[4] The song is said to be an examination of a sexual power struggle, in which Jagger's lyrics celebrate the success of finally having controlled and gained leverage over a previously pushy, dominating woman.

Savouring the successful "taming of the shrew" and comparing the woman in question to a "pet", a "Siamese cat" and a "squirming dog", the lyrics provoked some negative reactions, especially amongst feminists, who objected to what they took as the suppressive sexual politics of the male narrator.

American humanities professor Camille Paglia, for example, reported that her admiration and defence of "Under My Thumb" marked the beginning of a rift between her and the radical feminists of the late 1960s.

Buizard describes that in the blues tradition, of which the Stones are the heirs, the guitar is the eternal companion of the bluesman, sometimes even personified, such as Lucille, B.

[11] In a 1978 retrospective review, music critic John Andrew Prime noted "Under My Thumb" for having "certain twists and turns" which rescued it from "the doldrums".

"[15] Writing for the Lincoln Gazette in 1972, musician Dave Downing noted the concerns raised but considered stereotyping and oversimplification to be "very difficult to avoid" in rock music, calling "Under My Thumb" a "piece of art, not a political doctrine".

[16] According to authors Philippe Margotin & Jean-Michel Guesdon:[17] The Rolling Stones Additional musicians The song was being played during the killing of Meredith Hunter at the infamous Altamont Free Concert in 1969.

[23] That same year, the Canadian band Streetheart released a disco-hybrid cover version from the album Under Heaven, Over Hell; it peaked at number 20 in 1980 on the RPM singles chart.

[citation needed] Sam Kinison sang his version of the song on his album Leader of the Banned (1990), with David Bryan on piano, Kim Bullard on keyboards, Mike Baird on drums, Rudy Sarzo on bass, and Robert Sarzo on guitar, with additional guitar solos by Dweezil Zappa.