Gimme Shelter (1970)

A harrowing documentary of the Stones' 1969 tour, with much of the focus on the tragic concert at Altamont.

Directors:

Albert Maysles, David Maysles

Stars:

Mick Jagger, Keith Richards, Mick Taylor

3 wins & 1 nomination.

Cast

Credited cast:
The Rolling Stones	...	Themselves
Mick Jagger	...	Himself
Charlie Watts	...	Himself
Keith Richards	...	Himself (as Keith Richard)
Mick Taylor	...	Himself
Bill Wyman	...	Himself
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Marty Balin	...	Himself (as Jefferson Airplane)
Sonny Barger	...	Himself
Melvin Belli	...	Himself
Dick Carter	...	Himself
Jack Casady	...	Himself (as Jefferson Airplane)
Mike Clarke	...	Himself (as The Flying Burrito Brothers)
Sam Cutler	...	Himself
Spencer Dryden	...	Himself (as Jefferson Airplane)
Chris Hillman	...	Himself (as The Flying Burrito Brothers)

Storyline

A documentary on the Rolling Stones' 1969 US tour and the tragic events that concluded it. We see footage of their concerts and of them making the Sticky Fingers album in Muscle Shoals, Alabama. However, the main focus of the film is on one concert - Altamont Speedway, outside San Francisco, 6 December 1969. A free concert, it is the Stones' idea and it was meant to be the Woodstock of the West (Woodstock having occurred four months earlier). Other bands performing included Jefferson Airplane, The Flying Burrito Brothers, Ike and Tina Turner, Crosby Stills Nash and Young and Santana. However, it is far from being the peace and love of Woodstock. Part of the problem is that the Stones hired the Hells Angels as security. The other problem was that a large portion of the crowd were high on drugs. Friction ensues. During the Stones' set, Meredith Hunter, high on methamphetamine and armed with a gun, makes a lunge for the stage and is stabbed to death by the Hells Angels. The peace and ...

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Plot Keywords:

sound equipment | performance | hell's angels motorcycle club | rock 'n' roll | singing | 

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Taglines:

The Rolling Stones gave a concert in Altamont, Calif. The Hell's Angels policed it. Four people died. This is the Actual Film Story.

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Genres:

Documentary | Music | Thriller

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Certificate:

GP

Details

Official Sites:

Maysles Films

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

13 December 1970 (UK)

Also Known As:

Gimme Shelter

Filming Locations:

Muscle Shoals, Alabama, USA

Box Office

Opening Weekend USA:

$18,576, 13 August 2000

Gross USA:

$252,570

Company Credits

Production Co:

Maysles Films, Penforta

Technical Specs

Runtime:

91 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Grateful Dead also used the Hell's Angels as security for several of their concerts. However, the Angels that were at Altamont were later revealed to be neophytes and hardly any of the leaders were present at the show.

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Quotes

Male Reporter: Do you have any special feelings about this kind of a concert - this spontaneous free...
Mick Jagger: Well, it's not, so much, I don't think, the concert, the concert's just sort of, I think the concert's an excuse. You know, because, like, the thing is, it's just like everyone coming and having a good time and the concert's not actually like the proscenium of the theatre, it's like an excuse for everyone to sort of, you know, get together and, like, talk to each other and sleep with each other and ball ...

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Alternate Versions

Re-released in 1992 with some uncensored dialog and some more brief nudity; this version is rated R.

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Connections

Referenced in Shame (2011)

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Soundtracks

You Gotta Move
Written by Fred McDowelll & Gary Davis (as Reverend Gary Davis)
Performed by The Rolling Stones

User Reviews

It used to be a lot more than Only Rock'n'Roll

When you see this movie you really understand how sanitised, safe and corporate the music scene is today.

The Stones were possibly the biggest band in the world at the time, so by today's standards it seems unbelievable they'd put on a free concert where the venue was changed at the last minute, the set was still being constructed as the 300,000 very fried looking hippies turned up, and there was no security for their satanic majesties except for the San Francisco Hell's Angels who were paid in beer and brought along pool cues with lead weights at the end for added security - as well as the standard knives and baseball bats. And they weren't afraid to use them, even on the bands, especially Jefferson Airplane's Marty Balin.

Throw in some of the original Satanic rock band's finest sinister creations and you get the real deal, not some pantomime metal/goth horror facsimile. At the time many people really did believe that they could change the world and looked to bands like the Stones as leaders of the counterculture, and you really get the impression things like this mattered a hell of a lot more, but after Altamont, well...

Nevertheless, the version of Under My Thumb that Jagger delivers as he's watching the terrible action unfold in front of him is, for whatever reason, devastatingly understated and desperate, compared to all the OTT cavorting earlier in the set. But it's the genuine craziness of the 'fans' that makes this film seem like it was shot on another planet. Gimme Shelter is the most rock'n'roll film ever made, for all the right and wrong reasons.