How 'Honky Tonk Women' Got Its Cowbell and Slide at Olympic Studios

The cowbell opening of “Honky Tonk Women” is one of rock’s most unmistakable intros, but it almost didn’t happen. At Olympic Studios in June 1969, the Stones had been messing with a countrified version called “Country Honk” — a loping, fiddle-and-steel arrangement they’d later release as a B-side. Producer Jimmy Miller, known for his offbeat percussion ideas, suggested Charlie Watts hit a cowbell to give the new take a sharper, more rhythmic edge. Watts obliged, and that four-note pattern became the song’s signature.

The slide guitar was another last-minute addition. Keith Richards picked up a Fender Telecaster and played a gritty, open-G slide line that cut through the mix. Originally, the band thought the track would stay in the country vein, but Richards’ slide and the cowbell pushed it into a harder, more driving rock feel. The result: a number-one hit that bridged their late-60s roots sound with the swagger of the 70s.