@femalequotient: In 1969, 20-year-old soul and gospel singer Merry Clayton walked into a recording studio late at night while four months pregnant and delivered a performance that would become part of rock history. The Rolling Stones were recording “Gimme Shelter,” a song that captured the unrest of the era, when Clayton was brought in to add vocals. She gave it everything, her voice famously cracking on the word “murder,” a moment so raw that you can hear Mick Jagger react in the background. His reaction even made it into the final recording. The next day, Clayton suffered a miscarriage. She later said it took her years to recover from the loss and that the song carried both incredible success and heartbreak for her. More than 50 years later, “Gimme Shelter” is still one of The Rolling Stones’ most celebrated songs, and Clayton’s extraordinary voice remains an unforgettable part of its legacy.

kathleen :

That song is nothing without her vocals.

FRANK_GO_BANG :

I mean black folks started rock n roll… watch someone debate me with no facts… I’ll be waiting with my undeniable facts and statements from rolling stone themselves 😏

Rachel :

The voice cracking will always give me goosebumps! She was singing with her whole soul

FUCK TRUMP :

And did she receive any royalties????

theinfinspart2 :

but then she had a miscarriage 😢

Parlay :

She lost her baby singing this song

victoria :

VirgoSeason92 :

They did a live version with Fergie…. Someone should have been taken to jail .

Al Lapointe :

Yep, just got the chills!

ggjahn :

OMFG. I listen to that song solely for Merry Clayton's vocals. Crank-it-up!! Whoa. What vocals.

Nikki Handy180 :

it caused her to have a miscarriage. ❤️‍🩹

Chi-Irish8 :

I would be insufferable if I had her talent. Forever gives me goosebumps

sassylashes45 :

Giving me chills

nicetomeetyou :

Seriously I don’t know 100% of the true story but what I’ve heard is pretty amazing. What a great song what a powerful song what a sad song but thank you.

stick :

What was she paid?

melaniebooboos :

she was the soul of that song

Love Always, Damanda :

The next morning she suffered a miscarriage. Just tragic

Ona :

Was the performance directly tied to her miscarriage?

Pete J :

I love it when bands keep little things in the final track. Like you can hear the enthusiastic "Woo!" from the studio after her voice cracks at the end and even Mick giggles when hearing it

djhectorfonseca :

And just like that…..Iconic 👏

Kanya5712 :

What’s sad is that she had a miscarriage shortly after due to extreme exertion of the powerful vocals peaks

user8067716126450 :

No auto tune. No computer voice over or AI. Just a young woman belting out vocals that made every one love this song for a generation.

Justin or J :

that might be one of the most impressive vocal performances of all time! I hope she got paid properly

Le Davis :

Did they pay her tho.