Composers: Mick
Jagger
& Keith Richards
Recording
date: December 1982 &
April-August 1983
Recording
locations: Pathé
Marconi Studios, Paris, France; Compass
Point Studios, Nassau, Bahamas; & The Hit Factory,
New York City
Producers: The
Glimmer
Twins & Chris Kimsey
Chief engineer:
Chris
Kimsey
Performed
onstage:
1997-98, 2007
Probable line-up:
Drums: Charlie
Watts
Bass: Ron Wood
Electric guitars: Keith
Richards & Ron Wood (incl. solo)
Lead vocal: Keith
Richards
Backing vocals: Keith
Richards & Ron Wood
TrackTalk
Wanna Hold You comes from one night I rented a basement from a guy who has a studio in the bottom of his house. I got into Paris and I got together with this guy, and Mick came over there, and we were there 2 or 3 nights, just a basement studio. And that song just came up one night. Me, I was playing guitar, screaming into the mike, and Mick was playing drums, and it just came out. It was a throwback in a nice kind of way for me. The structure is very early sort of Lennon & McCartney, let alone the title, which suggests I Want to Hold Your Hand. So I decided to leave it at that 'cause that was the general idea. It was just a good bash, you know. I wanted to leave it like that and not work it to death or change the title. Normally, I might've rewritten it, but I decided to leave it as a dumb pop song. It has a very universal desire, especially when you're very frightened or lonely, or cold. And it just came out in one night. I still have the original tape with Mick playing drums and it's actually quite good.