Get Behind Me Satan is the fifth studio album by the American rock duo the White Stripes. It was released in June 2005, with V2 and Third Man handling distribution in the United States, and XL and Third Man handling international distribution. It was recorded in Jack White's home between February and March 2005, and Jack produced the whole album.
Described as the "most misunderstood entry in the White Stripes discography" by Jack White's own Third Man Records, Get Behind Me Satan musically diverts from the band's previous works with experimental production and lyrics that reference truth and actress Rita Hayworth. The album was promoted with early previews to journalists and releasing "Blue Orchid", "My Doorbell" and "The Denial Twist" as singles. It was not released in a vinyl format until 2015, as the band wanted to record a separate live version which never came to fruition. In the years following its release, Get Behind Me Satan has continued to be reissued.
Get Behind Me Satan charted within the top ten of nine countries, reaching number three on both the US Billboard 200 and the UK Albums Chart. The album received positive reviews from music critics, who praised its experimentation but some felt its production was too constricted. It received two nominations at the 2006 Grammy Awards, winning Best Alternative Album.
Background and recording
Get Behind Me Satan was conceived at a time when the White Stripes had felt "betrayed" and "burned" by close friends within the Detroit music scene such as Jason Stollsteimer, a member of the Von Bondies, which Jack White had got into a physical altercation with in December 2003, and Jim Diamond, who had filed a lawsuit against the band in October 2004, wanting royalties of their first two albums. In the hindsight of 2006, Jack acknowledged that his own constitution had more to do with why he could no longer live in Detroit and that moving sooner likely would not have made a difference, as Get Behind Me Satan was "a farewell to a lot of the parts of my personality that I didn't want to see anymore," more so than it was a farewell to Detroit. Jack described Get Behind Me Satan as "the absolute breaking point of the idea of home" which has been a recurring motif in his lyrics and his "[...] supposed, constructed new home was also shattering." With success and constant touring, Jack found it hard to stay connected to Detroit as his home and frequently performed "Boll Weevil" during concerts for this reason. He did not initially want to leave the city until he began to feel like a pariah. Yet he did regret doing so much to support other local artists and constantly self-effacing to assuage them, feeling he "should have been more concerned with [himself]," as well as realizing that it was foolish to turn down millions of dollars worth of opportunities earlier in their career. Meg also left Detroit at the same time, leaving behind "so much baggage," though clarified that the duo are "not anti-Detroit" as an entire city. Their former friends in the Detroit rock scene made feel that they had to atone for and feel guilty about their success, of which no one could relate to, until they felt exiled–with Jack saying he sensed the voice of God telling him to leave the city. Get Behind Me Satan as well as its tour was their way of "coping" with the alienation. In a 2018 Rolling Stone interview that began with a retrospective on what occurred with Stollsteimer, Jack expressed no remorse for the physical altercation, saying the likes of Johnny Cash, Sid Vicious, and Jerry Lee Lewis (or even comedian Jerry Lewis) have had similar transgressions and that his anger was a justified, human reaction in that moment.
Jack had begun writing and recording demos for Get Behind Me Satan on a microcassette recorder throughout 2004 and early 2005, and had quit smoking due to its effect on his singing voice. He had written around 35 songs during this period, with many of the songs that would be recorded for the album either having been completely written or partially written during the sessions, as Jack had not actively been songwriting after Elephant. Elephant'''s engineer Liam Watson considered recording their subsequent album in Africa, or a studio other than Toe Rag, though the plans never materialized. Although reports as early as October 2003 stated The White Stripes planned to record their fifth album by the end of that year, they did not know they would be making this album until less than a month before its February 2005 production, as Jack felt motivation to record these songs "immediately; as soon as possible," but no idea what the album was going to sound like. They had no desire of making it "Elephant 2". The reported cost of recording the album was under $10,000. He described the songwriting of the album as cathartic and a "purging" of intense emotions, ultimately leaving him happy and rejuvenated after the mixing.Get Behind Me Satan was recorded in around two weeks throughout late February and mid-March 2005 at Jack's home in Indian Village, which was referred to as Third Man Studios in the press release and liner notes for the album. The band considered the sessions to be "cursed" as the tape machine and microphones would malfunction and water would drip from the ceiling, however things improved by the recording of "Blue Orchid" toward the end. When asked why they recorded this album at home rather than a studio, Jack explained that by that time they'd become stagnant in that environment and he was tired of debating with engineers over production and the use of computers. At the time, Jack felt editing with razor blades was "the way it's supposed to be done," though he no longer practices this. The decision to record at home was not predetermined, but the house had a large staircase that Jack believed was suitable for recording and The White Stripes had experience with recording at home with their second album, De Stijl (2000).
Matthew Kettle, who had been mixing the band's live shows, recorded Get Behind Me Satan on a Studer 8 track tape machine. Six Coles 4038 microphones were exclusively used for the recording of the album. A Steinway grand piano was rented in order to achieve a fuller sound. The foyer served as the main recording space with the piano in the foyer and the drums situated on the second floor stair landing. Some songs were recorded in a back room. Jack had purchased a marimba not long before the recording and had it in the dining room, although he had no particular intention of using it on the album. "If there had been a sitar in the room and a zither," Jack said those instruments hypothetically would have been on the album too.
The album cover and photos featured in the album liner notes were taken by Ewen Spencer during a five-day shoot at Jack's home. On the twentieth anniversary of the album's release, Jack revealed that the object he held on the cover is a drugstore glass container that contains an unknown white powder and is meant to represent temptation. The cover was notably used in the 2006 Gilmore Girls episode "I Get a Sidekick Out of You", with Lane and Zach in Meg and Jack's positions, respectively. Mixing was completed at Ardent Studios by John Hampton and Jack in late-March, with mastering completed by Howie Weinberg at Masterdisk, two weeks prior to the release of the first single.
Music and lyrics
Deemed the "most misunderstood entry in the White Stripes discography" by Jack White's own Third Man Records, Get Behind Me Satan is basic in production but marks a distinct change from its 2003 guitar-heavy predecessor, Elephant. With its reliance on piano-driven melodies and experimentation with marimba, the album plays down the punk and garage rock influences that dominated earlier White Stripes albums and has been described as an alternative rock, blues rock, blues, pop, and country album. Jack plays with different technique than in the past, replacing electric guitar with piano, mandolin, and acoustic guitar on all but three tracks, as his usual riff-conscious lead guitar style is overtaken by a predominantly rhythmic approach. Meg White expands her instrumentation with percussion bells, maracas and tambourines alongside her drumming.
Jack stated in an interview on the NPR radio show Fresh Air that "truth is the number one theme throughout the album Get Behind Me Satan."
The album's title refers to a well-known line from the story of the Temptation of Jesus which is later repeated against the disciple Simon Peter, in of the New Testament. In the King James Version, the quotation is slightly different: "Get thee behind me, Satan". Jack stated in an interview with Mojo the possible interpretations of the album title, "It can mean, you're either for me or against me. And if you're not going to help me, get out of my way. Or maybe it relates to the Devil's music, and having the Devil back you up while you're playing it. Or, perhaps it relates to aiming for the truth, for doing the right thing, and telling the Devil to take his temptations away."
Songs
Tracks 1–7 Recorded near the end of the album sessions, Jack has stated in multiple interviews that "Blue Orchid" saved the album. When Jack had conceived the song, he said that the song made him want to play festivals. Basic tracking was done on March 10, 2005, with vocal overdubs completed on a later date. The song was released as the first single for the album six weeks after it was written on April 18, 2005. An Electro-Harmonix polyphonic octave generator guitar pedal was used on the track in order to achieve a heavier guitar sound, although they were limited by the amount of tracks on the tape they could use and Jack liked the octaves rather than the effects.
"The Nurse" is an experimental song, which features Jack playing a Musser M500 Concert Grand Soloist marimba. The song was first tracked with marimba and drums, with electric guitar and additional drums later overdubbed in order to mask a poor tape edit of the "No, I'm never / no, I'm never / no, I'm never gonna let you down" portion which had been recorded separately. Jack was initially hesitant about the song due to the overdubs. When Jack let Brendan Benson hear an early mix of the song, Benson said it sounded like "some Brian Wilson shit". Jack has said that the song is about someone he had been in love with for over a decade. The song was built upon a White Stripes song (which Meg didn't perform on) that had not been released, written in 2000, called "Let You Down". It was recorded in the living room. "The Nurse" would later strongly inspire the production and studio sessions of their subsequent and final album Icky Thump (2007).
"My Doorbell" was released as the second single for the album on July 11, 2005. The song has been described as being reminiscent of Motown music. The song was recorded in two takes. Jack considers it to be the only "positive" part of the album, thematically. "My Doorbell" was nominated for the Grammy Award for Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals in 2006.
"Forever for Her (Is Over for Me)" was written spontaneously after a phone call Jack had, after which he said the first lyric, "I blew it," and continued to find words that rhymed as well as "play with the Vs." It was one of two songs on the album containing marimba instrumentation.
"Little Ghost" is a bluegrass (and country) song which features Jack playing a Gibson F-4 mandolin which he had purchased around the time of his acting role in Cold Mountain (2003). Jack had written the song in ten minutes at a friend's house. The song was under consideration for being the third single. The song was often performed live as a duet (whereas the album version is Jack performing different vocal tracks).