How the Stones’ Gospel Backing Vocals Seeped Into Southern Rock and the Black Keys

The Rolling Stones didn’t just borrow gospel—they let it take over whole songs. The London Bach Choir on “You Can’t Always Get What You Want” gave the track a cathedral-like ache, while the harmonized “wop-wop” backing on “Sweet Virginia” turned a country-blues shuffle into a Sunday-morning revival. Mick Jagger and Keith Richards were deep into American soul and gospel by 1969, and those vocal arrangements became a