Let It Bleed

Occasionally I will find a song that I feel summarizes my life at that particular time. Only in the rarest occasions, however, do I come across an entire album that speaks to my present existence. Tonight, in what may be only the second or third time in my life, I've found that strange phenomenon in the album, "Let it Bleed," the 1969 release by The Rolling Stones.

The album weaves complexities like delicate threads, but a loose summary of the album, not unlike a traditional narrative, can be summarized in three acts. Act 1 warns of impending danger followed by mourning of love lost and the red flags of a potential downward spiral. Act 2 moves into loathsome, self-destructive behavior aimed at masking the pain by way of aimless, hollow pursuits, all of which lead nowhere. Act 2 concludes with the title track, "Let it Bleed," in which the narrator finally begins to heal when he turns his focus from his own pain and onto that of another person in need. Act 3 charts the path of healing and from there, to self-discovery and rebirth.

The album comes to a close with a moment of lucidity and, for the first time since the opening track, complete honesty and objectivity as Mick Jagger sings, "You can't always get what you want." It was during this moment that I flipped the last light switch to my old house, and as I locked the door behind me and walked to my car, he concluded with the line, "But if you try sometimes you just might find you get what you need."