Cocksucker Blues, Part One/ Part Two

This is an extremely rare and, even among hard-core Rolling Stones collectors, surprisingly unknown obscurity from the Rolling Stones catalog. It has a fascinating history, which is documented in a few places on the web, including Wikipedia, Snopes, and the Rolling Stones FAQ. All three sites tell a similar story, like this one from Snopes:\r\n

When the Stones decided to leave Decca Records and start their own label (Rolling Stones Records) in 1970, Decca informed them that their contract obligated them to deliver one more single. The Stones dutifully complied by handing over the unreleasable "Schooozoy Blues," also known as "Cocksucker Blues." (Strangely enough, the song was eventually released by Decca in Germany, as a bonus single included with the 1983 four-LP boxed set The Rest of the Best. The set was quickly pulled and rereleased without the single.)

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Many collectors are aware of a bootleg copy of this single, which can be had for $100 or so, but as far as I can determine, this is one of the limited (and unknown) number of copies of the single that appeared in the 1983 (84?) German LP box set. Unfortunately, I haven't been able to determine how many copies exist, nor have I found any copies for sale or auction or even an image of the Decca-released single.\r\n

From my experience, however, this is clearly not a bootleg, since it has a high-quality picture sleeve, a professional produced label, and even a copyright warning along the label's outer edge. All bootlegs I've seen have blank labels or no label at all, and have cheap-looking sleeves or inserts (in the case of LPs).\r\n

Another oddity about this single is the band's use of the moniker "Nanker Phelge." As explained in Wikipedia, \r\n

Nanker Phelge (aka Nanker/Phelge) was a collective pseudonym used between 1963 and 1965 for several Rolling Stones group compositions. Stones bassist Bill Wyman explained the origins of the name in his 2002 book, Rolling with the Stones:\r\n

\r\nWhen the Stones cut "Stoned"—or "Stones," according to early misprinted pressings—as the B-side to "I Wanna Be Your Man," Brian [Jones] suggested crediting it to Nanker/Phelge. The entire band would share writing royalties. Phelge came from Edith Grove flatmate Jimmy Phelge, while a Nanker was a revolting face that band members, Brian in particular, would pull.

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Needless to say, the lyrics of this amazing record are as outrageous as the picture sleeve itself! Though I have no reference confirming it, my suspicion is that the single released in the Decca box set was produced by a Stones fan within the company who wanted to complete Jagger's plan to give the company The Finger back in 1970. When Decca executives discovered the misdeed, they ordered the box set pulled and single removed.