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NFL Fans Can't Get No &*@%?! Satisfaction

The Rolling Stones aren't known for flashing body parts a la Janet Jackson during their shows, but they are known for their raunchy lyrics. That's why the NFL and ABC chose to broadcast the band's Super Bowl halftime performance on a five-second tape delay, which allowed them to edit out a couple of words deemed too suggestive for the delicate ears of football fans.

The offending lyrics? During the Stones' opener "Start Me Up," the famous line, "You make a dead man cum" got the censor's axe. And during the new song "Rough Justice," the last word of this line got bleeped: "Once upon a time I was your little red rooster/Now I'm just one of your cocks."

Only the final song of their set, "(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction," made it on the air intact.

Although a spokesman for the NFL insists that the Stones knew in advance that their show might be sanitized, the band nonetheless issued a statement two days later decrying the censorship as "absolutely ridiculous and completely unnecessary." The NFL declined further comment.

Overall, the Stones performance was well-received, although we do have one comment for the censors: We'll take Janet Jackson's breast over Mick Jagger's scrawny stomach (revealed every time he raised his arms over his head) any day of the week.

-- The ARTISTdirect Staff
updated 02.07.06