Back To Zero

Album: Dirty Work (1986)
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • Mick Jagger wrote this song about his fear of a nuclear war.
  • This is the only Rolling Stones song Chuck Leavell got a writing credit for. Formerly with the Allman Brothers Band, he played keyboards with The Stones through the '80s.
  • Along with "Winning Ugly," "Back To Zero" was one of two songs Mick Jagger wrote for Dirty Work. This was the first time in Jagger's career that The Stones weren't his priority: He was fed up with the band and focused on his promoting his 1985 solo album, She's The Boss.

Comments: 7

  • Alastair from Stranraer, United KingdomIn Canada 'Back to Zero' was released as a B-side to the single, 'Winning Ugly'. Housed in an attractive cartoon picture sleeve.
  • Alastair from Stranraer, United KingdomThe foretelling of catastrophe is one reading ot the lyrics but if we think Jagger may be using coded metaphors for his own life and the band's present condition, the line "Back To Zero that's where we're heading" could be read as a cleaning of the slate and starting again. The track contains Stones references in lines such as "It's a monkey living on my back" and "I'm the fly inside the spider's web" (a volte-face from the Jagger of 1965 who was the predatory spider in the web).
  • Juan from Buenos Aires, ArgentinaSWEET NEOCON,GUNFACE AND ANYBODY SEEN MY BABY ARE THE WORST SONGS TO ME. AND THE LYRICS OF WINNING UGLY ARE REALLY UGLY. BACK TO ZERO IS NOT MY FAVOURITE BUT FAR BETER THAN SWEET NEOCON.
  • Boris Müller from Zürich, Switzerlandneil is right: back to zero is top 5 of worst stones songs ever. winning ugly probably too.
    also horrible: suck on the jagular and sweet neocon...
  • Neil from Liverpool, U.k., Englandback to zero and winning ugly are the 2 worst things the stones ever released. I've heard better outtakes.
  • Ethan from Portland, Orworst stones song ever. what a "coincidence" that chuck helped write it.
  • Roddy from Southampton, EnglandLeavell also played keyboards in Eric Clapton's MTV unplugged and Train's Drops of Jupiter.
see more comments

Editor's Picks

Meshell Ndegeocello

Meshell NdegeocelloSongwriter Interviews

Meshell Ndegeocello talks about recording "Wild Night" with John Mellencamp, and explains why she shied away from the spotlight.

George Harrison

George HarrisonFact or Fiction

Did Eric Clapton really steal George's wife? What's the George Harrison-Monty Python connection? Set the record straight with our Fact or Fiction quiz.

Spooner Oldham

Spooner OldhamSongwriter Interviews

His keyboard work helped define the Muscle Shoals sound and make him an integral part of many Neil Young recordings. Spooner is also an accomplished songwriter, whose hits include "I'm Your Puppet" and "Cry Like A Baby."

Tommy James

Tommy JamesSongwriter Interviews

"Mony Mony," "Crimson and Clover," "Draggin' The Line"... the hits kept coming for Tommy James, and in a plot line fit for a movie, his record company was controlled by the mafia.

Joe Elliott of Def Leppard

Joe Elliott of Def LeppardSongwriter Interviews

The Def Leppard frontman talks about their "lamentable" hit he never thought of as a single, and why he's juiced by his Mott The Hoople cover band.

Mike Scott of The Waterboys - "Fisherman's Blues"

Mike Scott of The Waterboys - "Fisherman's Blues"They're Playing My Song

Armed with a childhood spent devouring books, Mike Scott's heart was stolen by the punk rock scene of 1977. Not surprisingly, he would go on to become the most literate of rockers.