Jack White
“Over and Over and Over”
limited edition one-sided tri-color, 200 something copies pressed, complete with custom picture sleeve that will be slightly different from the standard released version
Do you guys know how pumped I am?
For the record, I first heard this monster riff in 2005 at Jack’s house while he and Meg were recording “Get Behind Me Satan.”
I am pretty sure that the “Blue Orchid” riff pre-dates this one by a few days, but in my mind, they exist hand-in-hand. While “Blue Orchid” smashed that recording process wide open and gave Jack the inspiration to make that album as bad ass as possible, THIS riff, inarguably, is ten times stronger. I feel like Jack was originally calling it “Thermonuclear Counter-Thrust” but maybe I’m just imagining that. I can find no contemporaneous documentation of that name.
There are two takes of demo recordings of this song from 2005 (with the riff played solely on fuzz bass). There are demo recordings from 2007 with the White Stripes trying it in rehearsal leading up to the tracking of the “Icky Thump” album. Imagine the guitar profile more in line with the octave-pedaled presence of the song “Icky Thump” and that’s a good start for understanding the 2007 version. I guess the Raconteurs tried it but I never heard any evidence, same with the Dead Weather. It was apparently the main track that Jack and Jay-Z worked on together in 2009, under the title “Ray Bans” or “Behind My Ray Bans” and although I’ve never heard that working, I’m told to imagine the phrase “Behind my Ray Bans” to coincide with the last five notes of the riff.
As Jack has already said, this had been his white whale. We sincerely considered including the ’07 demo as part of the “Icky Thump X” Vault package last year. I have no recollection of Jack ever previously giving me such an impassioned plea…”I just really think we shouldn’t put this on the Vault” he said. My response was pretty matter-of-factly, “Well, it’s your label, so please don’t feel like you have to convince me.” Maybe he was trying to convince himself?
Regardless, at the end of 2017 when Jack finally had played me this version you hear now, upon the end of the song, I looked at him and said “I’ve been waiting twelve years to hear this song with lyrics.”
The final version of this song is everything I’d ever dreamed it would be. It is my favorite moment on the album, with the coda to “Humoresque” being a close second. I cannot wait to see this monster unleashed unto a sell-out crowd at Little Caesar’s Arena, a stone’s throw away from the Gold Dollar where this whole mess got started.
I’ve got an extra copy of this limited tri-color to give away here. AUTOGRAPHED by Jack White, today, explicitly for this purpose. Don’t use my give-away here as an excuse to miss going to any number of the listening parties we’re throwing at record stores worldwide though. Even though we’re giving away tri-colors at the listening parties, none of those will be autographed. Man we spoil you kids.
As for the giveaway, post a comment, can be about whatever, but maybe talk about a significant wait you’ve endured in life. Can be funny, pithy, in iambic pentameter, whatever. The “best” comment will be solely determined by me. Please chime in by noon central time on Tuesday, March 13th.
***WINNER HAS BEEN CONTACTED***
When my boyfriend sent me a note, that he had read a tantra book on how to give a woman the greatest orgasm ever. The note came on Wednesday, while I was in boarding school. Had to wait till Friday 5PM.
The number of hours I’ve spent waiting different shops across the UK for Record Store Day adds up to days now, but my favourite was a couple of years ago when I spent nine hours outside Music’s Not Dead in Bexhill. For most of the night it was just me and three other people til the queue started to grow. One was an RSD first-timer who had no idea what he was doing. One was an unashamed flipper who wanted funds for the records he actually wanted to buy – I’m no fan of this at all but it was at least interesting to hear the other side of the story. And the other guy was a shop regular who spent most of the night wondering whether he actually wanted to buy anything – he just couldn’t resist the call of RSD. Over the course of the night hours we had great fun as I learned numerous tales of shame involving one of the shop’s owners, and his previous career working for a record label pumping out dreadful, dreadful pop songs that somehow went viral. As it turned out, nobody else came for hours and we could all have had loads more sleep, but that wasn’t the point. I enjoyed it so much, I went back to the same shop – some 250 miles from home – the next year, found the same people in line and we did it all over again.
I went on a road trip round the states last year, I’m from the UK. We hit the TMR store in Nashville some date in April, I’m not sure the exact date, 28th springs to mind for some reason, before meeting up with Erin Rae and going to a house party.
On that day at TMR, we went into the record booth and spoke about what we had done so far, and what we were looking forward to on the next part of our trip….I haven’t touched the 7” since, I’m waiting until the anniversary of that date, then , 1 year on, We’re gonna put the needle down on it, and listen to what we had to say on that day when we were all so hyped to actually be in Nashville.
Having to wait until noon to find out that I have in fact won this signed 45 is killing me. It was the worst experiance that has happened yet. But worth it because the record looks great in my collection and my cat loves it.
Waiting isn’t too bad when you’ve got good music to listen to. Thanks Jack.
I remember waiting in line over an hour to ride a new roller coaster with my dad at six flags. There were even little drink/concession stands along the way. Worth it though, for a happy memory with a dad I still don’t see very often…
Waiting for my bands first gig felt like a long one but once the time came round God did it feel great. Best part is I get to relive that build up and relief every gig that comes and goes. Needless to say music is my life and artists such as Jack White and Royal Blood have played a massive part in the way I appreciate and create music.
The biggest wait of this year is me waiting to see Jack tour again at Shaky Knees May 4th, Xfest June 2nd, Columbus June 4th, and Cleveland June 6th(I took off that whole week of work just for Jack White concerts haha). So pumped! Also my girlfriend finally gets to see him live too so that’s a big wait as well :)
So many references to waiting. Waiting to be an adult, waiting for love, waiting tables, waiting for the phone to ring. We wait as humans. We wait for good news, for bad. We wait in hope and in disbelief. To quote Eddie Vedder, “the waiting drove me mad, you’re finally here and I’m a mess.” I waited patiently for that one person to acknowledge me only to find that their memory of me will only last a few more months. All I could do was wait.
I’ve been waiting years and years for another opportunity to hit up the RRS here on the east coast.
I truly love this song. I hope the prior demos come out one day.
Thanks for the opportunity.