Nicky Hopkins' Piano on 'Angie' – The Flat Steinway and Its Melancholic Effect

The most gut-punching moment of “Angie” might not be the vocal or the acoustic guitar—it’s the piano. Nicky Hopkins deliberately had a 1960s Steinway grand tuned slightly flat before recording his part. That subtle, out-of-tune quality gives the chords a worn, tired sadness that matches the song’s exhausted heartbreak. A perfectly tuned piano would have sounded too bright and clean; this one sounds like it’s been crying in a bar all night.

Hopkins played that Steinway at Island Studios in London, where the Stones laid down the track in early 1973. The studio’s stone walls and live room added a natural reverb that lets that flattened piano ring without ever feeling slick. The combination of the detuned instrument and the room acoustics is a masterclass in using equipment flaws to serve emotion.