Sympathy for the Devil

Sympathy for the Devil

Please allow me to introduce myself
I'm a man of wealth and taste
I've been around for a long, long years
Stole many a man's soul and faith

And I was 'round when Jesus Christ
Had his moment of doubt and pain
Made damn sure that Pilate
Washed his hands and sealed his fate

Pleased to meet you
Hope you guess my name
But what's puzzling you
Is the nature of my game

I stuck around St. Petersburg
When I saw it was a time for a change
Killed the czar and his ministers
Anastasia screamed in vain

I rode a tank
Held a general's rank
When the blitzkrieg raged
And the bodies stank

Pleased to meet you
Hope you guess my name, oh yeah
Ah, what's puzzling you
Is the nature of my game, oh yeah

I watched with glee
While your kings and queens
Fought for ten decades
For the gods they made

I shouted out,
"Who killed the Kennedys?"
When after all
It was you and me

Let me please introduce myself
I'm a man of wealth and taste
And I laid traps for troubadours
Who get killed before they reached Bombay

Pleased to meet you
Hope you guessed my name, oh yeah
But what's puzzling you
Is the nature of my game, oh yeah, get down, baby

Pleased to meet you
Hope you guessed my name, oh yeah
But what's confusing you
Is just the nature of my game

Just as every cop is a criminal
And all the sinners saints
As heads is tails
Just call me Lucifer
'Cause I'm in need of some restraint

So if you meet me
Have some courtesy
Have some sympathy, and some taste
Use all your well-learned politesse
Or I'll lay your soul to waste, um yeah

Pleased to meet you
Hope you guessed my name, um yeah
But what's puzzling you
Is the nature of my game

I must say that this song has been captivating in a strange way. Personally, the version I like is the one performed by the London Symphonic Orchestra with Michael Hutchence. Its rhythmic chanting begs the listener for his or her attention. As with songs that I am interested in, I pay special attention to the lyrics, and hence, today did a little “wiki-ing” on it.
Rather than going along with the general opinion that it is “a satanic song” with it obvious pandering to have “sympathy for the devil” by Satan-personified, I would go with the idea that the entire song sings about man’s decadence and self-destruction – which Satan is really happy to sing about (It would be better illustrated if you could hear it for yourselves).

From Wikipedia.org, “Sympathy for the devil”

The song is sung by Mick Jagger as a first-person narrative and commentary from the point of view of a suave and sophisticated Lucifer. It is often claimed that the lyrics were inspired by The Master and Margarita by Mikhail Bulgakov. At the beginning of Bulgakov's novel, an elegant stranger, later revealed to be Satan, is introduced in this way:

"'Please excuse me,' he said, speaking correctly, but with a foreign accent, 'for presuming to speak to you without an introduction.'"

The style of the stanzas also bears resemblance to a passage in The Devil and Daniel Webster.

"Sympathy for the Devil" begins:

Please allow me to introduce myself

I'm a man of wealth and taste

Backed by a constantly intensifying rock arrangement, the singer recounts his exploits over the course of human history and warns the listener:

If you meet me, have some courtesy

Have some sympathy, and some taste

Use all your well-learned politesse

Or I'll lay your soul to waste

At the time of the release of Beggars Banquet the Stones had already raised some hackles for sexually forward lyrics such as "Let's Spend the Night Together" and for dabbling in Satanism (their previous album, while containing no direct Satanic references, had been titled Their Satanic Majesties Request), and "Sympathy" brought these concerns to the fore, provoking media rumors and fears among some religious groups that The Rolling Stones were indeed devil-worshipers and a corrupting influence on youth. It should be noted, however, that one interpretation of this song is that "The Devil" is in fact mankind. The lyrics are a brief history of some of the most notable atrocities committed by man against man, including The Hundred Years War (I watched with glee while your Kings and Queens fought for ten decades for the Gods they made), the October Revolution (I stuck around St. Petersburg when I saw it was a time for a change, killed the Czar and his ministers), and World War II (I rode a tank, held a gen'ral's rank while the blitzkrieg raged, and the bodies stank). In that light, the song would appear to be a criticism of the immorality in Western Civilization perceived by the songwriter.

In addition to the very idea of a sympathetic view of the Devil, the lyrics include references to the deaths of John and Robert Kennedy (the latter having occurred only months before the album was released). The song may have been spared further controversy when the first single from the album, "Street Fighting Man" became even more controversial in the wake of the race riots occurring in many cities in the U.S.