Get Behind Me Satan is the fifth studio album by
American alternative rock band
The White Stripes, released on June 7, 2005, on
V2 Records. Though still basic in production style, the album marked a distinct change from its guitar-heavy 2003 predecessor,
Elephant. With its reliance on
piano-driven melodies and experimentation with
marimba on "The Nurse" and "Forever For Her (Is Over For Me)",
Get Behind Me Satan plays down the
punk,
garage rock and
blues influences that dominated earlier White Stripes albums. Frontman
Jack White plays with different technique than in the past, trading in his
electric guitar for piano,
mandolin, and
acoustic guitar on all but a handful of tracks, as his usual
riff-conscious
lead guitar style is overtaken by a predominantly
rhythmic approach.
Rolling Stone ranked it the third best album of the year and it received the
Grammy for
Best Alternative Music Album in 2006. As of February 2007,
Get Behind Me Satan had sold 850,000 units in the United States.
Get Behind Me Satan was the only Jack White record not to receive a commercial release on vinyl, with only 600 promotional copies being released originally.