Mick Jagger breaks down the influence of session pianist Nicky Hopkins on some of The Rolling Stones’ most enduring recordings — from “Loving Cup” and “Angie” to “Sympathy for the Devil” and “She’s a Rainbow.”
Nicky Hopkins was never an official Rolling Stone, but his fingerprints are all over the band’s catalog. Mick Jagger describes Nicky Hopkins’ technique of playing 16th notes on the upper hand as adding “diamond tiaras” to the music — ornamentation that elevated tracks that might have otherwise sat flat.
On “Loving Cup,” Mick Jagger says the piano is what makes it; without Nicky Hopkins, “Loving Cup” would have been ordinary. On “Monkey Man,” Nicky Hopkins’ playing opens up the bridge and gives the piano room to take over while the guitars step back.
Mick Jagger says the depth of Nicky Hopkins’ contribution runs even deeper on tracks like “Waiting on a Friend,” which existed as an instrumental for years before lyrics were written around the melody Nicky Hopkins had already sketched out, and “She’s a Rainbow,” where the piano part — compared here to a music box version of Mozart — is still performed note-for-note today.
Nicky Hopkins’ playing on “Angie” wraps around the guitar work and vocal melody so naturally it’s hard to imagine the song without it.
Mick Jagger also notes that whenever The Rolling Stones perform “Sympathy for the Devil” live, the opening serves as an immediate reminder of Nicky Hopkins — a musician whose contributions to The Rolling Stones’ sound went well beyond session work.
Nicky Hopkins was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2025.
Timestamps:
00:00 Intro
00:15 “Loving Cup” — Hopkins as the driving force
00:51 “Waiting on a Friend” — the melody that came before the lyrics
01:40 Hopkins’ technique — “diamond tiaras”
02:00 “Monkey Man” — the C bridge that opens everything up
02:40 “Angie” — piano meets vocal melody
03:21 “She’s a Rainbow” — a music box version of Mozart
03:52 “Sympathy for the Devil” — Hopkins’ opening as tribute
▶ Rock Hall 2025 Induction Ceremony Playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLuYH1Vrzl1TO96u_65q2irtXhrkF4L8vz
▶ Nicky Hopkins Rock Hall Bio: https://rockhall.com/inductees/nicky-hopkins
▶ The Rolling Stones Rock Hall Bio: https://rockhall.com/inductees/rolling-stones
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