On This Day in 1973: The Rolling Stones Debut a Song Speculated to Be About David Bowie’s First Wife, Becoming a Chart-Topping Success
via Hi Tones Record Store / YouTube
Artist Responses and Clarifications
Keith Richards gave his take in liner notes to the 1993 compilation album Jump Back: The Best of The Rolling Stones. He said the song’s title came from his baby daughter: “I’d recently had my daughter born, whose name was Angela, and the name was starting to ring around the house. … Angie just fitted.”
Later, in his 2010 memoir Life, Richards offered a different account. There, he explained he simply chose the name at random before even knowing the sex of his child, or what name she would have. He wrote, “…I wrote ‘Angie’ in an afternoon, sitting in bed… It was not about any particular person; it was a name, like ‘Ohhh, Diana.’ I didn’t know Angela was going to be called Angela when I wrote ‘Angie.’”
Mick Jagger also responded publicly. In 2002, he firmly dismissed the idea that the song was about Angie Bowie: “I’ve said about a hundred million times that it wasn’t [about Angela Bowie]… I don’t think I had even met Angela Bowie when I wrote the rest of the lyrics.”
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Release and Early Buzz
On August 20, 1973, The Rolling Stones released their single “Angie.” The song went on to top the Billboard chart and reached number 5 in the UK. It quickly became one of their most well-known ballads.
Soon after its release, listeners began to wonder who “Angie” might be. Some guessed the song was about David Bowie’s first wife, Angela—later known as Angie Bowie. Others thought it might refer to Keith Richards’ newborn daughter, Dandelion Angela. Another theory pointed to actress Angie Dickinson, or even Marianne Faithfull.
Chart Performance and Legacy
“Angie” was recorded late in 1972 and early in 1973 and released as the lead single from the album Goats Head Soup. It struck a chord with audiences worldwide. In the U.S., it reached number 1 on the Billboard Hot 100. It also scored strong international success, topping charts in Canada, Australia, and across Europe. In the UK, it peaked at number 5.
