Rolling Stones: Gimme Shelter

Rolling Stones: Gimme Shelter is a musical documentary concerning The Rolling Stones and their tragic free concert at Altamont Speedway near San Francisco in early December 1969. The occasion was all but ruined by violence that marked the end of the 1960s’ era of love-and-peace idealism.

The night began smoothly, with the Flying Burrito Brothers opening for the Rolling Stones and performing the truck-driving classic “Six Days on the Road”, followed by a sensually charged performance by Tina Turner. However, on this particular evening, the Stones made the fateful and disastrous decision to employ the Oakland chapter of the Hell’s Angels motorcycle gang as bodyguards and bouncers. It proved to be a foolhardy and thoughtless choice that turned the night into an unmitigated calamity. Halfway through the Stones’ set, a Black spectator was killed by the Angels, and several others were injured, including Marty Balin of Jefferson Airplane.

In Rolling Stones: Gimme Shelter, we watch Mick Jagger reduced to standing on stage like a frightened youngster, finger in mouth, in the aftermath of the violence. Grateful Dead refused to perform after the violence erupted. The film ends on a despairing note, with the Stones repeatedly watching footage of the killing.

The documentary was directed by Albert Maysles and David Maysles, with cinematography by Haskell Wexler. As a result, it is widely regarded as one of the greatest rock documentaries ever made.