happens)”) that got scrapped or sidelined. When the remastered reissue arrived in 2002, it became a gem for fans — a tight, weird little track that shows the band could still lock into a hypnotic jam even during their messiest year.