How the Rolling Stones Sang 'Tumbling Dice' in a French Hallway

“Tumbling Dice” was cut in the weirdest possible space: a hallway at Keith Richards’ rented French villa, Villa Nellcôte. The main sessions for Exile on Main St. were held in the damp, cramped basement, but the vocals—especially those layered backing parts—moved upstairs. The hallway became a makeshift vocal booth because it had a natural reverb that sounded better than anything the Stones could rig in the basement.

The backing vocals were a big part of that gospel-tinged groove. Mick Jagger, Keith Richards, and a few friends—including producer Jimmy Miller and bassist Bill Wyman—crowded into that hallway and sang together live, with Jagger on the lead. They used only a couple of microphones, so the blend came from the physical proximity and the stone walls. That raw, unpolished sound is exactly what gives the chorus its loose, celebratory energy.