THE ROLLING STONES
"Can't you hear me knockin' down your dirty street?"
General Rating: 5
ALBUM REVIEWS:
VIDEOS:
APPENDIX A: My Review Of The Stones' Moscow Concert
APPENDIX B: SOLO PROJECTS
APPENDIX C: GUEST APPEARANCES
Disclaimer: this page is not written by from the point of view of a Rolling Stones fanatic and is not generally intended for narrow-perspective Rolling Stones fanatics. If you are deeply offended by criticism, non-worshipping approach to your favourite artist, or opinions that do not match your own, do not read any further. If you are not, please consult the guidelines for sending your comments before doing so.
This page also hosts comments from the following Certified Commentators: Ben Greenstein, John McFerrin, Joel Larsson, Fredrik Tydal, Sergey Zhilkin.
What has not yet been said about these guys? OK, let's recall it in
a few words: they were one of the two most popular rock bands in the world;
they lasted longer than anybody else and last still; they created tons
of hits in their prime years and lots of hits in their later years; they
pioneered rock concerts as we know them; they are the forefathers of billions
of lesser groups, etc., etc.
Their image has always been that of the "bad guys" - contrary
to the Beatles. Imposed on them by early manager Andrew Oldham, it has
quickly been integrated within them and became part of their lives and
part of their music, too. In fact, this was just the problem: at times
the "naughtiness" of the music threatened to overshadow its actual
quality. But only at times. As it was, they created one brilliant tune
after another without any seeming efforts, and just because at least eighty
percent of their total output is high above the mark "outstanding"
they easily score a 5 on my band rating scale.
Before I go on straight to the actual reviews, though, I feel there's one
myth about the Stones that I just have to try to rebutt. Most people who
aren't diehard Stones fans often speak of their music as 'formulaic'. The
expression 'the Rolling Stones formula' is so frequent among reviewers,
critics and simply lovers of their music, that it finally gets on my nerves.
As far as I see it, the Stones' 'formula' is often seen as the kind of
raunchy, riff-based blues-rocker with smutty or just dangerous sounding
lyrics, played at high or mid-tempo speed, high volume and lots of energy
and force. Examples: 'Brown Sugar', 'Rocks Off', 'Jumpin' Jack Flash',
'Honky Tonk Women', etc. These are the 'formula' that the Stones did well.
The rest was crap - unexperienced dabblings in pop and psychedelia, stupid
flirtations with disco, etc. So the Stones are good at what they do best,
but this also makes them limited and monotonous and not too clever or experimental.
Well, forget that. The Stones don't have any more 'formula' than any
band or performer you might be familiar with - except for special oddities
like artists who made it their forte to change face all the time (like
David Bowie), only the Beatles could be more diverse as the Stones. Yes,
blues and blues-rock has always been the core of the Stones' sound - but
only the core, around which they piled layer upon layer of diverse experimentation
with almost every genre you can name, experimentation that was more fruitful
than not. They started off as a blues/R'n'B combo, created a totally new,
exuberant style of youthful, menacing rock'n'roll, then went off into pop
and psychedelia, before settling... nah. That's where they keep saying
that everything they did after 1967 is 'formula'. Is Beggar's Banquet
formula? It has Latin rhythms. It has blues. It has country. It has rock'n'roll.
It has gospel. It might be 'roots-rock', but 'roots-rock' does not equal
'formula'. And even so, throughout the Seventies, Eighties and Nineties
the Stones experimented with every new genre, including reggae, disco,
punk, electronics, new wave, and, more recently, they have even incorporated
elements of grunge and hip-hop. Their creativity is unmatched - except
for, once again, only the Beatles, nobody comes close to their vast understanding
of Music as a whole. And a note for the 'protesters': don't go off judging
the Stones on the evidence presented by Hot Rocks. Better go out
today and buy at least a dozen of their most essential albums. These are
indisposable in any decent rock'n'roll collection.
Lineup, as we know it:
Mick Jagger - vocals, harmonica, occasional guitar, and dancing.
The face of the Stones. Pretty much a general symbol of the sixties, Mick
is, surprisingly enough, not the heart of the Stones. OK, so he is
the dominus on stage, and most of the lyrics and at least a certain
share of the melodies do belong to him, but the real musical genius of
the band is Keith Richard(s) - guitar. Yes, that's the man who wrote
the riff to "Satisfaction" in his sleep, and, although I must
admit his playing has worsened a bit over the years, his musical sense
is as strong as ever. The Riffmeister, I heard they call him, and he is
one: nobody has cranked up more fantastic riffs in their lives than ole
Keith did. Charlie Watts - drums. Certainly not the best drummer
in the world, as hardcore fans proclaim him to be, he is still extremely
professional, with a steady trademark beat, and he's also revered as the
"glue" that held the rest of the Stones together through the
years.
So much for the regular guys. Now the traitor: Bill Wyman - bass
guitar. For decades he's been as loyal to the Glimmer Twins as Charlie
was, then he suddenly quit in 1993 (1991?), just before the Voodoo Lounge
sessions. I still can't understand it. I thought he retired from playing
completely - now I hear he's still playing with some other guys (or solo?)
Was it necessary to quit? Hmm. Strange. Anyway, his solo output is usually
dismissed by critics as disco crap.
So now the Stones don't have a base player, using Darryl Jones on occasion.
However, the most "fluent" vacation was always that of the second
guitar player. Brian Jones was a huge driving force for the Stones
in the early years, when they were playing pure R&B, and especially
in the mid-sixties, when he drove them into artistic rock and psychodelia.
However, he was suffering from the same problems as Syd Barrett, so in
the end he was completely stoned out of his head, quit the band and drowned
(1969). His replacement - Mick Taylor - embellished the Stones'
sound with elaborate bluesy guitar solos a la Clapton/Page, hugely increasing
the degree of professionalism in an era when it was needed by everybody
(late sixties - early seventies). He quit in 1975, and was replaced by
Ron Wood - a very nice guy and quite a good player; still, his sound
does not always fit in well with what is known as "the Stones' sound",
and overall I think that the Stones will always be remembered for Brian
Jones, not for Ronnie.
About the reviews: I am following the American catalog, which is the only
one to be found on CDs. It is generally blamed as being totally derivative
and all, but I think it's OK, especially since if you stick to the American
catalog you'll be able to get more songs on original albums than with the
British catalog. Still, there are some problems: some of the songs get
duplicated (especially if you take Flowers), and some songs are
still unavailable - unless you purchase the Singles Collection which
is three CDs out of which you probably need only about a fifth part or
so. That's what I say - a hardcore fan and his money are soon parted.
P.S. As of now, the Stones page is the largest on this site - therefore,
it has been cut into two more or less equal parts; all the regular studio
and live albums up to 1974 (i.e. the Jones and Taylor periods) are reviewed
here ("stones.htm"), and the albums 1975-98 (the Wood period),
videos, concert reviews and reviews of solo projects and guest appearances
have been transferred to another page ("stones1.htm"). You can
easily access it if you follow the links to any of the albums or videos
from the 'table of contents', or from the link at the bottom of this page.
General Evaluation:
Listenability: 5+/5. The
primary criterion for these guys' approach to music - about 95% of their
songs are catchy in some way at least.
Resonance: 5/5. If there ever
was one band to convince you that rock'n'roll is a powerful, all-encompassing,
vital force, that would be the Stones. The quality of Jagger's ballads
is a bit disputable - but could you dare arguing that something as gorgeous
as, say, 'Wild Horses' is "fake"?
Originality: 4/5. Let's cut
the crap about the Stones 'never being original'. One point off for a too
close Beatles-competition in 1966-67, but the Stones basically pioneered
the whole conception of the true 'rock'n'roll band'.
Adequacy: 5/5. These guys always
knew what they were doing. Okay, except on Dirty Work.
Overall: 4.75+ = *
* * * * on the rating scale.
What do YOU think about The Rolling Stones? Mail your ideas
Your worthy comments:
<LedZep3206@aol.com> (15.11.99)
First of all, I wish to point out a mistake on your Introduction to
the Rolling Stones regarding Brian Jones. Brian Jones wasn't their SECOND
guitar player, he was their first. He, in fact, created the Rolling Stones.
He was their musical genius, and it was drug problems and women problems
that allowed Mick Jagger to climb into power. Also, Brian Jones didn't
point the Stones toward pyschodelia, Mick Jagger did. After the Beatles
released the Sergeant Pepper album, Jagger thought that pyschodelia
was the way to go, hence the Satanic Majesties album, Brian Jones
tried to convince them to stick to R&B, but they didn't listen, and
the album flopped. This is why Beggar's Banquet was (is) so damn
good. If that album wasn't their best ever, the Stones would have been
gone. It would have been the end, all because they tried to do something
that just wasn't them (Satanic Majesties). This, also, drove Brian
to drugs.
[G.S.: On the other hand, do
not forget that Brian Jones never wrote a single song. But it was certainly
he who introduced the Stones to various psycho treatments - ever seen that
Ed Sullivan show with Brian playing sitar on 'Paint It Black'?]
Glenn Wiener <Glenn.Wiener@Entex.com> (04.02.2000)
I think the reason why I like the Rolling Stones so much, even more than the Beatles i that their music had a more raw and edgy feel than the fab gang ever put out. Maybe as a man, Mick Jaggers's crowing style of vocals and Keith's gritty street smart guitar riffs touch my soul just the right way. Their instrumental prowess is slightly better than the Beatles but not overly outstanding except maybe when Mick Taylor was a member of the band. Manits a damn shame Mickey T did not stay on longer. Mick T had a reserved way about him and I suppose he did not want to rock the boat too much. I wish Taylor would have told the Glimmer Twins, "Look dudes, I have some cool songs and want to contribute them to OUR band!" Who knows what the Stones would have been. They did have some spotty releases from the mid seventies to the end of the eighties. However, when you keep going to the well as often as the Stones have, you are bound to come out with alot of quality material. And over the course of their long lives, the Stones are fully loaded with great songs, riffs, arrangements, and more. I guess that fully explains my feelings about this great great band.
<Quarrymn@aol.com> (21.03.2000)
Give it up( in all fairness)
The Stones are great, legends even....but u the other 10 stones fans are
completely overrating them...Satanic majesties, no matter how hard
you try to be fair, is in fact a RIP OFF album aof Sgt. Pepper,
they simply couldnt handle the fact that they just couldnt beat the beatles.
so they try to ride on the pepper bandwagon...and as far as lasting
so long making them great...well then I will form a band with my little
bro. and we will stay together 60 years and call ourselves the worlds greatest
rock and roll band. in other words..longevity doesnt mean shit. ask the
beatles and hendrix fans
ps. one more thing, how can you possibly put mr, charlie watts up there
with greats like moon, and bonham, NOT EVEN CLOSE!!!
ever listen to ruby tuesday(to mention a few)
<TDL133@aol.com> (02.04.2000)
Geez, I love em and i hate em! They have a huge catalog, and some of it is great, BUT alot can just as easily be thrown into the trash pile! I think they are overated. Alot of people think they are great just because they have survived for so long (and you have to admire them for that) however, longevity does not make them a great band. I like the early works, but would have to say they havent done anything decent since ' 81s TATTOO YOU ( a rare gem released in all the garbage from about ' 75 to the present). In there case, it would have been better to fade away. I dont mean to sound so negative though because the early tunes ('SATISFACTION' , 'UNDER MY THUMB' , 'HONKEY TONK WOMEN' , ect..) are great!
Chris Cormier <chris2@nb.sympatic.ca> (19.06.2000)
I have material from pretty well every 'classic' rock band and I just don't see the 'huge' talent these guys are supposed to have. Maybe as entertainers, they put on a good show. And they have at least as respectable a catalogue as the byrds, clapton, grateful dead, etc, but overall the music is pretty boring and unappealing. Maybe it's keith richards laughable arrogance, the overall looseness of playing (ok, they're better than sabbath), the scarcity of melody and vocal control (more like controlled hollering), the monotony of emotion imparted (have-a-good-time gets a bit narrow after a while, although it does impart a certain sense of direction) If you want good blues, listen to something authentic, or at least better quality rip-offs like zeppelin or floyd. They were in the right place at the right time, the kinks had about the same thing going but never caught on. Let me put it this way - in 200 years will people be SINGING their songs? Do their lyrics appeal to anything but rich 20th century kids pretending to themselves they can be stoned FOREVER and ever?
Kelly <TattooU81@aol.com> (28.06.2000)
I agree for the most part with your overview of the Stones, however, I disagree with your statement that Keith's guitar abilities have worsened over the years. I think that Keith's playing has only beccome better. One need only listen to the opening riff from "Love Is Strong" to hear that. Or, how about his work on "Thru and Thru"? Choppy yet still Keith and therefore a style an ability that any guitar player would be most happy to be able to carry off as only Keith does.
<Huntr3@aol.com> (30.07.2000)
I must say that Keith Richards, although i dont think hes the greatest guitar player, hes definately the COOLEST. Just watch the way he acts. I mean, he looks like Death.. and he weighs 45lbs soaking wet (with his Telecaster strapped on too).. but i wouldnt mess with him. I mean, have you see the footage of him un-strapping his guitar, and hitting the guy who ran onstage? And then KEEP PLAYING. What a great man.. and i love they way he explained it.. that if you mess up his gig that hes gotta "take the mother down..." Keith Richards is the man....
Year Of Release: 1964
Record rating = 8
Overall rating = 13
The fiercest-hitting record of 1964. Which, really, says it all.
Best song: I'M A KING BEE
A fantastic debut, probably one of the best, at least for the early
Sixties. Like I said, the Stones manufactured their image as that of the
bad guys, and this album gives totally no quarter, at least, when we consider
the early days when it was recorded! Most of the songs are covers, of course
- the Glimmer Twins Mick and Keith didn't have their songwriting schtick
worked out yet, but who can tell? Most of them are only associated with
the Stones by now. The only complete original, apparently written by Mick
and Keith on orders from early manager Fuckin' Andrew (Loog Oldham), is
pop - a catchy ballad called 'Tell Me'; it's good, with a charming arpeggiated
guitar melody, and certainly hints at their later successes. Rumour has
it that Oldham locked 'em up in the kitchen and told not to come out until
they'd written something as good as the Beatles did, so they wrote 'Tell
Me'. Later rumours, though, told that it was 'As Tears Go By'. Even later
rumours said that it was something more forgettable, but there I lost interest
in rumours completely. Why should I listen to rumours when I can enjoy
'Tell Me' instead? That guitar sound is friggin' awesome!
Most of the other tracks are hard, raucous and uncompromising - either
hardcore blues stuff (Jimmy Reed's 'Honest I Do' with incredibly loud drumming
and cute little guitar lines by Brian; Slim Harpo's 'I'm A King Bee' also
starring Brian on 'stinging' guitar) or extremely tight and menacing R'n'B
(Chuck Berry's 'Carol' which nullifies the original with its pulsating
level of energy; the closing 'Walking The Dog', where Mick's ferocious
vocals, naughty whistling and insane guitar licks combine in an outstanding
performance - at least, for 1964 it really was outstanding). Of
course, when you're mostly doing covers you can't expect everything to
work, so a couple of them blow, like the piano-driven monotonous 'Can I
Get A Witness' (where Mick sings in one of the strangest, most unnatural
tones he'd ever adopted) and the preachy 'You Can Make It If You Try' (still
featuring terrific vocals from Mick). Hmm, maybe I just don't like the
way these guys did Motown tunes - maybe they should have left that stuff
to the Fab Four. But it's all compensated on more, even more crazy fast
numbers - the classic 'Route 66' and 'I Just Wanna Make Love To You' (oh,
that harmonica!) Can you imagine the guys doing 'I Just Wanna Make Love
To You' on the Ed Sullivan show? They did it! And who ever remembers that
'Route 66' is an old Fourties blues number, when all that is needed to
really make this song smoke is that hard, 'sneering' guitar tone as Richards
bends his strings as even Chuck Berry wouldn't bend 'em? They couldn't
go wrong! Ample proof to this is that even when they decide to plain boogie
and have a little fun in the studio, building a 'jam' around the rhythm
of 'Can I Get A Witness', they come out with a loud, happy, delirium-filled
instrumental (oddly entitled 'Now I've Got A Witness'). And watch out for
that guitar solo! The funny thing is that, once they'd finished laying
down the tapes, they went on to record a vocally embellished version of
same jam called 'Fuckin' Andrew' (see my Metamorphosis review for
that one); fortunately, they had the good commercial sense to not put it
on record. Shucks, the recording people wouldn't have let them anyway.
In all, this is a great album - suffice it to say that, even if the songwriting
is practically non-existent (yet), the playing skills of all the five Stones
are unsurpassed. In fact, they blow away all competition, including
The Beatles! Mick's voice is just perfect - sure, he did gain more prowess
at it in the future, but it's strong, fresh and full of that young energy
he'd lost completely by the mid-Seventies. Keith is cranking out terrific
riffs and Berry-licks, Brian demonstrates he's fully mastered all the blues
intonations he could find on imported Muddy Waters and Elmore James records,
Bill gives out dark swift basslines one could only dream about and Charlie's
not freaking out (well, he was never freakin' out) but keeping a tight
grip throughout all of the album. Perfect! No wonder the album was such
a sensation in Britain at the time of release. Today, many people just
shrug their shoulders and say: 'So what?' But you gotta understand, nobody
played that fast, insane and yet fully competent at the time. The Kinks
were fast and raunchy, too, but they were sloppy. The Beatles weren't sloppy,
but they were never as vicious. The Animals weren't as menacing. And the
Who were yet unknown. If you want to get an even more clear picture, please
find the Beatles' version of 'Carol' found on their BBC album and
compare with this one; you'll see the big difference.
This one is certainly one of the very best early rock albums when nobody
could yet write important songs but everybody played the same five or six
dozen Chuck Berry/Carl Perkins/Buddy Holly originals so that the only way
to make an album stand out was to tighten up the playing until it became
absolutely terrific. In fact, I doubt if even a handful of today's bands
can keep up to the standard! No offense, but... Anyway, one more thing:
this American release features the British hit single 'Not Fade Away' (a
fine chunk of Buddy Holly's beat) instead of the original 'Mona' (a fine
chunk of Bo Diddley's beat) for no particular reason. 'Mona' later worked
its way to the Now! album.
You can make it if you try! Mail your ideas
Your worthy comments:
Tony Stewart <tony.remi.stewart@worldnet.att.net> (08.10.99)
George, this one is a straight 10. Your review lists one asset after another i.e. "Honest I Do", with an arrangment already pretty sophisticated for 5 British teenaged louts, the furor of "I Just Want To Make Love". with not only that harmonica ,but also that guitarriff, the smooth in-the-pocket of "King Bee", and the overall sheer joy of these guys finally in a studio getting to actually RECORD what they have been living for the las 2 years. It's so important to see the disc in context of it's times and Keith letting it rip on "Carol", which is ALL he wanted from life at the time, Jagger already sounding like Jagger on "Walking The Dog" and the Fun of "Now I've Got A Witness". Add "You Can Make It If You Try" , the unstoppable "Route 66", the charm of "Tell Me" (Come on everyone's first song went C-Am-F-G) and "Can I Get A Witness" which frankly I don't think sounds that unnatural as you paint it out to be and you have like you say the Hottest Disc of '64. Any Disc where I can unconditionally say to someone, withount thinking twice"Go and buy it right now!" is a 10.
Jeff <Jkh1392@aol.com> (20.10.99)
Wow, this is really good! The only weak song is "You Can Make it If You Try," but the rest is incredible! I agree that there should've been more fast stuff, since some of those lightening-speed numbers on here ("Route 66," "Carol," I Just Wanna Make Love to You") are just mind-blowing. The Stones prove themselves to be the only band who can out-Chuck-Berry Chuck Berry. Listen to "Carol"!! They rip through that thing!! I actually like "Can I Get a Witness"-- the piano helps diversify the album a little. "Not Fade Away" is probably my favorite track, mainly because it's fast and it's got some fun harmonica. As for the original songs, "Tell Me" is fantastic, while "Little By Little" is good, but not great. It's amazing how much energy the boys had, though!
Glenn Wiener <Glenn.Wiener@Entex.com> (14.01.2000)
Good for an album of almost all covers. But the style from song to song gets old after a while. The singing and guitar playing are all very good.
Jeff Blehar <jdb3@jhu.edu> (09.02.2000)
Take a second to open up the liner notes to England's Newest Hitmakers
and look at the pictures of those five adorable moptops, The Rolling Stones.
You know what's cute? Keith Richards, looking all of 17, that's what. Like
a guy who looks like that could end up a depraved smack junkie!
Anyway, about the music. You can probably guess by my ratings that I'm
not exactly dipped in gasoline and set on fire by the Stones' early albums
(with one notable exception). I guess that's just because I fear and loathe
all black people and feel threatened by the savage rhythms of their fierce,
sexually charged music. Sure. Actually, what my real problem is is that
(aside from my distate for using the word "is" twice in a row
in a sentence) I just can't get excited about stiff, half-hearted covers
of R&B songs. Lots of people seem to love these albums, especially
this one. Sadly, I ain't one of those clowns. I mean, sometimes it's brilliant,
as on their rave-up take on Buddy Holly's "Not Fade Away" (guaranteed
to induce mass body-shaking in any teenage crowd of any era, and rhythmically
aggressive enough to send a chapter of Klansmen running for their white
sheets) or the barely repressed sexual desperation of "I Just Want
To Make Love To You." But man, that bulgy-eyed Jagger sounds like
a complete moron attempting "You Can Make It If You Try." Lord,
is he ever white on that one. And please, can we just eliminate all pointless
instrumentals from every British invasion band's repertoire? "Now
I've Got A Witness?" Now I've Got Filler. (Same goes for "2120
South Michigan Avenue" on the next LP.)
Year Of Release: 1964
Record rating = 7
Overall rating = 12
A bit smoothed with some pop songs, but the band is as tight and
crisp as ever.
Best song: IT'S ALL OVER NOW
The main change from the first album is that this one is a bit more
pop: maybe the band was just trying to find its way into the heart of the
teenager's mother as well as the teenager himself - a hard feat, though,
as it takes just one look at Andrew Loog Oldham's 'fuck-you' brand of liner
notes composition to realize that no mother would come within a mile's
distance of early Rolling Stones albums. Nevertheless, there is
quite a bit of pop on this record, and you can't really get away from the
fact. Thus, for instance, the Drifters' "Under The Boardwalk",
a cute little love ballad, would probably have never made it onto Hitmakers.
I do like it, though: it is not really all that crappy, the lyrics are
even a little naughty ("on the blanket with my baby" - hmmm?)
and the sound is great. It's just that it does not fit in with such rip-roaring
tracks as "Confessin' The Blues", one of the most uncompromised
blues covers the Stones have ever put out, or the furious, primal energy-filled
"Suzie-Q" which closes the album (unfortunately, it's just too
short for everybody's tastes), or Chuck Berry's "Around And Around"
with Keith popping out his Berry-licks like mad. "Around And Around",
in fact, is the archetypal Stones' rocker: maybe Keith doesn't add anything
particularly Keith-ian to the song, but he makes these chords so... so
refined, if you know what I mean, that there's basically nothing
to add or subtract here: it's perfect.
But there's more to this album. For one, it includes their first significant
hit single in Britain - the cover of the Womacks' "It's All Over Now",
with a frantic guitar break that has probably driven many a teenager half
insane (not to mention the booming, anthemic fade-out). How sorrowful it
is that Keith can't play like that any more - believe me, there once was
a period when he wasn't just one of the best rhythm guitarists in the world,
he was a great, derivative but amazingly professional soloist. If you check
out the live version they did on their 1994 tour, you'll find out that
the excitement is simply all gone... but in 1964, it was all there. The
song was so impressive at the time that it even led to the Kinks ripping
it off for 'So Mystifying'. Next, this is the best place to encounter the
truly timeless ballad "Time Is On My Side" (oh yes it is!) Again,
it doesn't belong to the Stones (originally credited to Meade & Norman),
but who cares? Gee, did they know back in 1964 that this song would eventually
lose its simple love ballad status and move on to almost anthemic heights
- last time they performed it was in 1998, I think!! Finally, there's a
hilarious jam ("2120 South Michigan Avenue") driven by Ian Stewart's
organ and Mick's harmonica. Quite cool!
Still, let us be frank and admit there are some drawbacks here. They are
not catastrophic or even bad, though - just some 'plain' numbers overshadowed
by the really good stuff. "Good Times Bad Times", the second
official Jagger-Richards composition, is an unconvincing blues rip-off
and poorly produced as well: the harmonica lines seem coming and going,
one moment they're mixed way below the bass, the other moment they're piercing
my ears, and I don't like that - seems like the engineers were just having
fun in the studio. "Empty Heart", in my opinion, is boring, since
it isn't really a song - it's another jam full of blueswailing, and again,
somewhat poorly produced. The melody is quite rudimentary, and seems like
just a pretext for the endless disjointed screams and chaotic noises from
Mick; the thing would later be perfected on 'I'm Goin' Home', but it took
them two more years to master the art of 'noisy jamming'. Finally, yet
another obligatory Motown number "If You Need Me" is very naive
and almost duplicating "You Can Make It If You Try". Listenable,
though, and at least it has that nice organ and all. Not stinkers, all
of these, but they just do not hold up to the standard. Seriously.
Note that once again, the songs are all covers - "Good Times Bad Times"
does not really count, as it's, in fact, an alien blues number with new
lyrics. The one major exception, then, is 'Grown Up Wrong', another poorly-produced
tune which, however, counts as the official start to Jagger's reputation
as a misogynist ('Well you look so sweet when you're in your jeans but
you're grown upon me'). Kinda inoffensive, as of yet, but after all, it's
only the start. And the song's melody as well is quite promising: I mean,
isn't it blessed with the first original Keith Richards riff ever? No,
don't answer that: I know it must be ripped-off (actually, 'riffed-off',
heh heh). But I don't know where from, and I don't want to, because I want
to believe my suggestion that it's the first original Keith Richards riff
ever! Please don't mail me with information on that one! Let me stay ignorant!
Too much knowledge can be dangerous!
For the record: most of the album was taken from British singles ("It's
All Over Now/Good Times Bad Times") and an EP named Five By Five
("Around And Around", "Confessin' The Blues", "2120...",
"If You Need Me", "Empty Heart"), one song was exclusively
American ("Congratulations" - an excellent self-penned sad ballad),
the rest of the tracks were taken from the British The Rolling Stones
No. 2 album.
Congratulations! You just checked another dumb review! Now mail your ideas
Your worthy comments:
Tony Stewart <tony.remi.stewart@worldnet.att.net> (08.10.99)
Yeah George, you're right. This one isn't as good as it's predecessor. Frankly I think "Under The Boardwalk" is pretty bad. The one thing I really love about the early Stones is that when they fell flat on their face(see"My Girl")they were just so damn charming at it , so that this made them even more likeable. I have to disagree on the originals. "Good Times Bad Times" by no means one of my faves at least showcases Keith on his toy of the period which was his 12-String. I mean the Blues on a 12-String is just so....wrong, that it's funny. "Empty Heart" is a throwaway. Even the main riff sucks.But the originals I have to list among mt favorite all-time stones tunes are "Grown Up Wrong"(listen to where Charlie places that Snare within the bar) and "What A Shame" a very tight straight forerunner of Britblues to come.Now the gems are of course "It's All Over Now", with I think Brian playing the solo, and "Time Is On My Side" which is hilarious. I've noticed this on Beatles tunes too. It's amazing what harmonies these guys got by with. On "Time.." there are some real bad clinkers, but that Bridge solo and Jagger's performance alone make this a timeless classic. Actually I really liked what Keith did with it with the Winos about 35 years later. I've always liked "If You Need Me" eventhough it's basically a poor man's "Time Is On My Side"..Jagger really liked those middle eight raps at the time. "Suzie Q" needs about another 10 minutes and you are dead on with "Confessin' The Blues" and "Around And Around". "Around" to me is once again Keith confirming his own statement that he lifted every lick from Chuck berry. But if anyone can do it as well or sometimes maybe even a hair better it's Keef. My personal fave is "Confessin". Brian must have loved this one. To me I can never hear this tune and not think of Brian the purist wanting to play Chicago Blues. He gets all he wants here. Not a bad note on it. "2120 So Mich Ave" is the boys actually just having the time of their life. I mean they are 19 years old. they are in Chicago, USA for Chrissake and they're jamming with Muddy. It had to be the moment of their lives so far.So I'd give this one an 8. Mainly because I like what you say about the engineers probably playing around with the levels on "Empty Heart" and "Good Times Bad Times".
Glenn Wiener <Glenn.Wiener@Entex.com> (14.01.2000)
Both you and Mark Prindle seem to like this record somewhat less than the debut. I disagree as this record seems to have more depth and less blues than the debut. Not that Blues is a bad thing. But 'Confessing' the Blues' is one stunning blues number. It is hard to believe that it was performed by five white British guys. This version of 'Time Is On My Side' has an interesting arrangement with the organ playing a prominent role. You are correct that 'Suzie Q' is too short and performed with little emphasis. CCR's version is considerably beter. Anyway, this is one excellent recording.
Michael Warren <bearfat@doitpc.net> (30.10.2000)
Just a word: I love Chuck Berry ! I love 60's & 70's Rock with a passion; but I'm a hardcore Doo Wop, Rockabilly, and Rock'n'roll fan, as well. But......in this case, with their version of 'Around And Around': the Stones top Chuck Berry !!!!! The heavier bottom and chunky rhythm guitar they add to the song make it hard for me to stop listening to the track. If I hear it once, I want to hear it a hundred times ! You gotta love these guys, they just ROCK !
Year Of Release: 1965
Record rating = 8
Overall rating = 13
Yet another R'n'B album, with some more happy originals and fantastic
covers.
Best song: DOWNHOME GIRL
This American-only release kinda corrects the poppy mistake of 12x5
and reverts us to the hard, uncompromising style of the first LP. Nothing
like 'Under The Boardwalk' or 'If You Need Me' on this one, and, while
I have nothing in particular against these songs, that 'hardcore' sound
was so perfect in the first place that it really made me subtract them
one point for 12x5. Not for this one, even if, I'll be the first
to admit it, there's very little movement forward here. However, the number
of original compositions slowly starts to grow, and, what's even more important,
the Mick and Keith guys start getting more and more self-assured. 'Off
The Hook' features the first ever classic Stones riff (okay, so I said
'Grown Up Wrong' had the first one, but it wasn't 'classic') in what would
soon become an endless stream of 'em, and, while the repetitive chorus
'it's off the hook... it's off the hook... it's of the hook...' (hint:
the song concerns a guy who can't get a call through to his gal, so he
sends her to hell) might sometimes get on my nerves, it could also be specially
designed to serve as a metaphor for a phone ring. Could it? 'What A Shame'
is their (quite successful) attempt at independent bluesmaking - Bill Wyman
is the major star here, with some really cool bass lines, but, as usual,
it's also a great showcase for Mick, and the line 'you might wake up in
the morning, find your poor selves dead' is one of the more famous Stones'
quotes of the century. 'Surprise Surprise' has no special hooks about it
(apart from the fact that it's fast), so it's forgettable, but quite listenable,
nevertheless. And, of course, the great ballad 'Heart Of Stone' is timeless,
with its ferocious guitar solo and clever lyrics; often regarded as the
first in a series of 'golden Stones ballads', it perfectly lives up to
its reputation. One might also complain that the Stones are imitating their
Motown idols a bit too closely on that one, and this is probably true,
but the lyrics are one hundred percent Stones ('better listen little girl/You
go walking down that street/I ain't got no love/I ain't the kind to meet'),
and the electrifying solo sure couldn't have been taken off any Temptations
tune.
Still, closely following the tradition, it's the covers that rule on this
third album, and they're as good as ever. Two Berry rockers: 'Down The
Road Apiece' and 'You Can't Catch Me' give no quarter, with Keith outchucking
Chuck and Mick outsinging every single coarse-throated, deep-spittled,
guitar-wanking bluesman for thousands of miles around; both songs crash
in at a terrific speed and leave you breathless in a couple o' moments.
Legend has it that Chuck himself watched them record 'Down The Road' and
even said 'wow, you guys are really getting it on' - but it's just a legend,
and probably not true at all. No doubt, though, that they are really 'getting
it on': just watch Keith exterminate his guitar as he launches into a whole
dozen of various boogie riffs along the way, while Ian Stewart's rollicking
piano makes the perfect background for him. Bo Diddley's 'I Need You (Mona)'
bores me as mightily as possible (it's long, it's repetitive, it's based
on the one and only rhythm that Bo Diddley ever favoured, and it's poorly
produced, with Mick's vocals buried under a cement floor of sound; do you
need other complaints?), but I sure couldn't say the same for 'Little Red
Rooster' - a great Southern blues, this time featuring Brian with his slide
guitar as the main hero. 'Rooster' was such a great recording success for
them, in fact, that it was even released as a single - one of their last
'cover singles', in fact. But it deserves it: the dreary, dangerous, mystical,
swampy Southern atmosphere is captured perfectly on these two-and-a-short-bit
minutes of sound. The album opener, 'Everybody Needs Somebody To Love',
is five minutes long (whoah!), so it can be justly proclaimed as the predecessor
to the famous 'I'm Goin' Home' jam. Compare it with 'Empty Heart' and you'll
see how far they have progressed: the latter was a slow, muddled jam, the
former is a fast, up-to-the-point jam which you can listen to or you can
dance to, whatever you will. 'Downhome Girl' perfectly ties in with Mick's
growing misogyny and features yet another classy riff. Actually, it's kinda
my favourite song on here, you know? It's SPOOKY! Maybe the first really
really spooky song the Stones have recorded, don't play it in the dark
to your younger brother! When Mick sings those lyrics about 'I'm gonna
take you to the muddy river/And push you in...', and Keith backs him up
with that sneering riff, I get that funny tingling sensation that only
a true Stones' fan can appreciate... wow, wow. Groovy.
And, just to make it obvious that this album is not much of an improvement
over the first one, they have inserted some filler stuff: Solomon Burke's
ballad 'Pain In My Heart' could have been appropriate on a Ringo Starr
solo album, while 'Oh Baby (We Got A Good Thing Going)' is a strange R'n'B
mess which I cannot even assign to a specific genre. Thankfully,
neither of them are very long.
For the record: this American bastard is the rough equivalent of the British
No. 2 album, the rest of it being drawn from singles ('Little Red
Rooster/Off The Hook') or from American-only releases ('Surprise Surprise');
'I Need You' was actually recorded on their first British LP, and 'Heart
Of Stone' and 'Oh Baby' didn't appear in Britain until Out Of Our Heads.
Surprise surprise! I need you to mail your ideas
Your worthy comments:
Tony Stewart <tony.remi.stewart@worldnet.att.net> (08.10.99)
Alright George, Round Three! Thing is I have to agree with you on just about every thing you say about this one. "Down Home Girl" is also my fave on this one and I am elated to finally have found someone else in this world who recognizes the power of that cover. Only point I have to disagree with you here is that I believe it's Keith playing the chunka-style rhythm guitar and it's Brian stinging us once again with those Slide fills in between the lines. Jagger really pulls the Deep down South Gumbo-Lyrics off. It's one of his first great impressions of sliding into a character and pulling it off convincingly. "Everybody needs Somebody" is actually the version that is the shorter one of the two they recorded. I favor the other longer, softer one, but like you say this is a terrific Album opener."You Can't Catch Me" is what Lennon really wanted to do, alas he was stuck with the fate of being one of the greatest popsong writers ever born. "Catch" and "Down The Road" smoke. it seems like on those first discs Keith demanded (and got) at least one or two flatout Berry-Covers, so he could A)get his rocks off and B) show the Master himself that the scholar was closing in on him.'What A Shame" I already mistakenly reviewed for 12x5. Thumbs Up. I always think of "Grown Up Wrong" and "What A Shame" together for some reason. Same as i do with "Oh Baby..."and "Under Assistant" and "Ride On Baby". You put it well. They don't fit into any category really except for 'not very good'. I very much disagree with you re. "Mona". I think it's hilarious that the Boys, with a two tracker-live,pulled off all that percussion, the obligatory Vibrato Guitar, that nowadays the engineer would sync up to the BPM of the tune. The vibrato is so deliciously out of sync and Jagger's vocals SMOKE. "Can I come out on the front, listen to my heart go bump-e-dee-bump". Same goes for "Pain In My Heart". While not the greatest Solomon Burke it features jagger doing his "Time is on my Side-If You Need Me" Soul-Rap that he seemed to demand , as keith demanded his rockers. The writing takes a giant leap forwards with ,like you say,"Off The Hook". First good guitar hook. (Hook=hook).The standout classic off this album is"Little Red Rooster". And let's not forget that it is '65 and the Stones decide to release this one as the single and not "Heart of Stone", the one ALO obviously wanted to push. While a great song with a catchy, already slightly controversial hook, I think it came down to the question "What are we?" A Bluesband or a Popband. I think it's the last and only time Brian beat ALO in a crucial decision. What a perfect song. And let me add, to this day they do it perfectly. Leaves us with "Surprise". This is strictly a subjective choice. I just like the damn song. So I'd give this one a 9.
Glenn Wiener <Glenn.Wiener@Entex.com> (14.01.2000)
Having borrowed this album for a few listens, I find it to be a step
down from the prior two. It seems as if the band limited their style to
blues and three chord rock. However, 'Down Home Girl' is one excellent
tune. Gotta love those lyrics. 'Heart of Stone' and a few others are somewhat
interesting as well.
[Special author note: 'limited
their style?' Hmm... not that it was very diverse on the previous two albums.]
Jeff Blehar <jdb3@jhu.edu> (09.02.2000)
Wow. I've never really been a fan of much of the output of The Rolling
Stones' early, R&B-purity cover period, finding the songs uninspired,
the musicianship somewhat undisciplined, Mick Jagger's singing stiff and
overly mannered, and the recording quality absolutely atrocious. Forget
all of that though, because The Rolling Stones, Now! made a believer
out of me, at least for this album. It is, simply put, a marvelous collection
of Chuck Berry reinterpretations, soul covers, gritty originals, and blues
reworkings.
The album's patchwork nature (it was pieced together out of tracks from
the Stones' first two British albums, The Rolling Stones No. 1 and
The Rolling Stones No. 2, as well as some tracks that would be included
a few months later on the British version of their third album, Out
Of Our Heads) actually helps to make it almost perfect. Songs like
"Mona" and "Little Red Rooster" would not have been
on their UK counterparts ("Mona" was from No. 1, while "Little
Red Rooster" was a single), and even though the songs on this album
were sometimes recorded years apart, they all sound of a piece with each
other.
Opening with that footstompin' 5-minute cover of "Everybody Needs
Somebody To Love" which gives Jagger an opportunity to monologue in
his jive "preacher" voice, this album is pretty relentless. (Note:
the original US LP accidentally substituted this version for a far inferior
- and shorter - demo, but despite what the CD running time lists on the
back of the album, the CD version is, thankfully, the correct version.)
In that vein, the other covers are all pretty notable: "Down Home
Girl" has some pungent little rhymes while "You Can't Catch Me"
is one of the best Chuck Berry songs that Keith Richards DIDN'T simply
rip off and rewrite as a Stones tune. Standing head and shoulders above
this already distinguished pack are two covers: "Mona" and "Little
Red Rooster." The first is a brilliant, vibrating attack on a Chuck
Berry song. Originally the centerpiece of the Stones' first British album,
I have no idea whatsoever why it was pulled for so long in the American
market, but it's simply a throbbing piece of power soul. It encapsulates
the vision of the early Stones - forceful rhythm over harmony and melody,
paying tribute to their predecessors, etc. Equally as accomplished is "Little
Red Rooster," possibly the best pure blues they ever released. (Its
only competition, the exquisite "Love In Vain," was recorded
by a much more sophisticated group in 1969, a tribute to how mature this
early attempt is). To echo Mr. Prindle, that Mick Jagger can sure sing
a song about a penis, can't he? Brian Jones also slips in his finest instrumental
moment ever on a Stones record with his show-stealing slide guitarwork.
Even though The Rolling Stones, Now! doesn't have any of the classic
early Stones singles in its lineup (the closest is "Heart Of Stone,"
a good song yes, but nothing compared to the other songs present), it's
by far the best representation of what the group was like at its absolute
pinnacle during its pre-Aftermath years. Take it from a real skeptic,
this is worth your time if you like the Stones even the slightest bit.
An easy 10/10.
Year Of Release: 1965
Record rating = 7
Overall rating = 12
The covers start to bore, but they save it with some incredible originals.
Best song: SATISFACTION, of course!
Overrated, but its British counterpart was even worse (hey, now don't
frown at me! I just mean I like the first three albums better). This American
version pumps up the rating because it includes some of the Stones' prime
singles of that era, namely, '(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction' which everybody
knows to the point of suffocation (that's not to say it still ain't one
of the best fuckin' rock songs in the world), and 'The Last Time', with
yet another superriff by Keith who was already shooting them off like mad.
In some way, these songs mark the 'great transition' - the Stones finally
mature into not just competent songwriters, no, somewhere along the way
they made that giant step that brought them right on to the level of the
Beatles and, say, far away from the level of the Animals. I mean, the 1964
Stones were good, but so were the Animals. Yet the Animals did not make
the giant step, and the Stones did - by coming up with the riff for 'Satisfaction',
the one that showed them slowly moving away from the blues at last, and
becoming more of a 'rock' band than an 'R'n'B cover' band.
Also among the highlights we have 'Play With Fire' (the B-side to 'Last
Time'), which is notorious for some menacing acoustic guitar and some menacing
social comment-type, almost heretic, lyrics (in brief, this is Mick's version
of 'Like A Rolling Stone'); 'The Under Assistant West Coast Promotion Man',
one of their longest, if not the very longest, title (oh, sorry me, now
haven't I forgotten 'Haveyouseenyourmotherbaby...') is Mick's excourse
into the nature of show business set to a little nagging bleeding riff
making it really 'sharp' - some say it was a veiled sneering attack on
Andrew Oldham and his ambitions; and 'The Spider And The Fly' is Mick's
excourse into the nature of some funny things on the brinks of show business
praising sexual freedom. So there. And note that, while the latter two
songs are essentially blues, 'Play With Fire' is no blues - in retrospect,
it seems almost gothic, and it was also the first time the Stones brought
in a harpsichord, here played by Jack Nitzsche. (Note that the Beatles
didn't have no harpsichords yet!) One can only imagine the impact that
the single whose A-side was 'The Last Time', with that unforgettable riff,
and whose B-side was 'Play With Fire', could have made in 1965.
However, most of the other tracks are somewhat 'ambivalent'. They were
already on the road to complete creative freedom, but still hindered -
either by the company or by themselves (the latter seems closer to the
truth). So, as usual, we have a lot of covers, most of them far from raw
R'n'B: in fact, they're closely moving on on Motown, and this is not always
a good idea. And it almost seems as if they were slowly running out of
gas on the material: these covers are rarely dark or menacing, although
eminently professional and exciting, as usual, like Sam Cooke's 'Good Times',
for instance. It's short, poppy, has some charming vocals, but overall
is pretty pretty lightweight, a far cry from 'Confessin' The Blues', don't
you think? Then there's Marvin Gaye's 'Hitch Hike' that has its title repeated
enough times to make you completely go 'out of your head'; even if, I'll
be the first to admit, the song is catchy as hell. All of these are nice,
sure enough, and if it ain't enough, well, then remember that Mick gives
a terrific performance on 'That's How Strong My Love Is', and his battle
with Keith's (Brian's?) guitar wails on 'Cry To Me' is electrifying. The
playing is as superb and tight as ever ('Mercy Mercy'), and the live version
of 'I'm Alright' drives the audiences to hysteria; the only real
letdown is the closing 'One More Try' which sounds as if it was first intended
for The Kinks' debut album. It's also an original, but this time, a weak
throwaway: Jagger's lyrics overboil with banality, and the melody sounds
as if it had been played by a three-year-old with one finger on a piano.
Apparently, it was recorded specially for the American market. Gee, was
that a hint? Strange how one and the same record can include at the same
time such a high point as 'Satisfaction' and such an embarrassment as this
one.
Still, the covers start to bore - a little, but being juxtaposed to their
blistering originals they already look... bleak, if you know what
I mean. 'Route '66' was alright when set next to 'Tell Me', you understand,
but would you like it to take its rightful place by 'Satisfaction'? Guess
not. That's the trouble with this album - it's divided into a superb part
(most of the originals) and a so-so part (covers). This is the crucial
point at which the Stones ought to have realized that they had slowly matured
to the point of leaving 'cover business' behind; but they hadn't realized
it, and continued to pump out Motownish stuff almost by inertia. If anything,
they are simply repeating themselves: after all, generic R'n'B is a rather
limited field of activity, and, having proved themselves masters of the
genre's interpretation for the British public, they would have stagnated
in no time were they to simply go on with the same business. Now just imagine
how the British version of the LP should have looked - with no 'Satisfaction',
'Play With Fire' and 'The Last Time'! For the record: some of the
tracks on the British version of this album later re-surfaced on the American
December's Children ('She Said Yeah', 'I'm Free' and others), and
some appeared earlier on the American Now! ('Heart Of Stone', 'Oh
Baby').
I can't get no satisfaction! Mail me some more of your ideas
Your worthy comments:
Jeff <Jkh1392@aol.com> (06.09.99)
You're pretty much on-target here. The originals are all great, great songs; the best set they'd written up to this point, in fact. Where you're wrong is that most of the covers hold their ground when set next to the much-lauded original numbers. As you said, "That's How Strong My Love Is" and "Cry to Me" are probably the strongest, but the rest are equally entertaining. By the way, "One More Try" might be my favorite song on the album; it's short, incredibly catchy, and to-the-point. A letdown? I think not.
Tony Stewart <tony.remi.stewart@worldnet.att.net> (23.10.99)
Welly, welly as Alex would say. Overall I would say that we got a M*therf*cker
of an album here. This is all pre-CD. So we do have Sides 1 and 2(Something
I miss in the CD Age,although it is usually easy to find out where the
gap would have been). Okay, we're opening with a Don Coway penned song,who
was not really one of the Motown stable. I hear more Stax. I think it's
very Stones-like to automatically favor Stax over Motown. What was BJ's
favorite song of some 60's year?"In The Midnight Hour". We move
right on into the Marvin Gaye No. "Hitch Hike" played very close
to the chest. I liked the way they beefed up that riff in "Mercy"
but "Hitchhike"is a little too similar and pointless. And it
all ties in with what you mentioned. How many obscure classics a)rock and
b)fit the bill for another potential Stones world hit. It's Time for them
to write their own which they do surpassing even ALO's widest dreams."The
Last Time" came, then the Monster and like all Monsters wasn't even
intended. We all know the story about Keef in his sleep writing"Satisfaction",
but I do think over 36 years the story has assumed mythical proportions,
and I do think we have Keef himself to thank for that just a bit."That's
How Strong My Love Is" just happens to be where Jagger in his early
career pulled of a wonderful Soulballad;not overdone, not shy, spiritual.
I hate the way Jgger is portraited nowadays as a businessman and a moneygrabber.
That is bullshit. He wrote some of the biggest Stoneshits, and he singlehandedly
carried Keith through his wild years, maybe even sacrificing some of his
own wildness . Keith likes to say today"This thing is bigger than
you and me , baby". Jagger made that happen. I wonder how much joy
he got out of endless meetings with Allen Klein, negotiating the biggest
grossing tours ever, making sure Keith got his fucking boots when he forgot
them on the train and still kept his cool and NEVER said a bad word about
his soulmate. I'm the biggest Keef-fan under the sun, but I was a Keithfan
when people were writing him off, Deathlist NO.1, I always knew Keith would
pull through. He is way too strong and anyone who can write music that
spiritual has a powerful will to live. I guess I'm saying It's real 'in'
now to dig Keith and to slag Jagger, but ask Keith and I guarantee you
he will tell you no matter what he says to the press or how he talks about
the Stones as HIS band, he knows it every day that it's a two way street.
Keith needs Mick as bad as Mick needs Keith. Sure the Soloalbums told quite
a tale. It took Jagger 3 times to get it right, whereas Keith put together
Rolling Stones MACH II. But it's very hard being Jagger! Imagine you have
made your trillions on being this androgynous Sex-Machine. What do you
do when you turn 55? And lines are creasing down your neck. And you have
forgotten how to smile. That's the worst! Keith is just gonna get more
and more eccentric and that's what Jagger needs to do. Fuck Cricket! He
needs to develop a timeless stagepersona.
I went off on a tangent there. Sam Cooke's "Good Times" I've
always had a weak spot for. It's just a filler and nothing more, but they
are enjoying themselves. Now here comes one of my ALLTIME FAVES BY THE
ROLLING STONES. That screaming that announces the song ,the harp in sync
with the Slide and Keith's(O/D) BU Vox make this a classic. I put this
on every tape that I'm making for someone who wants to know about the Stones.
Side 2 opens with "Satisfaction". Enuff said. After that the
world was their playground. And Keith thought it wouldn't cut it as a single.
(I guess this is my Slag-Keef review). "Cry to Me" always reminds
me of David Johansson. That is how far that idiot got. He wants to be a
soulman. Well it's 1999 and he has just conquered the Stones ca.'65. "Under
Assistant" is a bit of a toss off. Good guitar hook, Stones singign
about newly discovered DISadvantages to their new Lifestyle."Play
With Fire" is a masterpiece. Way ahead of the beatles , as gloomy
as only an empty British Mansion at 4 am can get. A.Conan Doyle's carriage
click-clacking down the misty London Cobblers. A Harpsichord? A little
perpubescent teen goes out and says "Cheerio, Mum. Just running to
pick up the new Stones 45". Puts it on and has "Last Time"
by J/R bopping and hoolahooping and doing the crawl, whatever they did
back then;maybe even Mum can understand a LITTLE. Flip it over and "Fire"
should bring on some more of that wild upbeat rock'n roll, but in typical
Stonesfashion it just leaves little Teenie mouth agape. "Spider And
The Fly" has lately received alot of remakes , been used in movies,
appeared on "Stripped" and I think it deserves it. One of the
first Blues the guys penned and the lyrics are hilarious. "One More
Try" actually sounds like a quick demo for Chris Farlowe, who didn't
want it. Sort of like "Surprise Surprise" they just stick it
on the end of the album. Disc really ends with "Spider" in my
mind, but I don't think "One More Try" is as bad as you paint
it out to be.
Glenn Wiener <Glenn.Wiener@Entex.com> (14.01.2000)
Their breakthrough recording. Although I do like 12 X 5 a wee bit more, this one has the big hits 'Play With Fire', 'The Last Time', and slightly overatted 'Satisfaction'. Don't get me wrong, I basically like the song but there are only three chords(E, A, B) in the entire song and its one riff almost throughout. But what a riff. There are many other snappy little gems on here so it gets my thumbs up for sure.
Jeff Blehar <jdb3@jhu.edu> (09.02.2000)
Nothing better illustrates how frustrating The Rolling Stones' early inconsistency problems are than Out Of Our Heads. I mean, for the love of God, how on earth could any album have the songs "(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction," "The Last Time," and "Play With Fire" and still deserve a 5/10?! The answer is, of course, that EVERYTHING ELSE IS FILLER. FILLER! Alright, "Hitch Hike" is damn good, (and Hey! The Velvet Underground shamelessly stole that riff from the Stones/Marvin Gaye for "There She Goes Again!") and "That's How Strong My Love Is" makes me shake my rump in rhythmic fashion, but lord almighty, I've heard this album about a gazillion times and I can't tell you a THING about any of the other tracks. I mean, I COULD tell you about "The Under Assistant West Coast Promotion Man" (and that's because "I'm smart, I'm really, really smart"!) but why bother? It's just a boring self-penned R&B song originally meant as a B-side. Whatever. This was their first #1 album stateside. And hey, I've heard good things about that "Satisfaction" song; there might be something to that one. But "The Last Time" forces me to submit to the Stones' grandeur—this is their best early single, not "Satisfaction," (made all the more Stonesy by the fact that they shamelessly STOLE it from some gospel group! How nasty! Like urinating on a gas station attendant! Which they also did!), with a riff that burns. And "Play With Fire" centers around the world's most cheerless harpsichord. We need more cheerless harpsichords, because that instrument is ususally too damn happy for my tastes. Anyway, you know the big songs here, and you've never heard of the rest for a reason. Buyer beware. 5/10.
Year Of Release: 1965
Record rating = 6
Overall rating = 11
More boring covers and bland originals. Where's the development,
boys?
Best song: GET OFF OF MY CLOUD
The bastard of the bastards, this is the most artificial of the American
releases. Struggling to clock out yet another full-length LP while the
band wasn't actually planning to cut a new one in the studio, the record
company had to venture as far back as the Stones' earliest records, virtually
unknown in the States - and, strange enough, most of these early selections
rule. They RULE! The live cuts - 'Route '66' and 'I'm Moving On' - rock
as hard as can be possible among a crowd full of roaring girls, while the
Motown ballad 'You Better Move On' usually is ranked among their finest
pop covers. Especially wonderful are the backing vocals - yes, the Stones
could be as good as the Beatles if they really tried. And to think
that they recorded that song in 1963! Meanwhile, 'I'm Moving On'
undeniably proves that the Stones' live energy far outmatched their studio
deliveries even as early as 1964: some critics called the song 'proto-metal',
and so it is: the boys take an old country standard and play it ten times
faster than it used to be played, adding distortion and a particularly
low, grumbly guitar tone, not to mention Jagger's sneering intonations.
The audience screams overwhelm the recording, of course, but maybe that
should only add to the effectiveness of the tune, I dunno.
As for the newer material - well, you may not believe me, but it sure is
patchy. The few songs constituting the prime stuff (mostly culled off from
contemporary hit singles) is certainly fantastic. We got the great pot
anthem 'Get Off Of My Cloud', the one that celebrates cool guitar riffs,
tremendous drumming and totally undecipherable lyrics (a good thing, too
- not everybody would be pleased with this mention of a 'detergent pack'
that early in the rock business). On the other hand, this is one of the
earliest declarations of the 'fuck-you-all, I'm a completely free person'
attitude in rock, and in a certain way, this song is as close to 'punk'
as the Stones would ever get: a barrage of distorted, dirty chords, a singer
that don't give a damn, and, of course, the lyrics - well, they aren't
exactly rebellious lyrics, to be sure (the singer just wants to
be left alone), but certainly it's a protest kinda song. Whaddaya think?
This sure beats the crap out of their 'punkish revival' on Some Girls!
Sounds tons more sincere and up to the point, no doubt about that.
In contrast to the ragged, hard-rockin' scent of 'Cloud', the string-laden
'As Tears Go By' is often said to be the Stones' 'Yesterday', and them
that say that might be right, too, ya know? It was earlier a hit for soon-to-be-Jagger-girlfriend
Marianne Faithfull, but I seriously doubt about her version being able
to overshadow Mick's silly, funny and tender lyrical rendition (in fact,
I haven't heard anything from Marianne but 'Something Better', and it was
enough for me). And, well, the hippie anthem 'I'm Free' is just a good
song to sing when you're, like, feeling free. Question: did the Stones
rip the 'hold me, love me' section from 'Eight Days A Week' or was it just
a common cliche? I'm certainly not that educated to tell...
The rest, however, might be said to stink - at least, in comparison with
the better efforts. The blues covers are getting monotonous, and the smell
of freshness is slowly evaporating. After all, 'Look What You've Done'
is no 'Confessin' The Blues' - who needs it if you already have got all
those sharp, crisp pieces of blueswailing on their first three albums?
It doesn't even have a good harmonica solo! It only has a decent
harmonica solo - and that's a terrible crime, considering how I really
respect Mick's talent at blowing this instrument (in those days, nobody
puffed it as good'n'hard as ol' Mick did!) The R'n'B covers suffer the
same fate; c'mon now, 'Talking About You'? What the heck is that? Gimme
'Carol' or 'Down The Road Apiece' over this one any time of the day! They
simply start to repeat themselves; it ain't that this nine hundred and
ninety-ninth Chuck Berry cover is bad, it's just that it adds nothing
to their already established legacy. Gimme development! There is also a
strangely metallized jazz song that they learned from Ray Charles and proceeded
to make hardly listenable ('She Said Yeah'); fortunately, it clocks in
at a minute and a half, making this their personal record for shortest
song ever (I think). And the more pop originals are just weak - 'The Singer
Not The Song' and 'Blue Turns To Grey' can be rated among their weakest
60's efforts, bland, banal ballads with clumsy song structures and uninteresting
hooks (there, however, exists an alternate version of the latter, present
on my CD copy of Metamorphosis, and it's far superior, with a certain
Beatlesque charm that's missing on the original). To top it off, they proudly
present us with 'Gotta Get Away', a slow, almost snail-paced, shuffle with
a half-finished chorus and a thoroughly annoying vocal tone. So what happened?
What happened is that they were on the point of stagnation and needed somebody
to pull them out of it. After all, how long can you just go on producing
cover after cover after cover and plagiarizing your beloved Motown and
Delta idols? And we're talking five albums here - indeed, if not
for the fact that Mick and Keith were two really, really smart dudes, the
band would already have become history. In fact, by the end of 1965 they
were in danger of degenerating to the state of early Kinks: funny, danceable,
and producing a bunch of terrific singles from time to time, but letting
it all down on the LPs... And please note that I'm in no way putting this
record down - an overall rating of 11 still means it's pretty good - but
you gotta understand, this is still pretty low by the band's own standards.
As it so often happened, they were pulled out by The Beatles (who wasn't?),
but that's another story. Move on...
You better move on and mail your ideas
Your worthy comments:
Jeff <Jkh1392@aol.com> (12.09.99)
So it's not as good as the last one. That certainly doesn't mean it's
not great anyway.
I don't see "She Said Yeah" as metallized jazz at all. It's just
a good old fashioned rocker. Makes ya wanna dance. "Talkin Bout You"
(thanks to the groovy backup vocals) and "Look What You've Done"
(thanks to the harmonica) are more fun than a barrel full of headless chickens
(they still run around, y'know!). You're right about "The Singer Not
the Song," though; it sucks horrendously. Dull, dull, dull. "Blue
Turns To Grey" is just lovely, though. Don't have anything else to
say that you haven't already, except that "Gotta Get Away" is
pretty good too. Like I said, it's not as good as Out of Our Heads,
but only by a hair. Or a song, if you will. "The Singer Not the Song,"
in fact. Man, is that one a suckfest. Gotta love those live 'uns, though.
Tony Stewart <tony.remi.stewart@worldnet.att.net> (26.10.99)
Georgie! How COULD you? 6?6?SIX?SSIIIIXXX?? "She Said Yeah" alone would make this one an 8. I have recently heard that as far as BPM go "Rip This Joint" had been the fastest and was now replaced by "Flip The Switch". I don't know about BPM , but I listen to "She Said Yeah" and in 1:30 I get my socks knocked off, my skirt lifted, my trousers rearranged and a frontal lobotomy thrown in for good measure. The fury and Speedlightning of that one they never recaptured except for Live performances. Stinging Guitar by Keith at his absolute best. Not copping Chuck, but copping Keith.This is gonna be a long review. Lemme tell you about the first time I heard "Talkin' 'bout You". True story!!! I'd bought the Decca version. I lived in Europe then. I'm 10 years old. I began with the Stones at age 3. Never had an idea what they were talking about until stuff started to move in my trousers...Anywaythere is that opening minorish/bluesish riff that bends that note and slinks right into the groove of the verse and Jagger just comes prancing out"Well, lemme tell you 'bout a girl I know...". I SWEAR for 25 minutes I never got beyond that point. I kept having to move the needle back to hear the absolute coolest thing I had EVER heard in life. Listen close and you will hear Stu's Marimbas. "You Better move On" was huge in Europe. It satisfied the Dutch/German/French ultimately shmaltz market. They had to have their cutesy ballad and the Stones gave it to them on their own terms. They found A.Alexander. Now Arthur is sort of like Roy orbison. He was just so saccharine he was cool again. And the Stones really arranged that song. That sucker was produced! "Look What You've Done" ranks right up there with "Confessin The Blues". A little bit straighter. But then the budget was also bigger.OK. Here it comes. I wish they would do this one live today; just for laughs. It is the one time there is just absolutely NO excuse. Keith trying to squeeze as many chords as possible out of that 12-String. One Chord per word. And the harmonies....That Falsetto...Only thing: Stereo was just being discovered , so a lot went unnoticed. Listen to the "Masters"(the Beatles) do 'You Won't See Me' with headphones on and try not to laugh at the backing vox. Way up to SGT. Pepper these guys were getting away with murder.'Route 66' closes out Side A and tears the house down. Now this is the REAL GOT LIVE. Panties wringing wet! The follow-up single to Satisfaction had to have been one of the toughest follow-ups ever to do, and that's why I'm glad the Stones were smart. They speedrapped through this one and about another 2 or 3 45's to make do. I mean what do you say after you've said it all? You go crazy for a while! "Get Off Of My Cloud" did just that. "I'm Free" is one of my most treasured tracks just for that first note in the Guitar solo and for the awful tempo mix-up that happens on one of the 'Love Hold Me Breaks'."As Tears Go By", we all know the endless stories so lets just say it's a wonderful song way to mature for two young British louts. Honestly, let's think. Is there anyone out there today ca. 20 years old who would/could/arrange/write a song like that. remember how YOUNG these guys were.Sadly enough we remember on the next track"Gotta Get Away", which is anything but stellar but has some cool guitar exercises if that's your bag, in it."Blue Turns To Grey" was written as a demo for Farlowe? Bean? Who cares? Because the best version is the final Stones version where for some obscure reason they add that extra line in the chorus. Good choice. Pretty, maturing songwriting. Nice guitars too. Now here I hear this 'ancient art of weaving'. I and they saved the best for last. Little did Hank Snow know what was to happen with his little ditty. Seldom, and I am including Mahler's 5th and Beethoven's 7th and Hendrix's Spangled banner, have i heard such power audio-unleashed. Not just the music,the steam,the sweat,the sex the feedback,the last song of the set, again the drenched panties(Word of the day). That WALL that hits you when the song starts made up of teenybopperscreeches, harmonica and slide and the Jagger jumping in "from time to time...". Agagin 2 minutes of pure bliss that ride home on the shrill whistle of a Diesel Locomotive guitarsliding it's way on down the track right into the dark tunnel of December's Children. Come on George , it's a make-up record if you count the fucking US. On its own it's a 8. Deductions for 'the Singer..' and'Gotta get away'
Year Of Release: 1966
Record rating = 9
Overall rating = 14
A great collection of originals, quiet but catchy.
Best song: PAINT IT BLACK
The first real big hurrah for the band. The original British
LP contained fourteen Jagger - Richards originals, and even though
the greedy American managers gave out just eleven (eliminating "What
To Do", "Out Of Time", "Mother's Little Helper"
and "Take It Or Leave It" and adding the single "Paint It
Black" instead), this is still quite a respectable collection. Most
of the songs are of prime quality, and in fact, this is the first in a
line of top-knotch Stones LPs. If some stupid people pretend that Let
It Bleed was the first great album for the Stones, don't let them fool
you. It was the last. (I mean, the last that deserves ten stars).
The production, as on most early Stones LPs, is muddy, and the arrangements
do not strain too far from each other. But the melodies, lyrics, singing
and playing more than compensate. The ballads, for one, are purely haunting.
"Lady Jane" is Jagger's best-ever attempt at a Tudorian ballad,
and a one that wouldn't seem out of place at a banquet of King Henry VIII.
If your parents can't stand the Stones, pacify them with this song - nobody
can deny its beauty, just as nobody can deny that Jack Nitzsche plays some
great harpsichord and Brian Jones gets the best out of his gentle, medieval
dulcimer playing (whatever that thingamajig is). And "I Am Waiting"
is all built around a great riff, emphasized by cute Jagger vocals and
a powerful middle-eight; sometimes the endless chanting 'I am waiting,
I am waiting' might get on your nerves, but only rarely so. I'd say it
also has a slightly 'gothic' feel around it, but wouldn't know for sure
how to back up my argument. Anyway, the Beatles never attempted anything
like that - their forces lay in other fields o' work.
And the rockers? The rockers do rock, all driven by Wyman's monstrous bass
and greatly helped by keyboards. I sometimes miss the gruff Richards tone
on here, because most of the rockers are rather 'soft' than 'hard', but
that's what they were trying to do - come up with a more 'moderate', 'mainstreamish'
sound, and at the same time beat all competition with these impeccable
melodies. 'Flight 505' is a real treat, with its tasty piano intro, funny
lyrics that have to deal with air crashes, and a monotonous, but highly
infectious beat (Charlie's da man!); 'It's Not Easy' is underpinned by
a rumbling Wyman bassline (that fuzzy tone gotta be the heaviest thing
you'll ever hear on this record), and hooks you with some wonderfully sublime
call-and-answer vocals from Jagger and Co. as Mick barks about the unfair
state of modern life and how 'it's really hard' ('It's not easy', the smooth-tongued
backing vocals reply). And the humorous country-western tidbit ('High And
Dry') is so darn good, too! Look out for that harmonica - Mick picks it
up again!
The two major opera on the record, however, are unquestionably 'Paint It
Black' and 'Under My Thumb' - I feel silly reviewing 'em, but, after all,
none of these songs have the popularity of 'Satisfaction', so I'll talk
about them in case some more-than-18-year-old-dumbass who hasn't yet heard
them comes by this page (and yes, sir, if you're more than 18 years old,
heck, if you're more than 14 years old and still haven't heard either of
these tunes, you're a dumbass!). The former is arguably the most bleak,
depressive, complaintive, paranoid tune that ever came from the warped
mind of Mr Richards, Mr Jagger and Mr Jones, and don't you tell me Jones
had nothing to do with the writing - he contributed a brilliant sitar part!
Have you ever seen the footage of the band on the Ed Sullivan show with
Brian sitting cross-legged and playing that instrument as if it were a
bass guitar? He's soooo cute! And then, of course, 'Under My Thumb', where
Jones contributes marimbas this time (the guy must have been heavy on cash),
and whose wonderfully other-worldly sound is so in contrast with its misogynistic
lyrics. Note that the song's definite live version can be found on Still
Life - here, the main riff is a bit obscured. On the other hand, the
marimbas can't be beat, and I doubt if the boys ever thought of bringing
the marimbas on stage with them. Trivia buff: the song was later recorded
and made even more famous by the Who when they recorded it, together with
'Last Time', as a 'tribute' to the Stones while they were in jail after
the infamous 1967 trial. Not that the Who's version could ever hope to
beat the original, of course.
Apart from that, the record's major controversial point is a 'groundbreaking'
eleven-minute jam ("I'm Going Home") which people usually hate.
Me, however, thinks Jagger makes it much more than simply endurable by
turning in one of his greatest vocal performances, while Keith manages
to insert a lovely lick now and then, so I'm not bored. Definitely not
bored! It's funny as hell! While Cream would probably just indulge in a
boring solo, and Frank Zappa would probably mess it up as hard as possible
(he did exactly that on Freak Out! the same year, in fact), the
Stones just make it funny. Maybe it's just a blues jam, but have you noticed
how many different spoken and/or sung phrases he manages to insert? And
how Keith manages to follow his intonations? Man, I admit it's freaking
swell as it is, but if ever I find out that most of it was recorded live,
I'll just have to assume this is genius. And the scene is thus set
for more examples of Jagger's famous 'spookiness' that you can find on
more well-known and admired tracks like 'Midnight Rambler' or 'Fingerprint
File'.
A couple o' numbers may sound as fillers ("Doncha Bother Me",
"Think"); actually, the 'filler' effect arises mainly because
they are not as innovative as other tracks, usually looking as variations;
but hey, what do we call a variation on a perfect musical theme? that's
right, a perfect variation. Don't allow yourself to be muddled. This is
a brilliant record. Why it is so often overlooked in the light of the Stones'
1968-72 period beats and baffles me. It is the first Stones album, basically,
to contain no filler: every song on here has something in the way of hooks
or moods or originality going for it. In fact, I originally gave it the
highest possible rating (15 overall), which explains some of the puzzled
comments below; since then I've come to realize that it's not all that
breathtaking to really compete with Let It Bleed, but it's
still virtually flawless, and I'm perfectly happy to give it a 14.
I am waiting for you to mail your ideas
Your worthy comments:
Jeff <Jkh1392@aol.com> (15.09.99)
Yup, it's their first truly great album. I mean, what a groovy little collection of pop songs! The hits ("Paint It Black," "Under My Thumb," "Lady Jane") are note-for-note perfect, and you're right about the filler being relative. "Stupid Girl" is the most vicious song they'd recorded at this point, and it was obviously the inspiration for Elvis Costello's "This Year's Girl." In fact, I seem to remember reading that Costello's This Year's Model was inspired by Aftermath, though I can't really hear it anywhere other than that song. Other favorite bits: the piano intro to "Flight 505," the goofy, rollicking "High and Dry," and the mega-jam "I'm Going Home." Nice to know you like that one too. No "Desolation Row," mind you, but it's really a lot of fun. "I Am Waiting" was used to great effect in my favorite movie Rushmore (rent it tonight!), and it's probably the most un-Stones sounding thing here, and I loves it. Especially those tempo changes and Mick's vocals. My only nitpick with this here review would be your assessment that Let It Bleed was their last great album. But I won't bother arguing that, since I'd rather not go off on an extended essay or anything. I'll just say I disagree and leave it at that.
Glenn Wiener <glennjwiener@hotmail.com> (25.09.99)
Probably the best record from the Brian Jones era. Brian's contributions are what is noticed here as whether its a flute, sitar, melletron,or a plain old guitar, everything works great. 'Going Home' drifts on a bit too long as Mick's moaning along with nothing special guitar riffs contribute to my boredom. Otherwise, this album is high quality stuff.
Tony Stewart <tony.remi.stewart@worldnet.att.net> (31.10.99)
Mom asks you:"what have you learned so far?" Stones-answer wouls have had to have been "Aftermath". Straight 15 across the board.We open with the minor-key current 45 "Mother's Little Helper". It's mid 60's and Jagger is about 10 years ahead of A.D.A. in realizing that there is a whole generation of women growing old addicted to tranquilizers. Set to an irrestistible boom-chaka beat and Brian's first attempt to get as close as possible to a Sitar as possible, coupled with a great major-chord middle eight it's a blast! Jagger has become Jagger now. "Under my Thumb" cements this in stone. The Marimabas that really are one of Brian's greatest contributions to his era are outstanding and musically speaking a great counterpoint to the guitarline and the vocals.Forget about the lyrics. If the Tipper Gores of the day hated him up till then, this should have put them over the edge. Same goes for "Out Of Time". Though lyrically not as strong, I think what Brian does here is downright astounding; weaving his way through the lyrics, but still being the actual glue that holds it all together. I'm gonna stick "Paint It, Black" in this review, even though it doesn't belong here. Since I'm doing the Decca version it should be omitted, but this was the right time. Again Brian VERY prominent on Sitar, Charlie just pounding that poor tom tom, Keith rocking it up straight during the chorus, and finally Bill and Mick providing that ominous low-end bass and vocal rumble, only to be interrupted by the screaming rock chorus. We all know about how the actual 'feel' of the song started as a joke by Bill on the Organ, who played a`la Frankenstein, when things still were not happening. There is the gorgeous"I Am Waiting" with Brian on Dulcimer (playing it the way he sees fit), of course the beautiful"Lady Jane" . Mick finally letting his tudorial blueblood do some talking, Brian again on Dulcimer. I used to wonder what those pretty sounds were. You might have noticed that so far I not have mentioned Brian and Guitar in the same sentence.Keith was the lone guitarrist and filled those boots very impressively. The Stones were now "The Stones". They had their own sound and identity. The second half of the disc you might want to say it belongs to Keith and surpringly enough Bill. It's the rockers. And on this record Bill ROCKS. I think the Fuzzbass had something to do with this but he used it wisely. "Under My Thumb","It's Not Easy", "Flight 505" all benefit from this new soundscape. "Flight 505"(great pianner), the totally underrated "Doncha Follow Me", with it's Slide and Harp reminds us where the Stones came from. Same with "It's not Easy", a forerunner to "Connection",and "High And Dry" an execise in minimalism. Wailing Harp, HiHat and a great Accoustic give Jagger the cushion to do his first timid 'Country' impression. But I myself do NOT see this song as a Country song. Maybe Jager had it in the back of his mind as a fleeting thought and thet was that. The Kitsch of "Take It Or Leave It"is so over the top that I think even the most daft record buyer 'got' it. Personally I love "Think". It just suffers from poor production, but there is a gem of a song in there. "Stupid Girl" is what it is. The drums say it all and that Farfisaswill doesn't help. Girl. you just plain ole dumb! "What To Do" is an odd one. Especially as Closer. It's one of those songs thjat just happen, they are not this , they are not that, but they're good. So you just tack'em on at the end. Which leaves us with the masterpiece "Goin' Home". 11:35 min. Unheard of during those times, especially since it was a rocker. They grooved for seven minutes on one chord. Jagger calling the shots, working the cage of wildcats; every shout and utterance of his immediately picked up by Keith. This is where the cut their teeth for future 12 minute"Midnight Ramblers". Brian's lips must have been a bloody mess after that work-out. Not an overdub on here, rest assured. This Disc changed the Stones for good. They wrote the whole album, proved to themselves they could do it and do it well, they produced it; they were the the real Shit and finally they knew it themselves. If only Brian...
Ben Greenstein <bgreenstein@nctimes.net> (16.03.2000)
Wow! Do I ever dislike THIS album! The first four songs are all great, well-written, and unique pop singles, but the rest is your standard boring rock 'n roll, with the only exception being the hilariously stupid "I Am Waiting." I give it a five, but keep in mind that I'm an uncultured moron who doesn't like Beggar's Banquet.
Sergey Zhilkin <sergey_jilkin@mail.ru> (24.09.2000)
I bought it four days ago and now my head is cool so I can write letter to you. First thing I want to tell is that I have English version (with 'What To Do', 'Out Of Time', 'Mother's Little Helper' and 'Take It Or Leave It') which of course doesn't contain 'Paint it black'. Really nice album. That's what I call Sixties! 'Under my thumb' is thr best song on Aftermath without any doubt. The fact that there was no songs I didn't like changed my whole opinion to the Stones! This album came out in 1966. That's the year when Beatles were writing such songs as 'Taxman', 'Elianor Rigby', 'Yellow submarine', 'I want to tell you', 'Got to get you into my life' ... Stones sound like something primitive after that... But it's primitive COOL! My rating is 8/10.
John McFerrin <stoo@imsa.edu> (27.09.2000)
Hmm. Well, I do agree that it's a great album, worthy of all sorts of
praise. But geez, a 15? Is this album really better than, say, Rubber
Soul?
Don't get me wrong, there isn't a single song on here that I would call
bad. I even enjoy 'Goin' Home' - you're absolutely right, it's funny as
hell (and parts of it even get stuck in my head from time to time). But
after the major onslaught of the first four tracks, the next six seem rather
ordinary. They each have one or two very good aspects to each of them,
but they have this tendency to blend into each other.
Again, I'm not putting it down. I'd give it a very high 13. But no more.
Year Of Release: 1966
Record rating = 5
Overall rating = 10
Historically important, but this is not the kind of live album you'll
want on your turntable too often...
Best song: FORTUNE TELLER
Warning! Don't confound this album with the earlier EP of the same name.
That one was a document of their 1965 British tour, this one is a document
of their 1966 British tour, although, perversely, it was originally released
only in America.
I used to love this album for some unknown reason. Maybe I'm a jerk, or
I'm just too passionately in love with that early period. But I confess
it's really lousy, more of a historical interest. The sound is poorly captured
and completely obscured by screaming girls - a real pain in the neck. The
actual performances do not strain too far from the originals, and such
great songs as 'Lady Jane', 'Time Is On My Side' and 'The Last Time' do
not really seem to work any better live than on the original studio releases
- at least, not here. Not to mention that selecting 'Lady Jane' for a live
cut is plain strange - and how they could ever manage this quiet, gentle
number on stage among the general chaos and hoopla is a mystery to me.
Plus, I kinda miss the dulcimer, and Mick's bizarre scat singing during
the instrumental passage is plain ridiculous! Stick to the studio version,
please. But you gotta appreciate how the second side of this album begins
with a snippet of 'Satisfaction', and then they suddenly break it off and
go crashing into 'The Last Time'; doubtless, this was a result of studio
mixing, but an interesting result at that.
And, after all, if it's energy and headbanging you're after, not quality,
you won't regret buying the album. I mean, you'll be able to appreciate
its vibe right from the very first track - this version of 'Under My Thumb'
is certainly different from the studio one. They start it off with Charlie
pounding out a ferocious beat, and then the guitars and Mick step in without
warning, at a much faster speed than the original. The playing is sloppy,
the singing ain't worth a damn (I guess it all has something to do with
Mick having to constantly fight chicks off the stage), but who cares? It's
the friggin' Rolling Stones, by gum! And if, no matter how hard you try,
you're still unable to catch the moment where they break off 'Under My
Thumb' and charge into 'Get Off Of My Cloud', why should you bother? This
is just your standard punkish energy on display! By the way, this here
version of 'Get Off' rules - Mick's singing is even more ununderstandable
than in the studio, and the guitars, on the contrary, are much more audible.
And, for those who are unwilling to invest into compilations (like me),
the live version of their single hit '19th Nervous Breakdown' will be a
real treat, as it is one of the highlights.
The absolute highlights on this record, however, are relative oldies.
'Not Fade Away' has somewhat improved by 1966, as it seems: it's faster,
and kicks tons more butt than on their third single, with Keith punching
out an almost grungey riff, and Charlie again demonstrating his fascinating
'swing'. And then there's the regular stage favourite 'I'm Alright' that
was always famous for driving the audience wild. You gotta appreciate that
cute little Brian Jones riff, and Keith has quite a lot of fun with his
six-string, too. And Mick sings up a storm! Maybe by today's norms this
all sounds kinda 'cute' and feeble, but one can only imagine the level
of adrenaline in these poor chicks' blood when Mick roared up his 'come
on, come on, come on...'
And the concert closes on a high note, too: there's a blistering version
of 'Have You Seen Your Mother Baby Standing In The Shadow?', unfortunately,
somewhat spoiled by the slowing down of tapes at the very beginning (probably
done to achieve a special 'chaotic' sound, but instead resulting in an
obviously artificial and unnecessary mess), and 'Satisfaction' is 'Satisfaction',
nothing else. Fast, raunchy and, well, satisfying.
As a special 'bonus', the track listing includes two studio recordings
set to crowd noises as if they were live, both of them covers: Benny Spellman's
'Fortune Teller' (a great, fast and tight version; could have been outmatched
by The Who on their Live At Leeds version, if only they hadn't taken
the foolish decision to slow it down in the beginning) and Otis Redding's
'I've Been Loving You Too Long' (a waste of tape, although Jagger does
a good vocal job). Either the band just didn't have enough 'quality' live
material, or they wanted to play a little mystification on their fans.
I think that some old collections have 'Fortune Teller' without the audience
noises on it, so if you're interested, you might want to track it down.
Ah, but anyway, who needs such hogwash? Well - I certainly do, because
it's catchy hogwash; but all you readers of these reviews, think
about it before buying it. I mean, for fine quality playing, you'd
better be off with Ya-Ya's; for fine quality sound, Flashpoint
is your bet; for the raw 'punkish' energy, check out Love You Live;
for speed, speed and speed check out Still Life; for nostalgia,
check out No Security. This one's more of a 'document' than anything
else. But I'll be the last to admit that, with a little care and a little
patience, this couldn't some day become your favourite live Stones' album.
I'm alright! And you? Prove it and mail your ideas
Your worthy comments:
Tony Stewart <tony.remi.stewart@worldnet.att.net> (02.11.99)
Now I remember when that one came my way. It was early in my Stonesday and I was still fairly naive. So to me of course it was all one big happy smokin' Liveshow. Wrong. There is about 50% Live to 50 % studio on this one. But the thing was what Oldham pulled off here is quite astounding. He captured in those days of very limited technology the fury and jungle mayhem that was a Stones Concert in those years. To me it will always be an unconditional statement of raw power, no nostalgia and of anarchy in the UK 15 years before someone else had the balls to try it again. Got Live is the disc that shoes us, had it been technically possible at that time to capture the frenzy of a Stones show this is what it would have sounded like. And don't get me wrong! There is plenty of straight up Live performance here. To me this is still the official version of "Under My Thumb". The other one is brilliant, marimabas and all but it's the 'other' one.Speedrapping his Rubberlips through "Cloud" is a feat almost worthy for the Guinness Book of Records. Right into the haunting beauty of "Lady Jane". The screaming and screeching turn to outright sobbing and tears of sex and pain and worship for these lads that had been elevated to the status of golden demigods."Not Fade Away", "Last Time", "I'm All Right", "Nervous Breakdown" are the tracks. But it's the adrenaline that's being generated here that counts. They pull an old James Brown trick by taking two studio tracks and just filling the other side of the stereo spectrum with audience screams. I always thought that "Fortune Teller" actually sounded better this way.What I particularly like about "I've been loving you.." is the "We piss anywhere" attitude. They wanted to do Redding-they did him. And actually very well. Always thought Jagger sounded pretty convincing in his plea at the end of the tune. The absolute highlight and I think next to "I'm Moving On" from another record, is the final duo of songs. Only Hendrix, MC5 and the Sex Pistols come to my mind in generating such white-noised chaos, without once giving up control though. It's a paradox that only the Great ones understand. Controlled anarchy. That transition from "Have you seen your Mother..." to "Satisfaction" is one of the most beautiful uses of harmonics, overtones, feedback, energy and sheer volume ever recorded. Those few seconds ARE rock'n roll. Look no further. Towards the end of the album a sweaty Keith fights his way up to a microphone to chant "I can't get no" with Jagger answering him every time. That was overdubbed? No, no. You're wrong. Mr. Oldham told me that's the way it happened and he was there. Ya-Ya's is probably the best Livedisc ever recorded if it's Rockmusic presented in a Livesetting, but for sheer pandemonium, tambourines and Jagger rubbing it in how the rules had changed "...aw-rite...aw-rite...aw-rite...", Got LIVE If You Want It.
Sergey Zhilkin <sergey_jilkin@mail.ru> (10.12.2000)
I like this album very much, though, the reasons for liking it so much are still unknown. Again we face the thing called atmosphere which is surely great here (by the way, girls' crying shouldn't bother you - there are no songs where girls shout from the beginning to the end). Everybody's happy here, Stones are in splendid form. So splendid that improved version (or should I say 'changed version'? It's you who decide which version is better) of 'Under my thumb' even beats the original. But 'Get off of my cloud' is surely worse than LP's version. Though, boys needed to connect 'Thumb' with 'Cloud' somehow and actually they succeed. Such covers as 'Not fade away', 'Fortune teller' and 'Time is on my side' are well played, too. And don't you forget about the closing 'Satisfaction'... Plus, I'd like to remark one thing: you wrote 'sound is poorly captured '... REALLY? Then something must be wrong with my player. I was carped at the quality of sound on every live album but here I can't find any faults... Excellent concert - I give it 8/10.
Year Of Release: 1967
Record rating = 9
Overall rating = 14
English to the core, and it's so weird they rejected it. They shouldn't
- it's really timeless.
Best song: LET'S SPEND THE NIGHT TOGETHER
Unjustly forgotten. Even The Stones themselves rarely play any songs
from this album (except for 'Let's Spend The Night Together', of course,
but let us not forget that the original British release did not feature
this one. Also, Keith did 'Connection' while playing solo, but that's another
matter). No greatest hits here, no timeless classics. And yet - it's as
good as anything, and next to Satanic, holds its right place as
one of the most underrated Stones' albums ever. Even more underrated than
Satanic, in fact: where Satanic is something of a 'cult'
album and a major point of controversy for Stones' fans, Buttons
is simply never mentioned at all, as if it never existed. But no, ladies
and gentlemen, it's useless to pretend that this album is a throwaway!
It's great!
This is the most British of their albums, with two major influences pounding
on both the melodies and the lyrics: The Kinks and Dylan. The first influence
is seen in such tracks as 'Cool, Calm And Collected', a hot piano boogie
with a great 'race-towards-the-end' finale and 'Miss Amanda Jones', just
a good rockin' piece with some amazingly 'ard 'n' Keith-ian riffing: both
depict English female characters. The only difference is that Ray Davies
used to idolize English ways while Mick Jagger ridiculizes them: in 'Cool,
Calm & Collected', the character gets sneered upon for her high-class
snub-nosedness, and 'Miss Amanda Jones' is Jagger's personal projection
of 'Sweet Little Sixteen' on, once again, a high-class society 'outcast'.
Add to this the fact that 'CCC' bears a strong influence of Music Hall
tunes, and the portrait of Jagger as a sneering little British gentleman
is complete.
The second influence, as everybody already said a million times before,
is seen in 'Who's Been Sleeping Here', a groovy character-full song closely
inspired by Bob's ravings. In fact, I can almost imagine the song done
by Bob in his gruff, wheezy tone: 'The noseless old newsboy, the old British
brigadier... you'll tell me now, who's been sleeping here...' Hmm. A bit
too many sexual overtones for old Zimmerman, but then again, not that many.
You gotta love the melody, anyway.
But, besides that, there's still lots and lots of good things: the single
'Let's Spend The Night Together/Ruby Tuesday', which the Americans baffled
on onto the first side of the album, is as mighty as anything, with great
piano on the first song and a really catchy Mellotron on the second one
(which, by the way, is a fine candidate for the Stones' best ballad ever).
In fact, the single, for me, is sorta the culmination of the entire Stones'
'pop' period: the melodies are so immaculate, so wonderfully catchy, so
breathtakingly groovy, that it's a plain fact - they had nearly caught
up with the Beatles and were far, far ahead of any other competition at
the time. I love Brian Wilson, but even Brian Wilson never wrote such a
perfect pop song as 'Let's Spend The Night Together'. Rumour has it that
while they were recording the song, two policemen came along to see what
the whole noise was about, and ended up banging their truncheons on the
rhythm track. A legend, put forth by Andrew Oldham, nothing more, but hey,
if I had the luck to be one of those policemen...
And, damn the Mellotron, they keep experimenting with everything! The spooky
organ underlying Mick's unnaturally soft, but dark singing on 'She Smiled
Sweetly' is really something else. Did you know that it was Keith who played
it? Now there's multi-instrumentalism for you! Add the weird drum line
in the somewhat more hard-rockin' 'My Obsession', the now-that-I-can-believe
lyrics of 'Yesterday's Papers' ('Seems very hard to have just one girl/When
there's a million in the world'), the word-games on 'Complicated' and the
wonderfully put together 'All Sold Out', and you have yourself a near-perfect
record. The closing 'Something Happened To Me Yesterday' sums up everything
with its series of drug-induced situations the choruses to which are sung
by Keith, thus marking his start as a vocalist. (Oh wait, he gets to sing
on 'Connection', too. Silly me). For some reason, people usually dislike
the song, but I can't see that at all. It has a simple, charming Music
Hall melody. Maybe these are the same people that hate Sergeant Pepper?
By the way: notice how they like these little Latin words on here? 'Connection',
'complicated', 'obsession', 'calm and collected'. This, actually, is the
only thing that lets the album a bit down for me: when they got to 'Complicated',
I was already inclined to think: 'Oh God, not again!' Apparently, Mick
listened to too much Zimmerman around 1967. (Hey, did you know that when
the police busted Keith for drugs the whole company started to tease the
cops by singing 'Rainy Day Women'? And that was way back in 1967, too!)
Anyway, all of these songs are cute little gems, and the deed of throwing
them out of the stage catalogue is yet another dark spot on the band's
reputation. Sure, they ain't no 'Jumpin' Jack Flash', but, then again,
what is?
Connection is needed! Mail your ideas
Your worthy comments:
Ben Greenstein <bgreenstein@nctimes.net> (28.08.99)
A very, very close second to Flowers as the best Stones album.
There aren't as many hits (except, of course, "Ruby Tuesday"
and "Let's Spend The Night Together," but those are on that album
as well!), but the album only songs merge together to form a smooth, slick
sound. And they're good, too! "She Smiled Sweetly" is a gorgeous
tune, and "My Obsession," while a tad repetetive, has that awesome
drum part and nifty melody. I even like the very out-of-place Little-Richardey
rocker "Miss Amanda Jones."
I'd rate this one right behind the next one.
Tony Stewart <tony.remi.stewart@worldnet.att.net> (09.11.99)
This one is probably not the best record for me to review;simply because
I'm going to be so biased about it. For several reasons. For starters it's
the first Stonesdisc I owned and still do. You know, one of those huge
Vinyljobs that weigh about a ton. So there's a lot of sentimental value
attached to that on. Plus I think it's their most underrated disc to date
and I think it's a masterpiece in the sense that it's the only time the
Stones let their British roots actually rule. The Blues are so ingrained
in them , they will never be able to shake them(good!), but this one almost
gets away from them. This disc is often criticized for not having a complete
feel to it; that it feels more like a bunch of not quite finished demos.
That's what I really like about it, because it really isn't so. The full
extent of possibilities of Stereo had just been discovered and for the
first time the group conciously more than just toys with it. I love how
on "My Obsession" the drums are panned far right, or how on "Miss
Amanda Jones" the electric guitars are so separated it actually makes
you turn your head to look for the guy in the corner. We open with an absolutely
gorgeous song "Yesterday's Papers". If you have heard the outtakes,
and know how the song sounded in it's genesis and grew and grew, it makes
you celebrate the wonders of overdubbing/orchestration. The Vibes and the
chiming guitar, the fuzzbass and the stacked vocals coming in from the
left and the right make this a special song. "My Obsession" with
it's almost comical repetitive Drumbeat rocks deceivingly hard. Once that
piano and Bill Wyman's Monsterbass kick in there is some serious rockin'
going down. I know Wyman whines a lot about not having had enough musical
input, but in a band someone is boss and someone is a great bassplayer.
I wish he could look at it like that, because he did some great things
in the early days and contrary to what his book says, the fans are fully
aware of his contributions. "Back Street Girl" is one of those
songs that you want to use to prove the naysayers wrong. When they say
the Stones couldn't write anything but 1-4-5 ripoffs. This is one of Brian's
last finest moments and it's his beautiful accordion touches that flavor
the whole song, and make us forget Mick's rather puerile lyrics. Mick was
under marianne's spell and doing his reading, so I think he should be forgiven
some of his earlier literary quotes. Shelley, Chaucer and Steinbeck?? At
lest there was a hungry mind trying to digest it all at once. "Connection"
marks Keith's first semi lead vocal and it's a cheerful rocker, but it's
also the first time we hear about "my bags they get a very close inspection";
in other words the Stones were now officially targeted by the cops of the
world, and they knew it. Now where did "She Smiled Sweetly" come
from? This pompous Organ, again a very upfront Bass; other than that we
have some drums and probably the most in-your-face vocals of the Stones
' career. It's verrry British, with a beautiful bridge. I hear Marianne
all over this disc. Or let me paraphrase that "Look at me , Marianne!
I'm debonnair, I'm oh so delightfully beautiful and stoned...". "Cool
Calm and Collected" is a forerunner to Satanic. It's the Kinks,
it's the Beatles, it's the Who. It's sort of the state of mind of the main
Brit-bands who hadmade it big on the R&B and were now delving into
their own backyard to see what treasures were buried there and what could
hopefully be married to their existing collage of Blues, Pop, Poppers and
Uppers, Swinging London and ART. Swinging London had after all been built
on the plight of Deepsouth American Black cottonpickers' music. There had
to be some payback, some justification. The days of openly acknowledging
the source of 'rubber soul' had not quite come. Plant and Page wre still
going to have to rip off Black for a few more years; fill their pockets
before they could come out and admit that they didn't write a good 50%
of their early material.
So we were talking about the ragtime of "Cool, Calm..". Ragtime,
Sitar, muted piano, a crazy speed up at the end...you get the picture.
Not a masterpiece-a stepping stone towards marrying a lot of different
styles. It would in time prove to have been a worthwhile experiment. It
needed to be gotten out of the way. But at the time sometimes we saw some
not so beautiful pics as our leaders would have liked us to believe."All
Sold Out" was the type of Hard rock the Stones were dishing out at
the time. Great guitars, great "hey hey". Just not that great
of a song. "Please Go Home" is basically a Bo Diddley beat basic
track with every psychedelic toy of the day thrown on top. But then you
get this beautiful little ballad "Who's Been Sleeping Here?"
wedged in between "Home" and "Complicated. It's just Mick
and keith at their finest. Those swells of electric guitar. Wonderful production,
great lyrics. Had Dylan just stopped in for a visit, maybe? Like I said
"Complicated"! Now that's a stomper. Ranks right up there with
the absolute best of them. Jagger could have turned this one into some
tour's "Saint Of Me". That irresistible hook, the sing-a-long,
the drum breakdowns. I don't know. "Miss Amanda Jones" to me
sounds like all Keith, in one sitting and one bag of white powder. Which
leaves us with a little droll closing number that packs a (for the Stones)
surprisingly subtle sting set in a comfy little Tuba cushion. Keith and
Mick trade vocals in another Dixieland number, lyrically bidding the disc
a fond adieu with a great questionmark. Their innocence about Britain had
been shattered, Hendrix was setting guitars on fire, Brian was fried beyond
repair and they themselves were itching to challenge new artistic boundaries.
So while many 'critics' mark this disc as a time making album I think it
exactly sums up the state of affairs of the moment. We hadn't reached fullblown
psychedelia yet, so artistically there wasa huge questionmark looming.
The Stones danced around it and pondered...15!
Year Of Release: 1967
Record rating = 9
Overall rating = 14
An American bastard, but if you want more Stones' pop, there you
have it!
Best song: OUT OF TIME
This is a weird album, not exactly a compilation, but rather an interesting
effort to introduce the Americans to those particular tracks that were
left off the original British releases, namely, Aftermath and Between
The Buttons. Of course, these weren't enough for a complete album,
so the greedy manager bastards dumped on some outtakes (most of them rather
entertaining, I'll admit) and - shame on 'em! - three more tracks previously
available on LPs: 'Lady Jane' from Aftermath and 'Let's Spend The
Night Together/Ruby Tuesday' from Buttons. But overall this is a
magnificent pop album. Not the least trippy, Beach Boyish, Beatlish, Kinkish
and utterly delicious, it is still great. I give it a 9 exclusively on
the basis of the songs that are on here, NOT taking in consideration the
album's general superfluity, as most fans do.
The British-Aftermath tracks, in particular, are very strong:
'Mother's Little Helper' features one of their most vicious satyric lyrics
(directed against middle class housewives taking pills, if you know what
I mean) and a great stinging riff in between the verses, courtesy of Mr
Brian, and it's fast and rockin', anyway. Then there's 'Out Of Time', possibly
the most stupendous pop track ever recorded by the band. Unfortunately,
it comes in a shortened version - the original was, like, a minute or two
longer, and it seems to be unavailable on CD, what a shame! Check Metamorphosis
(or the Singles Collection) to see how easy it is to ruin such a
perfect pop number with a banal strings arrangement; but don't forget to
return here in order to learn what a truly great pop song really is. 'Baby,
baby, baby, you're out of time...' And, hey, 'Take It Or Leave It', contrary
to what lots of people say, does not blow AT ALL! Why should it? It's just
one more strong, a bit retroish, pop song! Yeah, I'll be the first to say
that if you're in a sneery mood, it's easy to dismiss the endless 'O la
la la ta ta ta ta la la la la' as cheesy, repetitive and annoying, not
to mention silly; but somehow they fit in perfectly with the main melody,
which, by the way, is quite complicated and witty, if you haven't noticed
already.
Oh, but then again, the British-Buttons tracks are even stronger!
Need proof? Let me tell you! There's 'Backstreet Girl' - a sly, sleazy
accordion-embellished ode to adultery, with cunning French-influenced overtones
and a fascinating tongue-in-cheek vocal - 'jesch' oo be mine backstreet
guuuuuuuurrrl...' And there's 'Please Go Home' - a gruff, sloppy distortion-embellished
ode to... Bo Diddley? I mean, that beat sure dates back to Bo Diddley and
songs like 'Mona', but what's the deal with the whole wild bunch of studio
experimentation? And the megalithic, booming chorus? A quasi-metallic beat?
A hard rock excourse? A pre-Hendrix display of monstruosity? Gee...
And plus, you have your 'Haveyouseenyourmotherbabystandingintheshadow'
which is their longest song title, even though it only consists of one
word. At least, that's how I put it. Anyway, you shouldn't bother - you
won't be able to understand a single word out of the lyrics anyway. Rumours
have it that the record-buying public were afraid of those lyrics that
were too scary and dark for them and that's why the single didn't chart
too high - but that's a damn lie! How could they make out a single word
apart from the track name? The melody, though, is much more than decent,
if you can get past the muddy, probably intentionally sloppy production
that immerges the song into a sea of fuzz and feedback.
And then there's those silly American-only tracks: 'My Girl', the Smokey
Robinson cover, is quite interesting pop - again, often hated by fans,
but I find Jagger's vocal efforts on that one completely adequate and strangely
moving; 'Ride On Baby' is yet another gorgeous, but bitter-tasting ode
to... hmmm.... the general sadness and vanity of this 'ere world of pain,
and 'Sitting On A Fence' is an acoustic-only charming piece o' moosik about....
errr... the general sadness and vanity of this 'ere world of pain. Hmm.
I guess I already mentioned this phrase somewhere above. But that's just
it - it's a very uniform album. Like Aftermath. Don't expect lots
of different moods and things. Just expect a pretty bunch of over-the-hill
melodies. Of course I AGREE this album should have been minced up and the
songs attached as bonus tracks to Aftermath and Buttons.
But then again, to do so you would have to bypass Allen Klein. And I guess
you can't do that yet. In the meantime - you'll just have to overcome yourself
and buy this album, because I simply can't picture the happy, self-content
life of a Rolling Stones fan who hasn't heard 'Mother's Little Helper'
or 'Ride On Baby'..
Ride on baby and mail your ideas
Your worthy comments:
Ben Greenstein <bgreenstein@nctimes.net> (28.08.99)
Golly - for me, this is probably the best Stones collection imaginable. It's got all of their poppiest songs, and they're all great! I'm not a big fan of the band's bluesy period (all thirty years of it!), and used to hate them altogether, but then I went out and bought this CD. I bought it for "Mother's Little Helper," I came back with "Ride On Baby," "Out Of Time," "Ruby Tuesday," and "Have You Seen Your Mother, Baby...," which are among the best songs ever written. This is very, very pop, but will probably help convert you if you aren't a fan. A perfect score, for me.
Jeff <Jkh1392@aol.com> (06.09.99)
Ick. Bonus tracks indeed. Seeing as how I already owned More Hot Rocks at the time I purchased this rip-off, I ended up spending my hard-earned cash for a total of four new songs. Not that they're bad, mind you. In fact, they're quite good, with the exception of the disgustingly derivative "my Girl" cover. It sounds exactly like the original, just with Mick Jagger singing it. Big fat whoop, sez I.
Tony Stewart <tony.remi.stewart@worldnet.att.net> (11.11.99)
I think other discs deserve to carry the title
of "Worst Album Ever", but this one comes close. Strictly issued
for the US Market, adorned with the silliest of titles (we are in Flower
Power after all) and just a mumbled jumble of songs slapped on a record.
Not even track sequence which could have made this a little better of a
record seems to matter. This to me stands for all the problems the Stones
were having. They virtually had no manager, they were constantly being
harrassed by the Cops and Tabloids and they were broke. They couldn't go
on tour because Live Technology had not caught up with what bands were
producing in the studio so the were loath to go out and play them; so therefore
they were broke. Brian had turned into a mess, an embarrassment to himself(God,
do I know about that one...), so the answer was :"Quick make something
up. Anything we can put out and make few bucks off. Because the Stones
still are the Stones . Anything they put out is going to garner some attention.
We open wih "Ruby Tuesday",a GREAT song with Brian at his absolute
finest. As a matter of a fact this is the only documented Richard/Jones
Composition to date. Mick didn't even write the lyrics. Bill and Keith
played 4-handed Cello. It's a true gem. But it had already been released.
As a matter of a fact it had already topped the charts. "Have You
Seen Your Mother Baby.." is next. Why do we not open the album with
thatmonster I will never know. Jagger had discribed this song as the ultimate
freakout. I think what he means by that, they pretty much used every bit
of studiotechnology the times had to offer and more. Plus they were out
of their minds from finally slowing down the touring pace. I LOVE this
song, it's MY first Stonessong. I got it for X-mas when I was 2 and I've
been a Stones fanatic ever since. That Bridge still gives me the chills,
just writing about it. An early outtake has them starting the song with
the Bridge."Let's Spend The Night Together" is about as true
of a Popgem as you will ever find. This is not R&B anymore. This is
straight Pop. Stonespop. Again with a beautiful bridge, Brian on Piano.
Did Brian ever touch a guitar after '66? "Lady Jane" and it's
barochial settings we have discussed ; same with "OutOf Time"
and the incredible Counterpoint Brian plays against the Vovaltrack on the
Marimbas. Now for one of the Lows. Many Fans cite this as their least favorite
Stonestrack. I kind of like it. "My Girl". The question is more
why. They probably liked the song and wanted to record it and that is fine,
but Decca should have never released such an embarrassment.The strings
are out of tune, Jager is no Ruffin/Kendricks duo. What in the US sounded
absolutely astonishing, 5-part harmonies and soul to rip your heart out
came off sounding like a German Beergarden song with English lyrics."Back
Street Girl" we've been over. Popgem. "Please Go Home" we
have talked about. Same with "Mother's Little Helper"and "Take
It Or Leave It" which with it's silly la-la-ta-ta's somehow gets under
your skin and stays there, because it just fits so perfectly."Ride
On Baby" is the reason I got this Disc. I needed to have all the Stones
tunes and this was the only place to find it. It's what they were doing
best at the time. Accoustic flavored Popsongs, with great hooks.Closer
of the disc is "Sittin' On A Fence". I love songs like that.
About nothing really...I'm just sitting here, watching the wheels go round
and round....I'm just waiting on a Friend...I'm just watching the world
pass me by and I'm at peace.
Now you notice all the songs have received good to great reviews, but in
the context of the Stones Discography this one sadly hovers around the
lower end. I'm torn . It's an album filled to burst with great Popsongs,
but they have all already been presented in their actual milieu. I have
to give it a 5.
Glenn Wiener <Glenn.Wiener@Entex.com> (14.01.2000)
This is an excellent record. Its not worth complaining about how this record somewhat duplciates previous releases. It offers so much for fans of the Stones before they got into their roots rock period. The cover of 'My Girl' is just fine, Thank You. No its not quite as soulful as the Temptations version. But at least they don't over amplify the song like they would years later when covering 'Just My Imagination'. These songs all have great song structure and catchy hooks most notably 'Out of Time' and 'Ride On Baby'. Something different exists for each of the twelve tracks and it is all very good.
John McFerrin <stoo@imsa.edu> (29.08.2000)
Ok, one thing before anything else. The pop-era stuff of the Stones
is mostly fantastic, with one problem - Jagger, in an alarming number of
cases, can't sing 'sissy pop' worth crap. His harmonies on 'Ruby Tuesday'
are, er, strained, and his vocals in the 'tiiiiiime' part of 'Out of Time'
kill my ear drums.
But other than that, these songs are absolutely fabulous. Regardless of
the singing problem, 'Ruby Tuesday' is gorgeous, 'Out of Time' is an amazing
pop number, the Buttons stuff is beautiful ... I can keep going,
but I won't. They all rule.
A 14 - one point off for the singing.
Year Of Release: 1967
Record rating = 8
Overall rating = 13
The Stones' psychedelic joke. Shows that whatever they played at,
they couldn't be beat.
Best song: THE LANTERN
This one is probably the most understated rock record in history. Issued
right after the Stones' infamous drug bust and in the midst of the Summer
of Love and all, it's psychedelic, and has been regularly thrashed for
being a rip-off of Sergeant Pepper. This is true, but only partly.
Actually, it's not more a rip-off of Sergeant Pepper than it is
of any other trippy album of the epoch - like Disraeli Gears, for
instance, or whatever Jefferson Airplane or The Doors were doing at the
moment. It's just that nobody was expecting a psychedelic album from The
Rolling Stones; but, on the other hand, what else was one expected to do
in 1967? Everybody was tripping - if you weren't tripping, you were probably
recovering from a motorcycle accident! Hell, even the Monkees were
tripping (at least, they were pretending to!) And, come to think of it,
this record's similarity to Sgt Pepper doesn't extend much beyond
the cover art and the fact that there's a song with a reprise and a 'band-within-a-band'
song ('On With The Show'). Actually, I'd say that musically Between
The Buttons was much closer to Pepper, with its music hall atmosphere
and an immaculate collection of pop ditties. Satanic is a truly
tripped out album with layers of 'cosmic conscience' - more reminiscent
of early Pink Floyd than of the Beatles.
So scram all that hokey-pokey talk and think about the actual musical value,
instead. Actual musical value? Why, it's right here, goddamn! The opening
'Sing This All Together' is eventually the same pop stuff they've been
doing earlier, only set to a bizarre instrumentation and punctuated with
silly 'underwater' noises. Weird, silly 'underwater' noises that I just
love hearing. And the main melody is wonderful, as catchy as ever. The
rip-roaring 'Citadel' is eventually the same rocking stuff they'd be off
a-doin' since Beggar's Banquet, only set to some bizarre lyrics
and punctuated with an ear-bursting 'ting' sound from the Mellotron (was
it Mellotron or something even weirder, I wonder?) A sci-fi tale, for sure,
but why not pay attention to the fact that it is set to an absolutely distinctive,
hard rocking and, believe it or not, classic Richards riff? Above all,
it's just a strong hard rock tune, embellished by different gimmicks and
gadgets. They could be missing for all I care - which does not mean I don't
like 'em. There's substance!
Then again, we have something completely unusual in 'In Another Land',
which is the only composition by Bill Wyman he's ever contributed to the
Stones. It's romantic and gentle, and much better than all his disco albums.
The vocals are let through some tremolo effect, since Wyman wasn't too
sure about the idea of him singing, but one can get used to that. And you
also get to hear him snoring in the end!
Besides all these ditties, you also can enjoy 'She's A Rainbow', a timeless
Mozart-like piano classic, and the only true 'classic' from this album
('classic' in the meaning 'played on the radio'); with its strings arrangement,
conducted by future Zepster J. P. Jones, it's the most pompous tune they'd
done to that day - and it works, unlike all the bland Moody Blues orchestration.
Another more or less known tune is '2000 Light Years From Home', a great
astro-theme which I would prefer over the entire 60's Pink Floyd catalogue
any time of the day (and hey, I don't have anything in particular against
60's Pink Floyd, but they sure lacked the Stones' songwriting talents).
The song's scary! And all the astral noises, that are used moderately,
but effectively, they really make you feel lost in space, 100, 600, 2000
light years from home... In my humble opinion, this song still stands as
proof irresistible to the fact that the Stones were the only band in the
world, besides the Beatles, that could try their hand at every genre and
come out with a winner. '2000 Man' might not be that good, although I really
like the acoustic sound in the beginning; I do admit, though, that it would
be a far more interesting choice for the upcoming 'song of the millenium'
than the stupidly chosen 'It's Only Rock'n'Roll' (have you heard that one
yet? it's gonna be performed by a cast of thousands on New Year's Eve!
and they'll do their best to sound like a bunch of talentless idiots, you
bet your life). That line about 'having an affair with a random computer'
is a good one... is Mick really planning on that any time soon?
The record's main stinker is usually considered an eight-minute reprise
of 'Sing This All Together' reinterpreted as a psychedelic sound collage
which you may like or may not like, but I sure say it's better than 'Revolution
9', anyway. It has rhythm - it's actually more a jam than a collage, and
maybe it takes time to assimilate it, but I love almost every second. The
nasty screaming in the middle, when the rhythm disappears, does bug me
sometimes even now, though.
My choice for best song, however, might surprise some persons quite a bit
- while '2000 Light Years' might be as good a choice as can be, I still
place it second to 'The Lantern' with its mystical, Eastern flavour. I
know it sounds strange, but I simply adore Mick's tone on that one. The
way he intones the verses ('you'll LEAVE a light... to LET me know... TELL
me so...') has always fascinated me, from the very start. The lyrics are
rather banal, of course, but who cares? In comparison to, say, Led Zeppelin's
flat-foot, gruff take on mysticism, this one is gentle, exotic and totally
non-generic. And it sounds so sincere that you could really easily believe
Jagger was sprung from an Aladdin lamp.
For me, the misfire is the closing bar-room joke 'On With The Show' which
just does not belong here (now this is a real Pepper rip-off),
and the overlong 'Gomper' makes me a little uncomfortable with the extended
jam part, although I've got used to it already. But these are just occasional,
slight misfires, like on any other record 'cept the very best. In fact,
this record would deserve a 9, but I've lowered the rating just a small
bit - anyway, psychedelia is not the Stones' blue plate special, isn't
it? Also, you just may not enjoy that eight-minute thing that much.
On with the show! Mail your ideas
Your worthy comments:
Jeff <Jkh1392@aol.com> (06.09.99)
Yes, it's underrated. Everyone and their great aunt seems to agree on that. I have a friend who declares this to be the stones' best album, in fact. If you ask me, other than the tedious sound collage (which is actually about on-par with "Revolution 9"), it's a great little pop record. "On With the Show" is actually a really fun song, with the same kind of vibe as "Something Happened to Me Yesterday." Does seem a little out of place here, though
Glenn Wiener <glennjwiener@hotmail.com> (14.09.99)
Much better than what the pciky critics say. Whereas the Stones will never be confused with Psychedlia, their one attempt at it is very very interesting. Only the second 'Sing This All Together' and 'Gomper' overstay their welcome. The rest of this record is very creative.
Tony Stewart <tony.remi.stewart@worldnet.att.net> (13.11.99)
This is and always be the big Oddball in the Stones' Recording career. Is it experimental? Is it a poor rip off of Sgt. Papper? Is it genius? Or is it a band living in their times experimenting with new sounds and rules in music? I think the kast applies. Of course they were influenced by psychedelia to the hilt, of course they were rippred to the gourd, and yes the Beatles did release a very similar looking and sounding disc earlier. So did the Beach Boys. So did the Animals, Jefferson Airplane and Hendrix. The point is : the times were a-changing and the Stones wanted change in their lifes anyway so this what they proffered. Take it song by song and it will bother you far less (If it indeed bothers you, or you think it's crap). There are many Outtakes from those sessions and those outtakes really changed my point of view on that disc. A LOT of work went into those songs."Sing This All Together" opens in a flurry of percussion and bells, very loud Brass a rhythm produced by more by heartbeats rather than drumbeats. A very catchy chorus invites us all to sing along. The verse lyrics are of course dated, but does anyone still wanna ride a yellow submarine? "Citadel" with it's echoing Guitariff and what sounds like a snakecharmer's flute in the chorus never really goes anywhere. "In Another Land" shows just how willing the group was to do something different. It's the only 45 released off an album penned by a different bandmember other than the Glimmer Twins.. Recorded with heavy vibrato on the vocals and except for overdubbed backup vocals I don't think another Stone in sight. Steve Marriott help their mate Bill out on this song that is one of the few that doesn't have the feel to have been made up on the spot in the studio.Bill snores for a while and then it's into "2000 Man"which could have been a better song. It's really just two ideas stuck together to make it a song. Each section is great but they leave you with that weird feeling of'Was that song Jagger lamenting the life of the Jetson's or was it a Drinking song about being proud of our planet."Where's That Joint?" as it has become known more and more by the fansis a 7-8 minute jam that starts out strong has a moment or two but ultimately does not deliver. There is the famous "Cosmic Christmas"tacked on the end which is the original "Sing This All Together" chorus recorded superslow. Side Two opens with the frivolous and wonderful "She's a Rainbow". You can't help it. You hear that piano and boom you're out there chasing butterflies. Kudos to John Paul Jones who did the String arrangment. "The Lantern" is one of those songs you just don't know what to do with. Does it want to fly or stay here with us? Plus very much like "Citadel" we have those start and stops that will drive you crazy. "Gomper" is twl verses and a little interlude that Mick or Keith had laying around and then we are treated to 5 minutes of Brian pretty much destroying a Sitar. Best song of the Disc coming up, "2000 Lightyears from Home". Brian shines on this one. Thay all do. The mysterious Keyboards and Spacesounds, the subsonic Bass, the slight slapback on that guitar , tom toms thundering and it never for one second comes off as sil;ly. It has stood the test of time well. Jagger floats in and out weaving his melody between the instrumentation. Great! They close it very much with the same feel as Between the Buttons with a Ragtime number where the whole thing just ends in total chaos, lyrically and especially musically. This one is a hard one to rate. Because there is an intangible involved here. There is something very likeable about the disc and the cover, costumes. They must have had a lot of fun with Michael Cooper shooting that cover. I mean you can SEE the string that the planet is hanging from. I give an 13.
Fredrik Tydal <f_tydal@hotmail.com> (19.12.99)
I don't really think this is underrated. No, I don't mean that it's a Sgt. Pepper rip-off, because it isn't. This is a "1967 record". And we all know how music wanted to be in 1967; far out, psychedelic, groovy, spaced out... Many artists did a "1967 record" (though not necessarily in 1967) and I certainly don't blame them for it. Like other "1967 records", there's not as much music on Satanic Majesties as you would like it to be. For me, there's three great songs on the album. First there's Bill Wyman's "In Another Land" (why didn't they let this guy write more?), then there's "She's A Rainbow" with Nicky Hopkins superb as ever on piano, and finally there's Keith's groovy "2000 Light Years From Home". Then there's some ok stuff, like "Citadel" and "The Lantern", but that's really it. It all sums up to a rather ok album, nothing more; nothing less. But I don't blame the Stones; the next year they were right back with a marvellous album. And after all; it was 1967.
Ben Greenstein <bgreenstein@nctimes.net> (16.03.2000)
One of the more interesting pop-based Stones albums, I still think it's pretty weak. If you compare it to the solid, well-produced albums that the Beatles and, well, the Stones were putting out around that time, it sounds cheap and flat. "The Lantern," "2000 Light Years," "She's A Rainbow" and "Citadel" are great, but that's it. A seven, maybe, on my 1-10 scale.
Wipqmio Emizo <fiber_optiqREMOVETHIS@yahoo.com> (14.04.2000)
Although I agree that "On With The Show" sucks, it's not a
"Pepper's" ripoff because it sounds nothing like the beatles.
Overall, I think "Sing This All Together (See What Happens)"
is what saves this album. It's quite hypnotic. Otherwise, this is just
a Piper At The Gates of Dawn wannabe album. Listen to that for some
*good* British psychedelic fruito-mysticism. This is nothing in comparison.
It's fun, but it's kind of pathetic at the same time.
[Special author note: hmm...
strange. I always thought 'STAT (SWH)' was a Piper wannabe track,
but never thought the same of anything else...]
John McFerrin <stoo@imsa.edu> (24.08.2000)
Holy crap, this album rules. I don't have the slightest idea why people
call this a Sgt. Pepper rip-off - there's NO RESEMBLENCE musically.
This is dark, dark psychadelia done at a higher intensity than anything
else I've heard from the era. The noisy reprise may drag just a wee bit
too long, but it's still entertaining as hell. I only wish that fans of
the group had been willing to allow them to experiment in areas like this
rather than almost completely dismissing them.
I agree with the 13, of course.
Year Of Release: 1968
Record rating = 10
Overall rating = 15
One of the first hard rock albums. The first country blues album.
The classic of the classics. Buy it today.
Best song: SYMPATHY FOR THE DEVIL
Forget the pop and the psychedelia, here comes Ole Man Rocker! Pulling
themselves out of a financial, psychologic and creative stagnation (not
that Satanic was bad - they just needed something more uptight to
bring them to life), and also ignoring Brian Jones as best they could,
The Glimmer Twins (oh, OK, I know they weren't called Glimmer Twins until
later, but I just put that in for good effect) responded with this album.
It's even better than Aftermath, and for many people represents
the beginning of the real Rolling Stones. Half of it is soft, but bitter
and dark acoustic 'country-western', and the other half is ferocious electric
rockers. A return to 'roots rock' it is, though it's hardly as formulaic
as people sometimes dub it. For one, it's pretty diverse: maybe not as
diverse as The White Album, but there's enough moods and different
grooves here to suit any tastes. A bit of blues, a bit of rock, a bit of
samba, a bit of folk, a bit of country. Very tasty.
Hey, there's 'Sympathy For The Devil' here - what better praise can there
be? And if you're ignorant enough not to know what kind of a hellish trick
this is, it's just a very very long devilish song set to a Latin rhythm,
with bongos and congos and dongos and maracas and 'hoo-hoo's and everything,
and also an excellent Keith solo, and some of the best lyrics Jagger ever
came up with. Inspired by Bulgakoff and filmed by Jean-Luc Godard in his
'One Plus One' movie. Period. And for many, this is the Stones' song number
one, while for others, this was the definite proof that the Stones were
Satanists. Silly happy people.
What else? The rockers are tight, very very tight, tighter than they ever
were before. The bluesy 'Parachute Woman' kicks with all possible might
- you might regard it as a projection of the Stones' early blues numbers
onto a more modern era with more tricky production values. Rumour has it
that Keith recorded the basic parts of this on a rough-sounding cassette,
and that's why the guitars sound so cool - almost rasping. And Mick's harmonica
solo brings him to a new height - when that blast comes in near the end,
doesn't it wanna make you jump up in fright? Then there's 'Stray Cat Blues',
the most vicious and obscene rocker up-to-date: it's still full of metaphors
(Jagger didn't start using obscene lexicon until Sticky Fingers),
but lines like 'you see another friend, now she's wilder than you/why don't
you bring her upstairs?/if she's so wild she can join in two' set the picture
as clear as possible. It's not the lyrics, though, but rather the terrific
melody and especially the arrangement that gives exclusive depth to this
one: the fade-out in the end resembles The Beatles' fade-out on 'Helter
Skelter' but is actually superior. I especially like the way they construct
the crescendo, with guitar after guitar after guitar rising up in the mix
(love that bassline! -du-DOO-ddu-do-ddo-do-ddo-do du-DOO ddu-do-ddo-do-ddo-do...
...sorry...) In fact, this is the only song whose rearrangement on the
live Ya-Ya's is a lot inferior to the original.
And one more excellent rocker is 'Jig-Saw Puzzle' which closes Side A.
A six-minute epic in the best tradition of Dylan's ballads, it is accompanied
by crystal clear acoustic and superb slide guitar (the only Jones contribution?)
Maybe it does get a little bit boring towards the end (Jagger is no Dylan,
and the endless lyrics about queens and armies and twenty thousand grandmas,
but overall it's pretty good. And everybody knows the mighty revolutionary
anthem (or was it antirevolutionary?) 'Street Fighting Man' which was (and
still is) a stage favourite.
The softer songs are softer, sure enough, but probably even more gorgeous
than the rockers. The beautiful ballad 'No Expectations' is especially
memorable for the incredibly sincere tenderness in Jagger's voice; the
country groove 'Dear Doctor' is pretty amusing (and it's a waltz!); yet
another country groove 'Prodigal Son' is even more amusing (it's so great
to hear Mick singing a popularisation of this New Testament fable in his
mocking style); and yet another country groove 'Factory Girl' has an incredibly
simple but charming melody, plus some hilarious fiddle by Rick Grech. The
only letdown is the closing 'Salt Of The Earth' - Mick's first attempt
at a universal hymn to people is clumsy and features too many verses and
repetitions of verses for a very simple melody. However, it is sped up
near the end and turned into a piano boogie ruled by Nicky Hopkins, so
that the final notes of the album do not feel inferior to the beginning
ones. I just feel a little stupid when listening to this anthem of the
working class.
I'm also proud to announce that I possess the old LP version in the plain
white cover, which will probably soon become a rarity. See, the guys wanted
to put a lavatory wall on the cover, but them at Decca said no. So the
old cover's been reinstated only recently, and, frankly speaking, it's
not that inspiring. Even the zipper's much more cool, although it's Let
It Bleed that holds gold for the best album cover. But have you seen
the inner sleeve photo? Now that's one great decadent image for you!
No expectations to get any comments? Mail your ideas
Your worthy comments:
Glenn Wiener <Glenn.Wiener@Entex.com> (26.08.99)
Well, George since you say that my tstes are kind of eartheeeee mon, I should at least review the album which contains 'Salt Of The Earth' which happens to be one of my favorite songs on this record. What can you say? Acoustic, electric, rock, country, Lucifers, Jigsaw Puzzles, Parachute Women, Underage Women, Street Fighting Men, this album has it all and performed it an extremely tasteful manner. An album that one can not leave out of any substantial record collection.
Ben Greenstein <bgreenstein@nctimes.net> (28.08.99)
Don't like it. I think that they had previosly been much better, and
would go on to do some great things with the country blues formula. But
this one just strikes me as too transitional - in fact, I heard an early
version of "Sympathey For The Devil" where they tried to make
it an accoustic, psychadelic epic - sort of a prequel to Zeppelin's "Stairway
To Heaven."
But the album doesn't suceed in doing one thing - creating memorable melodies.
"Sympathy" is an amazing song, but, sadly, also the only truly
inspired moment. "Salt Of The Earth" is okay, but the rest sound
like throwaways to me. Even when I'm in a bluesy mood, they just seem like
half-assed blues tunes. Actually, my father borrowed this album, and lost
it. I really don't care. If I could get that killer opening track on a
compilation, then the whole album could just go out of print, for all I
care. Sorry, that's just the way I feel.
Simon Hearn <simon@leehearn.freeserve.co.uk> (07.09.99)
Quite simply a classic. In opinion better than Bleed for one reason - 'Sympathy for the devil'. This track is my favourite of all time - pure rock and roll. Also this album signifies to me the re-birth of a new more malevolent stones after their debacle that was Satanic majesties. Listen to 'jig saw puzzle' and 'stray cat blues' - utter class. It does not got better
Jeff <Jkh1392@aol.com> (16.09.99)
Don't have much to say about this one that you haven't already, just that "Sympathy for the Devil," "Stray Cat Blues," and "Jiigsaw Puzzle" may be the three greatest songs the Stones ever wrote. Okay, maybe not, considering how many great songs Jagger & Richards have churned out over the years, but those three are pretty high on the list. I don't like "Street Fighting Man" as much as everyone else does for some reason, but it's a pretty good song nonetheless. All kinds of great stuff here: "Parachute Woman," "Factory Girl," "No Expectaions"-- all classics. "Dear Doctor" may be a bit on the goofy side, but I likes it anyway. Very good album, but not as good as the next one.....
Tony Stewart <tony.remi.stewart@worldnet.att.net> (13.11.99)
Well so there is no getting around it. We've entered
the Golden Period. Jagger is fully wrapped in his"tattered minstrel"
bit, Keith has discovered open tunings, Brian has been virtually eliminated
from the band and down in the engine room Bill and Charlie are ready to
light some fire. Plus whoever showed up on their chosen day got put to
work right away shaking and clanking on something. Jagger and Richard had
officially taken full control of the music and brought in Jimmy Miller
as producer. Jimmy Miller had done some great straight Rockwork and was
just a perfect choice. All of them together , they were hungry for the
real stuff. They knew there were no elves and goblins in the fields of
Mordor. They knew that what the little girls wanted. They had it right
in their pocket and they were gonna give to them. Right? Quietly almost
without much fanfare the Stones got to work, without many distractions
it seems. From the Banquet period one hears very little gossip,
but more about focused work. And it payed off. They also cleaned house.
Oldham was gone, Allen Klein was on his way out and the taxproblem was
going to be tackled. Before issuing the album the Stones pulled one of
those genius moves that can only happen by mistake almost. They threw the
fans a bone, a teaser, a 45 called "Jumping Jack Flash".It ranks
as one of the greatest Rocktunes ever recorded. Jimmy Miller's influence
was felt immediately. He was right on their wavelength. It's a one riff
song with an unbeatable chorus, and some dynamite danger lyrics thrown
in for good measure. It shot to No. 1.
Album: "This song just recently won a poll among hardcore Stoners
for favorite all-time song. It's called "Sympathy For The Devil"
and you knew right away Mom and Dad were not going to like this one very
much. Jagger assumes the role of Lucifer and travels through history shouting
it out, spitting, dancing the dance, and generally misbehaving. But these
lyrics had taken a drastic turn for the better. Mick,s insatiable hunger
for reading was paying off. The whole thing is set to the groove of a fierce
Samba, an eerie ooh-ooh chant and interrupted only with one of the fiercest
guitarsolos ever to be put on Vinyl. Lucifer in the meantime has been every
where, killing the Kennedy's, igniting the Russian revolution, making sure
Pilate washed his hands. Only the Beatles could compete at that level and
they were having their own problems.
We slide right into "No Expectations". I don't think there is
a brook as clear,a honeysuckle as sweet as the fragile Slide that Brian
plays on this song. The song is just a great bluesy sad goodbye to ...things...
"Dear Doctor" on the other hand is a hoot, Like "Factory
Girl" we get the accoustic kneeslapping tongue in cheek country. Thing
is, by now the Brits had developed their own brand of country. Where "Dear
Doctor" draws on US influences "Factory Girl" finds it's
roots more in the heart of the Black Country of Birmingham. "Parachute
Woman" is astounding . How one accoustic, Bass, Drums and Harp can
produce such a mean hard driving sound is a tribute to Jimmy Miller. It
is followed by "Jig Saw Puzzle" another one of those (and I HATE
this word) Dylanesque lyrical masterpieces. It is such an obvious Jaggersong,
but what takes it to the level of greatness is the rest of the band with
that piercing Slide, the Organ and again the deceptively simple Bassline.
"Street Fighting Man" was the first tune Jimmy Miller did with
the Stones and what a baptism it must have been. They were hazing him,
it seems like. We all know about how proud keith is that the only electric
instrument of the track is the bass. Everything else was done by just sheer
overdrive and in the very beginning recording the basic track onto a portable
little piece of crap. What we get is a masterpiece of sound collage and
also , I hope people realize what a rhythmic gem we have on our hands.
They were to play this song many many more times live, especially during
the Taylor era, but not until "Stripped" did they resort to the
old feel again. Personally I'm very glad that Jagger changed the lyrics
that really don't sound dated at all. It used to be called "Did Everybody
Pay Their Dues?" and was not really about anything. With "Street
Fighting Man" you have an anthem, because there is always a reason
for us to hit the streets and march. I love the next two back to back:
"Prodigal Son" by Rev. Wilson which is just Keith on Dobro, Jagger
and Charlie on a seemlessly tireless Hi-Hat. The lyrics are very deepsouth
Gospel and fortunately Jagger doesn't try to overdo it, or to try and come
off as a Southern preacherman. It is done very straightforward. Now what
had become 'straightforward' in jagger's world is another matter. The song
goes right into the sexual charge of "Stray Cat Blues". This
also they were going toplay many more times live and never did it capture
the sexuality of the original. Musically the Piano is outstanding lending
the backing a kind of rolling feeling. The guitars are so Keith-ian, they
are impossible to top. And the lyrics and Jagger! What a great pairing
on this one. "I can see that you're just thirteen years old..",Say
you got a friend, she's wilder than you, why don't you bring her on upstairs",
"Betcha Momma don't know you can scream like that" and it fades
out with "I bet she never saw you scratch my back..." before
Keith takes over and drives that hotrod home.
"Salt Of The Earth" closes this masterpiece in the bestway possible.
An ode to the world; a toast to ourselves and life, actually breaking into
a tent revival type feel with a whole choir that for me could have easily
gone on for another five minutes.
It's a 15of course
Jeff Blehar <jdb3@jhu.edu> (11.02.2000)
Funny, when I first bought this album several
years back, I really didn't like it. Thought it was supremely overrated,
with maybe two great songs ("Street Fighting Man," "No Expectations")
and one completely inflated one which I never quite understood the appeal
of ("Sympathy For The Devil"). Thankfully, now that I've removed
my head from my ass, I see things much more clearly.
Beggars Banquet is really absolutely amazing. Not perfect, since
I still think "Sympathy For The Devil" is overrated (and the
whole Jagger "Boo! I'm Satan!" trip wears on me. They're so good
at being naturally frightening, why mess with Lucifer?), "Parachute
Woman" is unremarkable, and "Dear Doctor" is so bad as to
laughable (thus, strangely, it becomes GOOD). But hell, they're all still
good songs, (and in the case of "Dear Doctor" I'm going on that
so-bad-it's-good vibe), and the rest of this album is simply stunning.
Where they could have come up with this one after Satanic Majesties
is beyond me (not that Majesties was bad, but just that it was so
different). Chalk up to Jimmy Miller, I suppose, but don't chalk it up
to Brian's "sudden" lack of involvement. Because, oddly enough,
for someone who was supposedly falling to pieces at the time, he made more
notable contributions to this album than to any other in the Rolling Stones
canon! Really! That beautiful slide guitar on "No Expectations?"
That psychotic, stabbing guitar solo on "Sympathy For The Devil"
(as seen in Jean-Luc Godard's documentary of the sessions Sympathy For
The Devil/One Plus One)? That wackily inappropriate Mellotron on "Stray
Cat Blues?" (Listen for it! You'll never be able to ignore it again!)
His abuse of the slide on "Jig Saw Puzzle?" All Brian Jones.
Now methinks that's a quite a bit of star time for a guy who was about
to be booted out of the group. I assume he wasn't involved in the cutting
of the basic rhythm tracks, i.e. he was no longer part of the ensemble,
but he became no less than a featured guest player.
Forget all that for now, because instead of reviewing the songs on this
album, I'd like to talk about my favorite non-famous song here, "Salt
Of The Earth." This has GOT to be the world's most amazingly insincere,
unrighteous anthem to the masses I have ever heard - completely cynical,
phony, and full of shit - thus it's absolutely brilliant. Nothing more
perfectly encapsulates the Stones' discomfort with the "revolutionary
masses" than this totally bourgeois hymn to them. Listen to those
lyrics: "As I look out into faceless crowds, swirling mass of greys
and blacks now, it don't look real to me, in fact it looks so straaaange..."
This is so great; would we really want a truly compassionate anthem from
The Stones? Of course not. So we get a song that sounds like a populist
ode at first, but on closer listening turns out to be something quite different.
And it has these wonderful images of rich people drinking wine trying to
come up with toasts to the common people. They're "raising a glass"
to the hard-working people. They certainly don't seem to be hard-working
folk themselves. And as the song progresses, they seem to run out of good
things to say about the common people, and start talking about stay-at-home
voters, and those faceless crowds....a great, great song.
In fact, the entire album as a whole holds together lyrically much better
than many of their other albums. All the songs seem to alternate between
demonism ("Sympathy For The Devil," "Stray Cat Blues")
and world-weariness ("Jig-Saw Puzzle," "No Expectations")
and some seem to embrace both ("Street Fighting Man"). It seems
to me that they're obviously becoming tired of that demon life that's got
them in its sway...but for now, it's a 10/10 (15/15) all the way.
Fredrik Tydal <f_tydal@hotmail.com> (02.03.2000)
Well... To handle out the highest grade to this album is a bit exaggerative to me. No, don't get me wrong - this is a great album. Your average great album, in fact. I just can't see what makes this album raise to such heights and share company with albums like Sgt. Pepper or Highway 61 Revisited. Otherwise, I generally agree. I can't think of anything to say of "Sympathy" that hasn't already been said, "Jig-Saw" is great, "Street Fighting Man" has that riff... But I actually like "Salt Of The Earth" and think it's a good album closer (side note; up until just recently, I have always thought that they drank for the "heart-broken people"). This is just another great album, you know. And a significant improvment over the last one. I would probably give it 8.5 or 9.
Seth Edwards <sethed@home.com> (09.09.2000)
Slightly inferior to Let it Bleed, which is, as you said, structured to be a ripoff of this album. A great return to form, even though I like Between the Buttons and Satanic all the same! "Dear Doctor" kinda gets on my nerves, same goes for "Factory Girl". But "Sympathy for the Devil" has that great guitar solo (only slightly inferior to the version on "Ya Yas"). I don't know why you don't go for 'Salt of the Earth', I dig Keith's voice on it, which can't be said for all Keith tunes and its a great prequel to "Cant Always get..." from the next album. A solid 9!
John McFerrin <stoo@imsa.edu> (27.09.2000)
When I first started pulling Stones albums off of ftp servers (this,
Let it Bleed, and Aftermath) and listening to them, this
album bored the hell out of me. And I think I know why - I was expecting
generic 'chuck-berryesque' rockers and my mind was demanding that the music
fit into my preconception, even though I didn't actually like the type
of music of this preconception. So when I hit 'No Expectations', I was
like, "wow, these guys suck." And I just didn't enjoy any of
the other tracks.
I. WAS. DUMB.
Holy sweet mother of shit, I was dumb. This album is, like, the ultimate
roots rock casserole. There isn't a single number on here that I consider
the least bit weak (well, maybe 'Factory Girl', but it's still amusing).
And Jeff was right - that mellotron in 'Stray Cat Blues' is hilarious!!!
Plus, 'Prodigal Son' is a classic example of what I'm looking for in music
that tells religious stories - "make it funny!!" I say, and they
did!
A strong, strong 15 (though not quite as great as the one for Let it
Bleed, which has quickly moved into my overall top ten).
Year Of Release: 1996
Record rating = 2
Overall rating = 7
Allen Klein wanted to make money. If you buy it you're just giving
money to that big fat gangster.
Best song: how should I know? They're all average!
An idiotic and fairly obvious cash-in. The video of this truly historical
event is great (see the review below), but the CD, outside of the video
row, is nothing but history. First of all, the guest appearances do not
belong to the Stones' catalogue at all, and don't truly feel compatible
with the Stones' own performances on here (proves that the original idea
of releasing Get Yer Ya-Ya's Out as a double album with supporting
acts could have turned out to be real hrmful). Jethro Tull do a trusty
rendition of 'Song For Jeffrey', which is fairly cool but there's been
much talk about the band actually lip-synching to a phonogram, all but
Ian Anderson himself. Ironic, then, that the only time Tony Iommi really
played with the band featured him only pretending to play? Heh heh.
The Who's 'A Quick One' is an excellent performance, to be sure, but feels
better in the context of the Who's own albums like The Kids Are Alright.
It is rumored that Townshend's ensemble actually outplayed the Stones themselves
that evening, and that was the main reason the release of the show was
postponed for thirty years. Well, it's hard for me to judge when it comes
to the concept of 'X blowing Y off the stage', but one thing's for certain:
the performance is truly outstanding, the best live version of 'A Quick
One' you'll ever come to hear, but this is a Stones album, for Chrissake.
The only good result of this is that I know several persons who have thus
become acquainted with the Who through this album (actually, through the
video) and even become fans.
Taj Mahal step in with 'Ain't That A Lot Of Love', and Jesse Ed Davis does
a fair job on guitar for that one on the short economic guitar break; and
this is also a good chance for the uninitiated to hear some completely
stoned Marianne Faithful on 'Something Better'. The big surprise comes
in the form of the 'Dirty Mac' - a one-ninght supergroup with Lennon and
Clapton on guitars, Mitch Mitchell on drums and Keith Richards on bass.
It's great while they do 'Yer Blues', but it becomes excruciating when
they're joined onstage by a wailing Yoko and a violinist and do a four-and-a-half-minute
screamfest. It's even worse without the video where you can at least scrutinize
the happy faces of the drugged out audience that's on seventh heaven while
you yourself furtively try to cover your ears. Get the video instead, and
at least you'll understand what is actually happening while they play all
the silly circus interludes.
As for the Stones' own performances, they're all heavily undermined by
a complete lack of Brian Jones - he's physically there, but his soul is
obviously somewhere else. He only briefly comes to life when it comes to
playing his slide part for 'No Expectations', and it's pure delight to
see him putting some real effort into something he clearly likes. But he's
practically unheard on the other songs, never soloing and mainly just standing
there and bleakly imitating Keith's parts.
The material itself is mostly Banquet or Banquet-era based:
'Jumpin' Jack Flash' goes off OK and 'No Expectations' and 'Parachute Woman'
are the only live versions of these songs you'll ever be a-findin', plus
Keith's funny lead lines on the latter should truly be appreciated. But
then there's an early and seriously sucky version of 'You Can't Always
Get What You Want', and the closing 'Salt Of The Earth' is just Mick's
vocals overdubbed over the studio phonogram. Meanwhile, Brian looks more
and more stoned as the show progresses and his role on 'Sympathy For The
Devil' is relegated to shaking the maracas, and even then he can hardly
keep the rhythm.
Not to mention that for every 'normal' track you get something nasty -
either a stupid circus tune, or some banter which just doesn't hold it
for me without the video perspective, or 'Whole Lotta Yoko'... Like I already
said, the main reason for the film and the soundtrack not seeing the light
of day back in 1968 was due to the fact that the Stones thought they were
outplayed by the Who that night. Might well be. I'm not the type of guy
who'd go comparing the Stones and the Who and their live potential: both
were awesome, and both had their peaks and their downs. On this particular
evening, though, I feel that the Stones' intuition did not fail them: they
were clearly outplayed. One more detail: the 'extracts' you'll hear on
this album were just small bits of the whole show, because the Stones re-did
each of their numbers for several times IN A ROW... I don't think the audience
was bored, of course (they were probably too stoned to notice that much
anyway), but it just goes to show the sad state of things at the time.
Who would have guessed that in less than a year's time the Stones would
proudly recapture their reputation of 'best live rock'n'roll band'! Sadly,
they had to dump Brian in order to do that.
But nah. Get the video, get it at all costs; but avoid this on CD. I only
got it because I'm a completist, and it was cheap. Never in your life will
there be a moment when you will be needing this piece of plastic on your
CD player. Actually, I give it a 2 because it's totally obsolete due
to the presence of the video. If you haven't got the video, feel free to
up that rating a few points.
Something better will only happen if you mail your ideas
Your worthy comments:
Jeff <Jkh1392@aol.com> (06.09.99)
I know it's a rip-off, but at least it's chock-full of unreleased material,
unlike the previous Stones rip-off Flowers. The Stones' set here
really cooks, too, with the exception of "You Can't Always Get What
You Want" and "Salt of the Earth." "Parachute Woman"
and "Jumpin' Jack Flash" both rock HARD, with the former actually
surpassing the original studio recording. "Sympathy For the Devil"
is every bit as devistating as the studio version or the one on Get
Your Ya-Ya's Out.
Other arguments for this album: The Jethro Tull and Taj Mahal songs are
a ton of fun, "Yer Blues" is a truly blistering performance,
and as you said, "A Quick One" is nothing short of awesome. Of
course, how could it not be? Sure, the circus music is dumb, but it's supposed
to be. The only real suckfest here is that God-awful Yokosong, but even
that at least starts out well. Honesty, I think you've seriously underrated
this one. Maybe it's because I haven't seen the video....
Tony Stewart <tony.remi.stewart@worldnet.att.net> (16.11.99)
I have to agree with just about every single thing you say here. The Disc is really not that bad, but it certainly should not rank up there as an official Stones Disc. Plus it was so much more than an audio experience that I can't even imagine going and buying the disc, unless you're a hardcore Yoko fan or you have to possess every note Jethro tull ever played live. The Video is actually quite entertaining, more for seeing the little games going on that we've read so much about. I always thought that the Stones should have released it. So the Who kicked ass. The Who also put out two singles in support of the Stones while Mick and Keith were locked up. Plus the Stones probably (and I have nothing to base this assumption on)would have come off a lot more fresh and straight forward, had Jagger not been such a perfectionist and recut every song ad nauseam. I bet that's why Brian can barely stand on "Sympathy". He hadn't sat down in over ten minutes. Hehee! To Jagger's credit we have to say that he did wantto give Britain a flawless X-mas present, he was pretty much premiering some of their new hits to the nation and wanted the showmanship for "Sympathy" to be just right. He just wore everybody else out. The Video is highly recommended though.There are actually several versions of the scene between Lennon and Jagger. Each time they play it differently. You gotta hand it to lennon : it's only '68 and he's already calling Keith mick's soulmate. The man just always was a step ahead. Most ethereal moment? Marianne Faithful full of heroin, almost transparent in her beauty with a knowing smile on her lips singing "Something Better". Forget the Disc and get the Video.
Year Of Release: 1969
Record rating = 10
Overall rating = 15
Dark, dreary, but oh so beautiful. Anthems, ballads, spooky celebrations
of murder - all set to an unbelievably creative set of melodies.
Best song: no, no, they're all great.
All right - if bleed we must, then let it bleed, guys! This album is
bleeding so strong that it gets my vote for the best Stones album ever
and one of the greatest rock albums ever made by mortal man. Brian Jones
was already gone by that moment (he's credited for harp playing on 'Midnight
Rambler', but that's an embarrassment), and Mick Taylor still hadn't quite
arrived, so Mick and Keith get the praises for this album. Nine songs on
here, each one a small independent world, and even if the album is structured
as close to a rip-off of Beggar's Banquet as possible, it's no big
problem. What I like about it especially is that everything is taken in
the right proportion, every single idea is developed up to complete perfection
and never overdone. The long songs are not boring, the short songs are
not overlengthened, the sexy show-off and obscenity is still limited to
a fairly sufficient amount (at this point they were still using metaphors
to conceal the Rude and the Raunchy), and the melodies are even more well-crafted
than those on Banquet!
First of all, it features two of the darkest and dreariest songs ever.
'Gimme Shelter' is a song about storms and floods (very convenient at the
time, too, since everybody took it as an anti-Vietnam War protest song),
set to a spooky Keith guitar line and backed up with scary vocals, plus
Mick is aided by Mary Clayton whose angry, gospelish vocals on the chorus
really give this song an epic feel. Indeed, the Stones aren't really known
for their 'epic' renditions, but if there is one definite epic to the Stones'
catalog, that would be 'Gimmie Shelter', the most ominous, dreary and shiver-sending
piece of music they ever did - in fact, it might as well be the spookiest,
the most dread-inducing piece of music I've ever heard. Black Sabbath can
kiss my ***; compared to this, all their Satanism and darkness sports a
blatantly goofy and fake character. Unfortunately, in my opinion, the Stones
never mastered a truly impressive live rendition of it - because it is
hardly possible to imagine the song without its storm-imitating production.
'Midnight Rambler', on the other hand, is a much more 'intimate' song:
it features almost seven minutes of pure thrill, during which Mick sings
some mean lyrics about a maniac killer, plays some terrifying harp lines,
and leads us through a slow mid-section punctuated by acute drumbursts
before speeding up again and ending up with the lines: '...I'll stick my
knife in your throat baby and it HURTS!' Cute, isn't it? Just don't play
this song around midnight if you're one weak-hearted person! This one,
on the contrary, got several quite superior live renditions, primarily
the one captured on Ya-Ya's. Here, however, it again sounds different,
with a spooky 'midnight' atmosphere: the harp lines often end up sounding
like a wolf howling, and the dreamy, subtle guitars are frightening!
How atmospheric!
Ballads-wise this is one super album, too. 'Love In Vain' is a great old
blues cover, with Ry Cooder (wasn't it?) on mandolin, and it's oh so oh
so oh so beautiful. Keith unearthed it from the Robert Johnson archives,
and somehow perceived the beauty of it - but, while I haven't heard the
original, I may have to suppose that the true potential of the song was
only unearthed by these Brit boys. The mandolin is tear-inducing, and its
interaction with the gentle, soft slide guitars creates one of the most
hard-hitting emotional masterpieces the Twentieth Century has seen. And
if that's not enough, there's also the very first song featuring Keith
on lead vocals for all its entirety: 'You Got The Silver' is a touching
and nice ballad, tons better than all the weird wailing stuff he's been
throwing at us since Goats' Head Soup. This one is really catchy
and memorable, and not any less heartfelt or moving.
Then, just to remind you that this was still 1969, and not 1998 or anything,
there is still that old psychedelic line hanging around. 'Live With Me',
for instance, is a terrific rocker with simply crazy lyrics. Some say that
the lines 'my best friend he shoots water rats/And feeds 'em to his geese'
refers to some of Keith's habits at his Redlands residence; regardless
of this, the song features a ferocious bass line and the first ever saxophone
solo by Bobby Keyes whom you still can see walking around these RS fellows
even now. And 'Monkey Man' lyricswise belongs to Satanic, not here;
however, Keith's riffing is so mature here compared to those earlier days!
Ronnie Wood is said to have admitted the riff on 'Monkey Man' is his favourite
Keith riff of all time; I may not agree with him, but I sure can understand
him, as it was somewhere around this time that Mr Richards really turned
into that aggressive riffage machine that we all know and love him for.
Any social comments? Sure! There's the title track, which says anybody
can bleed on Mick if he's not feeling right, and the closing 'You Can't
Always Get What You Want' is probably a bit overlong because of the lengthy
chorus section in the introduction, but it really don't matter much to
me: yet another great song, 'tis all. And to top it off - we have a re-mastered
'Honky Tonk Women' presented as a country ditty (which, by the way, was
the original design; as far as I know, the 'hard rockin'' version owns
its existence to Mick Taylor)! And it works, even with the silly fiddle
replacing the guitar: it's a pity they never tried this version onstage.
Due to the lack of fiddle, perhaps?
Any further proof that this is the Stones' finest moment? Well, see, this
album is so great there is no obvious classic on it, no outstanding piece
overshadowing all the others. Beggar's Banquet? 'Sympathy For The
Devil'! Sticky Fingers? 'Brown Sugar'! Exile? 'Tumbling Dice'!
All of these tracks symbolize the entire record. While no track from Let
It Bleed ever entered the Stones' 'golden stage dozen': occasionally,
'You Can't Always Get What You Want' entered their encore set, but I wouldn't
call it a 'crowd-pleasing' number all the same. But that's not because
they're inferior: it's just impossible to choose. Still, most of these
tracks (except 'Country Honk', naturally, and, for some strange reason,
'You Got The Silver') got enough onstage play - even 'Monkey Man' was unearthed
for the 1994-5 tour, and it was great! So go ahead - if you don't own this
record, rush out to buy it and you'll be glad you did. This album closes
off the Sixties, and still stands as one of rock music's greatest accomplishments.
Gimme shelter! Mail your ideas
Your worthy comments:
Ben Greenstein <bgreenstein@nctimes.net> (26.07.99)
How can you say that there's no "standout track on here that overshadows
the others"? There are two! "Gimme Shelter" and "You
Can't Always Get What You Want" are amazingly memorable classic rock
radio hits, whereas the rest (except for maybe "Midnight Rambler")
have NOT gone down in history as classics. Those are your standouts, mister
- like it or not.
And, in all honesty, they're the only songs I like on here. I'll confess
something - I've never been much of a fan of the Stones' bluesy stuff.
It's okay, but doesn't compare to the cool pop-rock that made that 66-67
period so delightful (for me, at least). The rest of this album is, to
me, unmemorable - except for "Rambler," which I actually find
to be quite repetetive and boring. The rest just don't grab - know what
I mean?
Of course, my aunt and former high school history teacher always raved
about it, so maybe I'm missing something. I really like those two songs
- and the rest are certainly better than most of Beggar's Banquet.
I can see how you'd like this album, but personally, I don't.
[Special author note: well,
guess it all depends on what you count down as 'obvious classics'. I personally
wasn't meaning snubby, Dark Side Of The Moon-obsessed classic radio
stations at all - what I was talking about were solid compilation albums,
fan favourites, live staples, etc. In that respect, 'Midnight Rambler',
the title track, 'Love In Vain', even 'Monkey Man', all qualify. And if
they don't grab you, well, what can be done? One of us probably has got
bad taste.]
Glenn Wiener <Glenn.Wiener@Entex.com> (11.08.99)
A strong country influence exists here. None the less this still ranks as a premiere recording of the band in transition. I prefer Beggars Banquet, Exile, Sticky Fingers, and a few others to this. However, a solid recording it is. I kind of agree with you that I don't know if I have a particular favorite. 'Gimmee Shelter' one day, 'Live With Me' Another, on Saturdays maybe 'Midnight Rambler'.
Jeff <Jkh1392@aol.com> (06.09.99)
The Stones' best album? Yup. That's all I have to say.
Simon Hearn <simon@leehearn.freeserve.co.uk> (07.09.99)
Great cover and the contents are as delicious as the cake. 'Gimme Shelter', 'live with me', 'you can't always'......... and 'monkey man' stand out for me. 'Love in vain' is vastly over rated as is 'midnight rambler'. However, a great album by a band that would never be QUITE the same after the loss of Brian.
Tony Stewart <tony.remi.stewart@worldnet.att.net> (17.11.99)
I was all set for Let It Bleed about an
hour ago when I bumped into that inconvenience of a Circus on CD. So I
did that one. But I'm still in the mood for Let It Bleed. I don't
have a 'best' Stones Disc, but would I, this one would be one of the frontrunners.
You know it's silly, but the only thing I have never liked about this album
is the cover. I actively dislike that cover. For housing such a wall of
power the design, the motif seems trite. But la musica. There are two songs
in Rock that for reasons unexplained reduce me to a scared kid. they make
me feel like I've lost all selfwill and i'm following the pied piper. One
is Lennon's "Come Together", the other is "Gimme Shelter".
They harbor a draw so strong and scary; it's an intangible. This is on
top of "Gimme Shelter" just being a monster, a call to arm ourselves
for the advent of Armaggedon. Keith's orchestration of guitars(because
that's what it is) I think is underrated even by his most ardent fans.
We are in the year 1969, and we are playing and writing Rockmusic,but were
Ludwig van alive rockin' on guitar with the Stones I think his score would
have looked much like this soundscape Keith creates. I actually debased
myself once by letting myself get into an argument with an idiot who declared
that the Solo(what Solo?) in"Gimme Shelter" was easy to play
cause it was just one lousy note.
This song goes beyond music; it's a painting, an atmosphere. That overdrive
in the harmonica , the distorted howl of Jagger at the onset of verse 2
that sends the VU arrows flying into far red for a second , the absence
of a lyrical hook that make the one time you actually hear the words 'gimme
shelter..'give you goosebumps,the drums in the intro and of course Merry
Clayton, the African Queen visiting and taking us higher all pay homage
to the Spirit not of Death and Gloom, but to the celebration of life,toart,
to music.This is just the first song. "Love In Vain" was mistakenly
credited to the Twins for a while until someone fixed it; probably the
Stones themselves. Ry Cooder lends a hand on Mandolin and contributes to
a Blues Masterpiece. Anyone who's heard Johnson's version will have to
agree that the Stones made this song completely their own. That song was
to be played magnificently on stage in the years to come many times with
Mick taylor just downright owning it. "Country Honk" is the original
version of the Classic Single, before they did it in that choppy, less
is more style with Brass and Taylor. On this one Keith is having a blast
on Accoustic, we hear a Carhorn from the street outside , Byron Berline
adds fiddle.Guest musicians abound on"Live With Me"; Leon Russell
on Piano, the first time we hear of a certain Bobby Keys in the Stones
Camp to this day still blows that Solo. Title track openly invites you
to indulge in a little 'Coke and sympathy' set to a shows off once again
what Keith had learned in the last few years. We'll have an Accoustic and
Slide going; Keith perfecting the 'ancient art of weaving' with the only
one who was around: his own self. Same goes for "Midnight Rambler"
Just like "Love In Vain" this 9 minute epic with it's tricky
tempochanges and horrifying lyrics about the Boston Strangler, was to find
it's true strength on stage. Unlike "Love In Vain" this one became
a showpiece; a vehicle for Jagger to strut his bad self 'down our throats''and
baby it hurts'. Beltwhip, humping the monitors, the bulge in his Jumpsuit
growing larger and larger this song during the '70's Tours helped very
much to cement Jagger's position forever as the ultimate androgynous Rock
Icon. Knowing all this the Let It Bleed version at first seems tame
until that Harp and those whispered evil lyrics start crawling under your
skin. "You Got The Silver" with Brian's last contribution as
a Rolling Stone on Autoharp and with Keith singing is another lesson in
stacking guitars. Accoustic this time; lots of Slide with a wonderful instrumental
break. If you ever feel like shedding a tear just put that song on. There
is a version kicking around with Jagger singing it and we would have loved
it that way too, but we have heard Keith sing it, and we know we got the
better deal. Oh God, what can I say about " Monkey Man"? Here
Keith really pulls out all the stops and puts it all together. We get the
choppy , rhythmic riff, two Slides and a chiming clean guitar. Jagger meanwhile
is in top-form. and the lyrics ain't half bad either. I heard it ws ronnie
who insisted on them dusting it off for the Voodoo Tour and it immediately
turned into one of the highlights of the show, with Lisa and Jagger dueting.
Jagger has a knack of singing about his own Stage personas"I'm a monkeyyyeeeecch
baby...". Can't beat that one. We fade out, we're a first time listener;
the last thing in the world we expect is to hear the Angelic Voices of
the London Symphonic Choir.They intro another classic"You Can't Always
Get What You Want".It builds from there after Al Kooper plays the
main melodic motif on the French Horn. Slowly the accoustic fades in and
from there for the next 6 or 7 minutes we are treated to just a great song.
Let's not forget the production of that one ; the way there are more and
more instruments added. But it never sounds cluttered. No one steps on
another one's toes. We have one last great break with a truly memorable
scream by Jagger. The choir comes back in and just rises and rises and
intensity rising right with it. Underneath percussion and Drums (Jimmy
Miller BTW on Drums) grow until they break into a Gospel-like , where you
hit the Crash with every beat. Driving it all the way home back to where
it all started. In Church and in the Blues.
15 of course.
John McFerrin <stoo@imsa.edu> (04.08.2000)
First things first, I have to confess something - I can tell that the
Stones and I are, while not totally incompatible, aren't exactly _immediately_
compatible. I guess I'm just not that big a fan of 'roots music' or plain
'straight-up' rock and roll - maybe I need to get me Flowers.. To
be perfectly honest, I've had to work my ass off (if listening to music
can be considered hard work) to try and figure out why I should like these
guys. And to be honest again, if it weren't apparent to me that not liking
these guys immediately was more likely to be a defect in my soul than a
mistake by everybody else, and since I don't want to be a freak, I've kept
listening.
And I think I'm starting to get it. It's taken me a while to figure out
Beggar's Banquet (though it finally happened, I think), but the
process has definitely been made easier by this here gem. Yes, I liked
Let it Bleed almost immediately, and I've come to absolutely love
it. There isn't a single bad melody on here, and I truly love an album
filled with solid melodies. The tracks which bookend the album are fantastic,
of course, but I dig the title track, 'Love in Vain', I'm amused by 'Live
with Me' and 'Country Honk', and 'Monkey Man' is hilarious. I'm even coming
to 'get' 'Midnight Rambler' - for some reason, the hectic nature of the
song through me off at first, but I really enjoy it.
It's not the greatest album I've ever heard, but it's still damn, damn,
damn good. Which is good enough for a 15.
Rich Bunnell <taosterman@yahoo.com> (09.08.2000)
As much as I don't really like rootsy music very much either, I think that Ben's being a bit of a tight-ass regarding this album. I didn't like it very much at first either, only going for the two hit singles, but repeated listenings really brought out the raw power of this album - the production is so bleak-sounding and doesn't jump in your ears at all, but it really helps this material achieve its full effect. This really helps with cool blues-rockers like "Midnight Rambler" and "Live With Me," both of which don't have very interesting melodies (except for that cool guitar lick in the former) but manage to get by on vibe alone and still sound as good as possible. "Love In Vain" is a nice cover which isn't as banal as I originally thought it was, and I know it's the single, but "Gimme Shelter" is my favorite Stones song ever. That song absolutely DEFINES tension. What I don't agree with, though, is Tony Stewart's assertion that the song gets by without a lyrical hook - what do you call "IT'S JUST A SHOT AWAY! IT'S JUST A SHOT AWAY!"? Still a wonderful song, as is of course "You Can't Always Get What You Want"(quit picking on Phil Spector, people, the slickness of the song sounds really cool in contrast to the rest of the album). Still, I can only give it a nine, largely because I see absolutely no reason why the hell everyone loves that crappy country version of "Honky Tonk Woman." That kind of crap should be relegated to Stones rarity albums that nobody buys anyway. But it's otherwise an awesome album!
Seth Edwards <sethed@home.com> (09.09.2000)
Right there with ya on this one being the finest album made by the Stones. The only criticisms I've got are that "Country Honk" doesn't really stand up to its hard rock counterpart, and the choir introduction to "You can't Always get what you Want" doesn't really blend with the feel of the album. The rest of the songs are roots rock and fit with the stereotypical Stones sound of the 1968-72 era, and then there's this big choir introduction? Bleh. I agree though, none of the songs are true stage favorites (like 'Satisfaction' or 'Brown Sugar' for example), and there isn't really a representative song for the whole album, except MAYBE 'Gimme Shelter'. But they're all so great, I just don't know!
Sergey Zhilkin <sergey_jilkin@mail.ru> (17.10.2000)
Let it bleed, let it bleed, let it bleed, oh, let it bleed. Whisper
words of wisdom:'Let it bleed'. Ah, don't take it serious, I don't suppose
that album title is rip-off of Beatles' 'Let it be'. Well, let's return
to this record. Hmm... Maybe it's even the best Stones' album (at least
the best one from which I have). It's incredible, but 7 out of 9 songs
have unique strong drive which makes you listen to them for many times.
In my opinion two weak songs are 'Love in vain' and 'Country honk'. Though
they are still listenable and some people even enjoy them.
I can't say more. You have to feel this music whith your heart. Let it
fill your body! Though I gave it two full listens until I liked it. 10/10!
Year Of Release: 1970
Record rating = 10
Overall rating = 15
Mick Taylor's finest hour. His solos mixed with Keith's gruff rhythm
make this sound like live rock heaven.
Best song: MIDNIGHT RAMBLER
What a great idea - immediately following one of the best studio
albums ever with one of the best live albums ever, and there's virtually
no doubt about that. It's a far cry from later live albums, but that's
just because it is probably the only Stones' live album where each and
every member is much more busy with standing on the spot and actually playing
their instruments ('cept for headman Mick, of course), instead of putting
most of their talent into pointless showing off and standing on their heads
(like on Still Life). And oh my God but could they play 'em. Keith
punches out terrific hard riffs, sounding louder and gruffer than ever
(in fact, the original versions never sounded that monstrous - this is
just what you need for a good sweaty tight rock band!) With the improved
production values and the diminished crowd noises, you can see just how
much his style had changed over the years: he's matured into the kind of
live Keith we know and love, the brawny, powerful Riffmeister who seems
to limit himself to pretty simple phrases but whose every note is magic.
Newcomer Mick Taylor shows us he's no slouch either: his fascinating solos
give this album an edge that would make it a valuable acquirement for every
bluesman and lover of virtuoso guitar playing. Yup, it was Taylor indeed
who was the main star of these particular sets of performances (late Sixties/early
Seventies): he gave the Stones technical impeccability, a thing that Brian
was far, so very far from. If not for Taylor, no way there is that the
Stones might have enjoyed such tremendous live success at an age where
people went to concerts to witness Jimmy Page or Ritchie Blackmore or Duane
Allman, certainly not Mott The Hoople or Iggy Pop...
The setlist here is mostly drawn from the Stones' contemporary albums:
most of the selections do not venture beyond 1968, but hey, that's alright
by me! Major exception are two Chuck Berry covers ('Carol' and 'Little
Queenie'), which are, however, turned upside down and no longer done as
fast, smokin' pieces of boogie, but instead are slowed down and transformed
into powerful jamming machines. They are almost 'mechanical', in fact -
I simply adore how these guitars twist and turn, with Taylor and Richards
both choosing to go slow, playing not more than one or two notes per bar,
so that it all comes out 'jagged' and 'rough' instead of 'smooth' and 'flowing'.
An excellent display of guitar technique.
Elsewhere, the formula is standard: they take the studio standards and
roughen and toughen and scruffen them up until they get positively... scary,
man. The live versions of 'Midnight Rambler' and 'Sympathy For The Devil'
sound nothing like the originals. The former is now represented
as a bloodthirsty, ferocious rocker, driven by Keith's brutal, intoxicating
riff... and, of course, there's the midsection, where the interplay between
Keith and Mick drives me mad every time I hear it. And 'Sympathy For The
Devil' is rearranged as a somewhat more Bo Diddley-ish upbeat thingamajig,
with Charlie doing a great workout on the drums. It also features Mick
Taylor's best ever solo and one of my favourite, if not the favourite,
guitar solo of all time. Actually, I think it's the only guitar solo that
lasts more than a minute which I know by heart, just 'cause it's so smooth
and perfectly thought out and immaculately played - Mick never misses a
single note. Man, if only this particular song was captured on video, with
Mick doing the 'devil's dance'... yeah, I know there's the Altamont bit
in Gimmie Shelter, but that's not it, not it at all...
None of the other songs are bad, either. Well, I feel that slowing down
'Stray Cat Blues' in concert was some sorta bloody mistake: the song loses
much of its coolness and that youthful aggression, too. On the other hand,
this is more than compensated by a stunning rendition of 'Love In Vain',
with more gorgeous soloing from the part of Mr T.; again, I will not say
that this surpasses the studio version, which had that beautiful mandolin
and all, but it's simply in a class of its own. And the other tracks are
rockers - the two recent singles are both on here: 'Jumpin' Jack Flash'
is forever sealed as a timeless live classic, and we finally get a taste
of Keith's masterful and trademark soloing on 'Honky Tonk Women'. By the
way, in the latter case I will not be afraid to say that this live version
of 'Honky Tonk Women' kicks the studio original by the balls and tosses
it out the window - from the very first gruff chord that Keith takes on
his guitar, and down to the very last thump that Charlie gives on his drums,
this is soooo addictive.
Oh yeah, 'Live With Me' is also good here (not a highlight, though), and
the show ends with 'Street Fighting Man' with Taylor again the hero of
the day. Forgive me, actually, if I overdid the sweety-appraisal thing
for this album, but you gotta understand me, this was my favourite live
album in the world for ten years - until I heard Live At Leeds,
of course. Now both albums share the honour (I will never indulge in pointless
discussions over which one is better - both are as dear to me as the sun
and moon), but this one still holds a particular spot in my heart. This
is rock and roll - this is how rock and roll was made in the late
Sixties, and this is the highest possible standard for a rock'n'roll concert.
Raw, powerful, immaculate and sloppy at turns, professional, young, optimistic,
and hugely entertaining. If you don't own it, go and get it now.
If you don't like it - well, then your soul is simply unfit for
true rock and roll.
Live with me in the form of your comments! Mail your ideas
Your worthy comments:
Simon Hearn <simon@leehearn.freeserve.co.uk> (07.09.99)
'Sympathy for the devil' again, I'm afraid. The re-arrangment is genius and possibly this album contains the definitive version - although flashback's (Flashpoint's? - G. S.) version is cool too. I would love to have been there..................... The best live album ever, live in leeds eat your heart out.
Jeff <Jkh1392@aol.com> (16.09.99)
HOOOOOOOOOO DOGGIE!!!! Now this is a great live album. From the first guitar licks of "Jumpin Jack Flash," you know what kind of album this is: a pull-no-punches, down'n'dirty rockfest. Any claims the Stones have made to being the world's greatest rock & roll band can be confirmed here. Listen to those guitars!! Mick Taylor proves himself a more-than-worthy successor to Brain Jones, and Keith is, well, Keith. But yes, he does sound meaner and harder here, and it's all for the better. The longer songs ("Sympathy for the Devil" and especially "Midnight Rambler") are the record's high points, and the pace is maintained throughout. This has got to be the Stones' hardest rocking album, and it's my personal favorite live album of all time, Live at Leeds being a very close second.
Tony Stewart <tony.remi.stewart@worldnet.att.net> (23.11.99)
Live this time. Great pastiche of Sam Cutler's announcements gives an idea of the atmosphere of an impatient Madison Sq. Garden Crowd after the lights have just gone out. The excitement at a Stonesshow at this point is so palpable you can cut it with a knife. Great Mixing ideas. Now we all know that there are many edits , studio overdubs, different shows spliced together, but it is done so seamlessly and with the intention of "This is what the Stones saw in their minds and even more so the fans; this is the crown jewel of a '69 Rock'n Roll Show - Live!". "Jumping Jack Flash" right away . Charlie's snare onthe whole disc sounds so tight and on the money. One Two. Taylor has become comfortable in the band and the division of Lead vs. Rhythm that would happen later on with him and Keith id not present yet. "Carol" chugs along with superb Guitarfills totally Keith in his element. One of my all-time faves is coming up. "Stray Cat Blues" on that tour sounded so majestic, so huge. It lost the sexuality but gained a magnificent 'feel'. In Taylor's guitarsolo you hear Keith just sounding like a tank on rhythm down below. Bill Wyman is in top form and Jagger is Queen of the night (or is it King?). "Love in Vain" with taylor I think NEVER was played badly, Jagger's vocals are magnificent, no other drummer could play crash cymbals on a ballad like Charlie and Taylor's solos just rule! Later on he would do the first one Slide and the second straight. Here he is all Slide in the fills. "Midnight Rambler" of course is legendary. The crowd's frenzy. "Goddamn" screeches one chick, while Jagger moans rolling on the stagefloor"don't hurt me'...The jam is a Steamengine coming at you fullblast .Richard and taylor , Wyman and Watts all on one not, Jagger blowing harp and chanting gibberish to himself like a derwish. This is such a radical departure from the much slower but haunting "Let It Bleed" Version. Same goes for "Sympathy For The Devil" which like Keith points out, has found what kind of song it actually is after being taken on the road and played night after night. The two solos are so diverse . they really showcase the two guitarrists talents and differences in style. They drop the 4th verse. "Live with Me" vibrates and ooh it's funky, but not near as in the pocket as "Little Queenie". The beauty about the Stones is , they are contantly, ALWAYS just a hair away of falling completely apart. But they don't. They walk the highwire and therefpre stay tight tight tight. Keith is in heaven on the solos. Jagger sings with so much joy. Wenowadays have the image of Jagger the businessman in our minds but Jagger, make no mistake, is foremost a great musician. And it's his main love. And Charlie's great tonight isn't he? That line became a classic. Introduces a much looser "Honky Tonk Woman" than they ever played before OR after. But we get the REAL backing vocals of only Keith. Great! The crowning jewel is "One more an' we gotta go..." while Wyman checks the tuning on his bass. What starts gently on just two chords; clean sound very soon turns into a giant, the rhythmic game of Jagger/ Richard , Taylor's Leadlines full of natural Tubedistortion weaving in and out and Wyman's famous closing Bassline. Charlie builds and builds , finally gives up and just bashes on every beat, Houselights are up , everybody dancing in the aisles (the days before security guards who make you SIT) ,Jagger throwing roses...it's perfection. And that is what we should remeber from the '69 tour: How the Stones lost one of their key members , had not really played live since the days of the screaming chicks, but were undisputed Kings of Rock. But this was the tour all were waiting for , and for them to prove it. They rose and overrode the challenges. Eveything was beautiful, but when you think about the '69 Tour you think about Altamont. What a pity! Ya-Ya's? 15.
Jeff Blehar <jdb3@jhu.edu> (09.02.2000)
Man, this sucker is overrated! I initially bought into the hype as well,
thinking "Hey! Critics like it! It must be good! Critics won't mislead
us!" Well fuck the critics, they won't even give Genesis the time
of day anyway. And Mr. Snooty Dave Marsh refuses to even acknowledge David
Bowie's right to exist, so screw him as well! Look out, Bobby Christgau,
I'm gonna set your ass on fire again! (And watch your back, Mr. Anthony
DeCurtis!)
The point here (and I do have one) is that this album, while alright -
heck it's pretty good - sure looks weak as hell mixed in with the four
masterpieces which bookend it, two to a side. I mean, NONE of the live
renditions of the songs here improve on their studio counterparts! (Okay,
"Midnight Rambler" sorta does, but that one always rubbed me
the wrong way to begin with.) "Jumpin' Jack Flash" is lacking
the sweet 'n' gritty guitar harmonics that made its riff so impossible
to forget, and while the reworking of "Sympathy For The Devil"
is pretty nifty (man, I'm gonna feel let down if I find out that Mick Taylor
overdubbed that guitar solo in the studio!) the two Chuck Berry numbers
do nothing for me except shave a few more wasted minutes off of my all-too-precious
life. The sound is weirdly sterile; perhaps a function of the studio overdubs
which were applied to it. One thing I DO like is that crazy mama who's
either in the front row or in the wings of the stage, and tanked as hell.
You get to hear her yell wacky things like "PAINT IT BLACK, YOU DEVILS!"
and "FUCK JESUS!" just before the boys kick into "Midnight
Rambler." But she's the most spontaneous thing on this disc for me.
If you gotta buy a Stones live album, make it this one. But maybe you should
buy some Who instead.
<Tally05@aol.com> (08.08.2000)
I wanted to say that my freinds and family have played this record and live at leeds since it was released. It is the best live music on record and has only been joined by King Crimsons 81 video release as an example of tear enducing ,euphoric,music that really gives you a rush. My life has been cheered along by the memory of the riffs in the ya ya album. Thanks for your fine review.
Seth Edwards <sethed@home.com> (21.09.2000)
Mick Taylor really does shine on here. I don't know whos idea it was to speed up 'Midnight Rambler' slightly, but the version here is so good it almost overshadows its album counterpart. That one works on Let it bleed, this one works here. Speaking of Mick Taylor, I'm right with ya on his solo for "Sympathy for the Devil" being his best ever with the Stones. I really dig the riffs Keith plays through that one also. "Live With Me", not a highlight? I think the opening riff sounds far cooler on here than on Let it Bleed. The chords sound gruffer, meaner, which really adds to the song as a whole. I don't go for the Chuck Berry covers, I would've preferred 2 Stones Originals ('Gimme Shelter', 'Under my Thumb' maybe?). Still, this is a great portrait of a rock band reaching its full live potential, along with Live at Leeds and Kick out the Jams by the MC5.
John McFerrin <stoo@imsa.edu> (14.10.2000)
Well, it's good, even great. But I don't think I would give it such
an exclusively high grade, for a couple of reasons.
1. The sound. When I listen closely, especially on headphones, I'm able
to start to realize that, in fact, this album kicks ass. But the sound
does _not_ jump out at you and wallop you over the head in the way that,
say, 'Heaven and Hell' from Leeds does. The sound is just weak,
with far too little bass.
2. None of the songs (well, except for 'Midnight Rambler', obviously) are
improvements over the originals. This is just me talking, of course, but
for me, the most important function that a live album can serve is to bring
to the attention of the listener a previously hidden dimension in the sound.
None of these songs do that, mainly because they were so perfect in the
first place, and the 'normalization' of the sound eliminates much of the
charm. When I listen to 'Sympathy', I want my bongos! When I listen to
'Street Fighting Man', I want the acoustic overdrive! When I listen to
'Stray Cat Blues', I want my fast tempo and wacky mellotrons!
And, as a side note, I'm probably the only person in the world that prefers
'Country Honk' to the 'regular' version of 'Honky Tonk Women'.
I'd probably give it a 12 or 13, just because the performances are mostly
terrific, but the way they are presented is not.
Sergey Zhilkin <sergey_jilkin@mail.ru> (09.12.2000)
When I was putting 'Get yer ya-ya's out' into my Cd player I smiled
- I was 100% assured that nothing could beat Concert for Bangla Desh.
But after 20 minutes... Well, I fell in love with this album. It's definitely
the best live album I've ever heard to. I don't even know what makes it
sound so good. Guitarwork? Jagger's jokes? The excellent Stones' form?
I don't know. Here we face only ten songs but what beautiful songs. 'Midnight
rambler', 'Sympathy for the devil' and 'Live with me' are great improvement
over originals while others are very well played.
Bangla Desh was charming concert because of many stars and more
wonderful songs than we get on Ya-ya (by the way, compare 'Jumping
Jack Flash' on these two concerts - they are different and it's really
hard to define the best version cause it all depends on your mood) but
Ya-ya can pin you to chair by it's atmosphere. The only song here
I don't care much for is 'Street fighting man' and I get tired sometimes
from Berry's numbers. Still, atmosphere is wonderful here and that's something.
9/10!
Year Of Release: 1971
Record rating = 9
Overall rating = 14
A bit dirtier and gimmicker than necessary, but most of the songs
are still ooby-dooby.
Best song: BROWN SUGAR. Or WILD HORSES
The album that made it obvious for everybody The Rolling Stones were
intent on surviving the Sixties and making the necessary impact on the
Seventies, too. It featured something new, too: the good news was that
Mick Taylor had finally arrived and took his cool solos from the hot atmosphere
of Ya-Ya's into the more moderate studio atmosphere, where he could
work on them and tighten them up until they became completely devastating.
The bad news was that the new decade brought new freedom, especially with
the establishment of an independent record label, and Mick was finally
free to litter the lyrics with obscene lexicon, while the front cover,
featuring a pair of jeans with a real zipper, was their most raunchy to
date.
Now look here: I'm not a purist, and I really don't mind obscenity in rock
music, but I just think that dirtying up their image was a really cheap
trick for The Stones. After all, Let It Bleed was just the same
as this one, but back then 'dirty' things used to hide behind metaphors,
and that's what looks like true artistry to me - all these 'empty places
in my parking-lot' and 'brain-bell janglers' sound oh so cool. Starting
with Sticky Fingers, they began to dirty up their records more and
more, until it all resulted in Undercover which was really only
made for the sake of making a totally dirty record, and its musical value
was not thought of. Of course, I understand they had to fuck up their image
when faced with the new 'dirtiness' standards, especially later, with the
punk scene and all that. But did they really have to shift their priorities
in such a drastic way? Sacrifice good music for the sake of not looking
like old farts? 'Tis a serious question, indeed; but nevertheless I am
decreasing the rating of Sticky Fingers by a whole point as a punishment.
So there! Oh well, if you want any reason - 'I Got The Blues' sucks, but
that's another story.
The album is approximately divided into a 'hard' and a 'soft' side, with
two exceptions: 'Wild Horses' is put on Side A and 'Bitch' is put on Side
B probably to mess things up a bit. Anyway, the 'hard' side is terrifying,
with the rockers threatening to beat the very life of you. The classic
'Brown Sugar' features some of my beloved Keith chords and enters the Golden
Dozen of the band's favourite stage numbers. Much has been said about
the song's lyrics depicting slave rape and other nasty things, but at least
this time around Mick felt the need to mask the 'fruity contents' under
allegories such as 'brown sugar how come you taste so good'. Never mind
the lyrics, though - the opening distorted, sloppy riff has oft been called
the great signature lick of the Stones, and this is probably true. 'Sway'
has Jagger adopting a unique 'nasal-barking' way of singing which really
emphasizes the general lazy-depressed feel of the song, plus Mick Taylor
solos like a demon; it's not exactly my favourite, but the song truly has
a great, unique, 'muddy' atmosphere of despair and quasi-lethargic melancholy
to it. Not so with the rip-roarin' 'Can't You Hear Me Knockin'', a seven-minute
groove, starting with some raunchy lyrics and turning into a powerful jam
soon afterwards, with Taylor's famous Santana-like soloing. The Stones
rarely jammed on their records to oblivion, and when they did, like on
'Goin' Home', it mostly put off people, but this is one rare case of a
Stones jam where you'll be asking for more: the brass section and Taylor's
Latino licks give the song a scary Voodoo mood that no 'Dancing With Mister
D' could ever hope to capture. 'You Gotta Move' is the obligatory old blues
cover set to a very weird acoustic guitar tone (I'd say it's the hardcorest
blues arrangement I've ever heard). Finally, 'Bitch' has the best riff
on the entire record, and Keith really takes delight in chucking out some
outchucking Chuck Berry-licks, the only thing letting this number down
being Jagger's silly obscene lyrics ('sometimes I'm sexy, move like a stud',
really!) Throughout, the playing is so tight, the melodies are so great,
the arrangements so impressive and the atmosphere so sincere and straightforward
that it's just plain incredible. Incredible. In the immortal words of Dave
Weigel, 'I want a written excuse why nobody's writing such songs today'.
But, after all, these guys weren't just your intelligent analogy of AC/DC.
Nossiree. The 'soft side' here is not any less attractive. 'Wild Horses'
is their greatest ballad they ever put out in both the 70-s and the 80-s
(never mind the 90-s), with Mick turning in a great vocal performance (since
this song is likely to be dedicated to Marianne Faithfull's return to life
after her coma, it might as well be emotional). I still can't really guess
whether the message is more optimistic or gloomy - the verses seem to be
terribly depressing, while the chorus has something uplifting about it:
'wild horses couldn't drag me away, wild horses, we'll ride 'em someday'.
But who cares? You might just as well take both sides of it.
On the other hand, 'Sister Morphine' is, simply put, the most frightening
song they ever made - 'Gimme Shelter' might scare the pants off you, but
this is one tune I'm simply afraid of listening to. It ain't heavy or devilish
or anything, but the atmosphere is so dang creepy... This may be silly,
but I'd highly recommend the song for junkies: no other song depicts the
drug horror more vividly and convincingly than that one. And what's the
effect achieved with, I ask you? Well, take just some simple, but 'well-tuned'
vocals, acoustic guitar and some spooky electric lines from Taylor, plus
Charlie's drum part later on, and you're all set up. And don't you ever
think of listening to 'Too Much Blood' after this one, you'll never want
to put that silly Undercover on again. Consolation and relaxation
comes up with 'Dead Flowers', a very nice country song, again combining
some joyful music with lines about death and needles and graves and all
that other stuff. And the closing 'Moonlight Mile' overdoes the coda a
bit, but in general it's an incredible song, with Jagger rising to the
kind of majestic height only The Who could master. The only real
letdown is the pretentious, bombastic 'I Got The Blues', which is where
Mick really overdid the matter: his 'heroic' style of singing here is really
fake. If you get deceived by it, you might enjoy it, though. I don't. It
evokes visions of soul singers before my eyes, and I could never picture
Mick as a true soul singer. Yeah, yeah, I know it's a tribute to the Great
Old Black Musicians of the days of yore, but gimme 'Rip This Joint' over
this tripe any time of day.
In other words: this is a mighty solid effort. A truly great album. A record
that defines its epoch and defies time. BUT... but this is also
the beginning of the end. It's not an ounce better than Let It Bleed,
and rather several ounces worse (I've said what ounces, already). Musically,
It's still perfect, but it also shows to what extent they were dependent
on Taylor's guitar. As soon as Taylor departed, music started to decline,
and obscenity and mannerisms started to grow.
Can't you hear me knockin' on your SMTP? Mail your ideas
Your worthy comments:
Jeff <Jkh1392@aol.com> (06.09.99)
What's that? "I Got the Blues" does what? It sucks? Mick's singing is fake? Geez, I hate to get ya down, but you are so incredibly, immeasurably wrong. "I Got the Blues" is fantastic. Listen to Billy Preston's organ work. Wow. Mick's vocal's are heart-wrenching, and there's absoutely nothing fake about them. Unless, of course, I'm letting myself be "decieved." Bah. You're right on about the rest of the album, though. But I'd give it a 10 just like the last three.
Tony Stewart <tony.remi.stewart@worldnet.att.net> (07.12.99)
There are days if somoeone would ask me for my
favorite Stonesdiec I will say Sticky Fingers, others another Album.
SF did one of these things that that journalists love to say:in
the Stonesworld it "heralded" a new era!!!! It began the 70.s,
with their own brand new label and all the promises, they fired Klein and
finally saw some dought roll in, Altamont was over and although forever
tainted by it, after that '69 Tour they were undisputed Kings of rock and
taylor was very entrenched in the Band. Nothing better than a tour, a drowning
and a murder to bond a group of guys together. But his and Richards sound
was at it' peak;not even close to the radical division of Lead vs. Rhythm
that it later would aquire.
What I like most about this record is that it is tight. There is not one
weak second on it. Although it is heavy on the 'drug' references they are
stated so obviously, which leads me to believe"yes, the drugs were
there and a lot(with Anita in her seat of power), but still rather new.
Face it: if you were a paranoid REALLY strung-out Junkie-Exile with a pile
of heroin in the Kitchen and a pile of Cocaine in the bedroom, are you
gonna go out and sing about Sister Morphine, Cocaine eyes and needles and
spoons? There was still the romantic chic, in spite of the busts and Brian
attached to being a Junkie. That is what made so many kids want to emulate
Keith and Mick, thinking if I do all these drugs I will be just like my
heroes. Keith was never stupid and Mick for all we know never even smoked
a joint.
Kick it off with "Brown Sugar", a great song that would NEVER
be put out these days. In this politically correct world Jagger would laugh
off those lyrics and say "yeah, cool, but now for real...". I
hate that even Jagger has fallen victim to this curse(e.g. all of the sudden
it's "white" girls just wanna get f*cked all night).Now one of
their Hot Rocks section, with the fist-pumping "yeah, yeah'
finale. Next is "Sway", which all Taylor-ites invariably mention
as his masterpiece. And it is. It is Jagger and Taylor (a lot of that in
the future) who did that one, with the engine room and some great strings.
The lyrics, once again, beautiful and perfect for Taylor's masterful Slide
epic. He hardly needed those strings. "Wild Horses" has been
claimed by both Mick and Keith as their song and if we are to believe Marianne
Jagger's ode to her and his last grasp at her. The chorus:Keith says he
wrote it in Muscle Shoal's bathroom; Faithful says they were the first
words she spoke after coming out of a suicidal coma in Australia to Mick.
Even though in the Maysles' Bros. Movie, the playback of that incarnation
of "Wild Horses" stands out as one of the best moments of the
film, I tend to believe. Faithful. She doesn't lie very much. Chet Flippo
has a great account of the actual recording of the basic track with Jim
Dickinson in one of his books.
"Can't You Hear Me Knocking" is way too special of a piece of
work to deserve virtually the same verbatim description by every "critic"
nowadays. Here we go:"A tight open tune workout, which wanders of
into a Santanaesque Taylor led Solo..""blah blah! This was 1971
and Jimmy Miller probably had once again really a true reason to pat himself
on the back. The Stones Mach II were very much HIS creation too. True,
he dabbled freely in the dope, but that was Stones MachII.The raunch of
that opening riff and only Watts and Jagger, to step in and screech over
it. Taylor is in thre already,but true to alot of Keith tricks you just
notice that at some point there is another guitar playing the clean version
in the other channel. Never heard when it came in. One trick the Stones
use a lot and it is one of their best kept secrets is NOT to bring the
Bass in until maybe, the 2nd verse. The listener picks up something, but
what was it? The Percussion switch, after the rousing vocals is so tight
it sounds like an edit, is not and goes into just a great jam with Bobby
shining, throwing it to Taylor who plays (for him( a very tasteful, restrained
solo and Keith was playing Rhythm the way, that earned him the mantle he
wears today."You Gotta Move" supposedly was a tough one to putdown
and turned out one of the best. After just not getting it right with full-band
setups, they choose the other route and we get a Slide Accoustic and a
Kickdrum(or a Box), Mick and keith and really not much more. Right up there
with "Prodigal Son". Lesson in restraint."Bitch" is
one of the Stones tunes that actually improved with the the digital overhaul.
It gets even tighter , if possible. Where george smiles at jagger's lyric,
in the 2nd verse I always played exactly that part again and again. The
trick is to add those lyrics to the Baritone grunts and to Jagger's obscene
sockstuffed crotch in a Jumpsuit and you got the Stones summed up right
there. Add Keith on Lead and what else do you want?"I Got The Blues",
is one of the few songs I can tolerate Preston on and the day I figured
out those chords I will never forget. A great Blues, which has nothing
to do with 1-4-5. Sad Bridge. "Sister Morphine", is the Jamming
with Edward crowd. Shows you why they were there in the first place.
Ry Cooder is phenomenal, Hopkins piano grand and Jagger who wrote it (and
Brown Sugar and Moonlight Mile)delivers Marianne's lyrics bery convincingly
. I always thought he did it betterthan her, exactly cause he had NOT been
there. She overdoes it."Dead Flowers" ispure Keith. It is such
a lovely song that Jagger could never write. Keith loves Country, he understands
it. It's NOT funny, and Jagger must make a mockery or assume every countrysong
and almostruin them through their whole career. I mean Taylor is playing
those tinkling golden notes...why does a needle and a spoon have to ruin
or beautiful day? On the other hand the Closer "Moonlight Mile"
is a No-Keither. They are very rare and you very seldom see them live.
And when you do Keith will usually do his best to turn up as loud as possible
and maybe decide he DOES need a SuperfuzzWahWahhPhaser after all. On Disc
again often cited as the beginning of Taylor's No-Satisfaction in the Credit
Dept., cause Jagger although he knew that it was all him and Taylor, Strings,
Watts Wyman and Jim Price that create this very Non Stonesy Mastersymphony,
always stuck with keith and vice versa on the credits. It is Jagger/Richard,
boy. You don't likeit : Goodbye. Jagger shines in one of his best vocal
performances. A tune like this will be a lot bigger in Europe than in the
US cause Europeans like this type of Wagnerism. But that outro that settles
like a Debussy score after the storm is wonderful. 10!
[Special
author note: I just wanna note that I fully
agree with Tony's disappointment at Jagger's lapsing into the world of
PC nowadays. If the song says 'black girls', 'black girls' it should stay.
Was the world really a more liberal place in 1978 than it is now? Or is
it just not 'cool' to be artistically free and independent any more? What
would Frank Zappa have to say about that, I wonder?]
Glenn Wiener <Glenn.Wiener@Entex.com> (14.01.2000)
A true classic from start to finish. The record does end a little slow
but it really isn't a bad thing. Mick Taylor is "the man" on
this record. Its jsut a damn shame that he wasn't utilized better. Mick
was undoubtedly their best instrumental virtuoso. I guess his style and
personality did not fit well within the band for the long haul. None the
less his solos on 'Sway' and 'Can't You Hear Me Knocking' are awesome.
As it pertains to 'I've Got The Blues', its a great song with the vocal
and horn stylings being nothing like any Stones song before or since. However,
I can understand your reasons for not liking it as its hard to believe
the philandering Mick Jagger would sing such love sick lyrics.
Sergey Zhilkin <sergey_jilkin@mail.ru> (12.10.2000)
Average great album. I mean there're such great songs ('Brown shugar',
'Sway' or 'Bithc') that kicks you out of the window but at the same time
there's some filler like 'I Got the Blues' or 'Wild horses' (why do you
like it so much? To me it's boring). 'Can't You Hear Me Knockin'' is too
long and it looses drive completely in the end. Though there's another
good song (I don't know why but it reminds me 'Jumping Jack Flash') called
'Bitch'. Could Beatles ever think about writing such songs? And thanks
God there's good cover at last.
In my opinion Stones are rolling down. My rating is 7/10.
John McFerrin <stoo@imsa.edu> (12.12.2000)
A great, GREAT album. But overrated in a lot of ways.
What are the problems? Well, besides the fact that I'm not very fond of
'You Gotta Move' or 'I Got the Blues', it's that ... I dunno, how do I
put this? This, to me, is one of those albums that tries to be 'self-conciously
classic,' if you get my drift. Like, I dunno, Who's Next or Zoso.
Know what I mean? Or is this just me?
Either way, though, the songs kick way too much ass on their own to get
less than a 14. But it just hasn't latched onto me the way that BB
or LIB or Exile have.
Year Of Release: 1972
Record rating = 8
Overall rating = 13
What I say is: they sure didn't need a double album. Tons of filler
mixed with some terrific songs.
Best song: TUMBLING DICE
Underrated at the time of release, but also highly overrated at the
present time. That's my definite opinion and I'm not going to change it.
The main problem of this album is that it is double. Double - when it is
obvious that there's hardly enough great songs here to fill out a single
one! Even so, the whole album is about 60 minutes long - pretty good for
a single CD, but for a double LP? Go figure... Anyway, this is usually
considered to be the last great Stones' album before the slump, and although
them that say that may be right, them that say that might be wrong,
too. It's certainly inferior to the great whoppers of 1968-69, but in my
humble opinion it's also inferior to some of the later whoppers, too. In
any case, what is obvious is that there is no immeasurable precipice between
this and Goats' Head Soup, as some would put it... Oh, never mind.
With a little, just a little editing, this would be the equal of Sticky
Fingers, but as it is, there are some real stinkers that drag the album
down, and I can't quite give it a nine. Mind you, no songs here are really
bad, even if 'Just Wanna See His Face' comes really close to bad;
but not all of them manage to hit me right in the head. The big plus is
that the sincerity and authenticity is still right here: there's not a
hint at self-parody which the boys would touch with their left foot on
the next two albums, and they're still riding the wave. The big minus is
that the production really really sucks. Now I'm not the type, really,
that always whines about production and how the guitars sound plastic and
the organs are higher in the mix than the bass; but this time they really
blew it with the production. The guitars somehow all manage to stick together
in a lump, rather than sound polished and distinct as on the previous record,
and Jagger's vocals are a disaster - always buried under the instruments
and horrendously convoluted. Where Sticky Fingers and Let It
Bleed really showcased each instrument and each individual member's
prowess, Exile has everything in an almost cacophonic melting pot.
This really makes it hard for me to enjoy even the best songs, and what
can be said about the worst? Gimme a better mix, please.
But let's move on to the songs; after all, production is just production.
Let's be just. I don't know whether it has something to do with the boys
recording in Keith's French villa, but Jimmy Miller made an ass of himself,
and let's just leave it at that. :)
In all, there are some more great rockers here. The opening 'Rocks Off'
might have kicked aside 'Brown Sugar' with its relentless groove, were
it not for the fact that Mick's vocals are almost inaudible; plus, the
coda is overlong, which is also the trouble with a lot of the tracks on
here - in order to lengthen the songs for this double LP they had to extend
some of them into boring, uninspired instrumental passages, emphasized
by the terrible production. This applies to the stage favourite 'All Down
The Line' and the generic blues cover 'Stop Breaking Down' but, fortunately,
does not apply to the totally kick-ass classic rocker 'Rip This Joint'.
That one was said to be the fastest the Stones ever got before they did
'Flip The Switch' twenty five years later - but I still feel it to be their
fastest song, at least, on a personal perception level. Bobby Keyes' sax
intoxicates your brain on that one far more than a couple bottles of whiskey,
and the song still stands after all those years as a fantastic rock'n'roll
anthem. Chuck Berry must have been proud. As for these two I've mentioned
earlier, they're also good - in fact, I never can get over the brilliant
grumbly riff underpinning 'Stop Breaking Down'. Robert Johnson must have
been proud.
Plus, we have another vocal contribution by Keith Richards - the crowdpleasing
'Happy', with a good riff and some of Keith's most revealing lyrics ('never
kept a dollar past sunset... always burned a hole in my pants'. Modest,
eh?). 'Tis the first time when he dared to take lead vocals on an all-out,
no-brakes rocker, and he pulls it off with all the pseudo-redneck energy
he puts into it. After all, it's his musical and life credo he's
exposing to us - how can such a song not be epochal?
Other genres are exposed to us as well - after all, if the album is double,
it's only natural to expect a curious mishmash of styles. You want country?
Well, please take the pretty pretty pretty country 'Sweet Virginia' with
some rude words. I don't know who was it that they ripped the tune off
- I don't dare suggest that it's totally original as the melody is so simplistic
(but brilliant) that it could hardly not have existed before 1972. For
me, though, it'll always be associated with Sweet Virginia and 'gotta scrape
that shit right off your shoes'. Always brings tears to my eyes, that one
(not the line, the song!)
You want self-penned blues? 'Ventilator Blues' is your bet, with the first,
if not the only, Taylor writing credit. I suppose he did most of the song
bar the lyrics, as it really had to take something special to earn Mick
a writing credit; in any case, that weird, twisted riff, more a heaviness-deprived
Tony Iommi than Keith Richards, is a special, curious event in the Stones'
catalog. You want gospel? Take the mighty, anthemic 'Shine A Light' which
shows how much time indeed had passed between this one and 'Salt Of The
Earth'. Billy Preston really 'shines a light' on that one with his grandiose
keyboard work, and, of course, it's also Taylor's high point: it's incredibly
hard to adorn an energetic gospel tune with a suitable 'heavenly' guitar
solo, and Mick does his best. Please be sure to get this version
first and not the bastardisation of the song on Stripped: try as
hard as he would, Ronnie Wood just can't get that solo right. Leave the
mastership to the master.
What did I leave out? Oh! Of course, the all-time classic - 'Tumbling Dice'.
It's here, too! Ain't it fun?
So? Nine songs listed, and when put together, they could do a terrific
album, quite worthy of comparison with Sticky Fingers. As it is,
for almost every good tune you have to 'enjoy' a mediocre or even a downright
annoying one. Some are better, some are worse, but none are highlights
and this is where I step up with the word 'filler'. Don't forget that Stones'
filler equals 'best-of' for many inferior bands; but it's still filler,
what can I do. Everything is being determined in comparison, ain't it so?
Let's just go over these shortly. Here goes:
The 'light-blues' cover of Slim Harpo's 'Shake Your Hips' is pretty lightweight
- pretty soon I get tired of the monotonous twang-twang of the guitar,
monotonous lyrics and Jagger's muddy performance. The political declaration
'Sweet Black Angel' is simply lame (Angela Davis was a terrific gal in
that she inspired several great musicians to humiliate themselves with
subpar performances). The lengthy gospely 'Let It Loose' has little melody
but lots of wailing and back-up female voices - sorry, I'm just not a fan
of generic gospel; give me some real, solid melody, like 'Shine A Light'.
I'm simply lost in among all the confusion and the chaotic mix of the track.
The casino boogie 'Casino Boogie' is, well, just a casino boogie (the sax
break is nice, though). The Voodoo chant 'Just Want To See His Face' is
utterly ridiculous; how this is supposed to be enjoyable actually baffles
me (I do admit that some misguided fans get their kicks out of it). The
Keith-dedicated ballad 'Torn And Frayed' is very average - nice
and singalongish, but lightweight. The love anthem 'Loving Cup', which
is one of the oldest songs on here, on the contrary is quite good - very
rousing and gentle all at once. However, it's spoiled by the overlong coda
and more duff mixing. Finally, the closing 'Soul Survivor' has an interesting
riff for chorus(ripped off for 'It Must Be Hell' eleven years later) but
no melody for the verses. Brr. Filler country.
Now I repeat: just don't think that these are bad songs (and don't condemn
me, either). They're okay, I guess, and I never skip them while playing
the album (except for that silly 'Wanna See His Face' embarrassment) but
they're all not very catchy, and the production. Production. Production.
Production which really makes everything sound the same. A very uniform
sound, indeed. Very uniform. And I'm saying it again: if the only reason
for releasing a double LP was the great wish to include 'Just Wanna See
His Face' and 'Sweet Black Angel', well, then I must also state these guys
were fairly irrational. At times.
Stop breaking down and mail your ideas
Your worthy comments:
Jeff <Jkh1392@aol.com> (06.09.99)
I'd agree with just about everything you said, except that "Let it Loose" is a weak song. It's one of the finest songs on the album!!! The way those vocal twist around each other and Mick's voice cascades through it all-- man, what a song!!! Oh, and "Torn & Frayed" is way above average. Not exactly "Sweet Virginia," but a good country tune anyway. Other than "Just Wanna See His Face" (which is at least amusing), I don't see a truly bad track on here. A few may not stand up to, say, "Shine a Light," but then again, what can?
Simon Hearn <simon@leehearn.freeserve.co.uk> (11.09.99)
Come on George, this is a 9. There really aren't any fillers in my opinion. The album is put together so well the tracks meld into each other creating 18 tracks of pure bliss. I admit it does not deserve a ten, like their output from banquet to sticky fingers does, but a 9 is not out of the question. I do think the best songs are actually at the end of the album: 'let It loose', 'all down the line', 'shine a light' and 'soul survivor': all unjustly forgotten (bar 'Shine' .... Which appears on stripped). A document from a band just starting to go into decline: they would return with a vengence with some girls though
Jim Sheridan <Bolinhed@aol.com> (08.10.99)
Have to disagree with the points that some songs go on for too long ("Loving Cup") and as for "All Down The Line" being EXTENDED - it's still a rather short song!! To wish the EXILE songs to be shorter is like saying "Sex is only good if it is 30 seconds or less." Sorry but I have to say when you are grooving to a song, it should be allowed to groove. Play this CD at a party - LOUD - and see what I mean. I could see applying that complaint to some of Black and Blue though!! And "Let It Loose" is one of the most majestic moments of music the Stones ever made.
<LedZep3206@aol.com> (21.11.99)
I'm sorry, but I think you underrate this album a lot. I think a lot of the songs you call 'fillers' are great, especially 'Torn And Frayed'. This whole album is great, and I think it's the last good album before the dip, correct, but it was right up to the level of Let It Bleed and Beggar's Banquet, in my opinion, and it was FAR superior to Goat's Head Soup. Sorry.
Tony Stewart <tony.remi.stewart@worldnet.att.net> (12.12.99)
I have not been looking forward to doing exile because it's the best Disc in Rock that exists. Take Sgt. pepper and trip out , but if Rock stood the test of time(which it did), and Psychedelia has to rely on occasional Nostalgia come-backs, then Exile stood the test of time. As a matter of a fact we all know about the bad reviews it initially gathered. Lenny Kaye, who I never could stand, is eating his hat nowadays for several reasons. His criticism of that album being one of them. So much has been said. i don't want to add more melodramatic shit. I don't even want to go into the songs. It's such a package. The great photos in LIFE Magazine during the ultimate tour in rock. USA'72. STP Juggernaut touches down in a vortex of confusion, drugs, metallic clangs and Ladies undergarments, there is the show that no one in their right mind will dare to touch, OD's, Riots, Americana of robert Frank's GREAT cover of the album, Wolfman Jack in L.A. pumping it out 48 hours straight: nothing but Exile, Stevie Wonder's troupe, Charlie's ruffled shirt, all the Bob Gruen classic Photographs - all that is encapsuled in this little disc where the Stones were at the peak of their career, and it is also interestingly enough by far their most American Disc. I don't think one is the result of the other. They were Exiles, they were ina house, a commune , a n outlaw world and (I was NOT there) but a lot of people were a we know that a certain Anarchy reigned: Drugs, free Sex and many other boons. but it was like a Utopian Rock'n roll Heaven. It was bound to crash and burn or, end in a silent, sad wave goodbye. I have had many crazy nights where you are insane with a group of people for the night. And then like blinded rats you come crawling out of your glittering circus into a drab daylit REAL world and it's these awkward handshakes and "Ill call you's" which will never happen, and everything still has a slightly surreal glint to it. You just devoured this girl and she devoured your drugs and then twelve hours later in the daylight you can't look each other in the eye. Keith's BU Vocals on "Dietich's Movies, close up boogies, kissing cunt in cannes", the beauty of the choir and the very clever arrangement of'Tumbling Dice", one of my all time faves "Rocks Off", with it's strong melody,the frenzy of "Rip This Joint", Jagger's only posturing of the Disc well placed on Slim Harpo's "Hip Shake", but see I,m already saying this stuf we all know. It's the greatest. It's what Rock'n Roll IS. It's a band being a bandand not some jetsetters flown in for their overdubs. It's mistakes turning into high points of the album lie Jim Price's Organ on "Torn And Frayed". It's what Jagger tried sooo hard to recapture with "Continental Drift" and "Moon Is Up" years and years later, the spontaneity of"Just Wanna See His Face" and finally it has the greatest anthemic Pianobreak in Rock,during the last surge of "Soul Survivor". I will never understand why the Stones never have played that one out. They used that riff on three different songs. Loved the Photos and don't get the '99 Re'issue. I'd give this one an 11.
Glenn Wiener <Glenn.Wiener@Entex.com> (14.01.2000)
Another classic. There are many great songs and some which could be classified as filler. However even such filler pieces as 'Casino Boogie' and 'Just Want To See His Face' have at least one striking thing about them such as the saxaphone solo and the rhythm guitars on 'Casino' and the vocal stylings on the later. The fact that four of my favorite Stones songs of all time('Rocks Off', 'Rip This Joint', 'Shine A Light', 'All Down The Line') are on this release makes it a jewel to my ears.
Jeff Blehar <jdb3@jhu.edu> (09.02.2000)
A 10/10, possibly an 11. Okay, so that 11 is a bit of hyperbole, but
so forkin' what? Hyperbole is good, if it isn't overused, darn it!
Trying to explain this album without a degree on Rock Critic Pretention
is about as easy as trying to explain why Neil Young made that atrocious
techno album back in 1981. I'm not going to wax philosophical about how
The Rolling Stones were exiles on main street, recapturing their spirtual
roots blah blah blah when all that matters to me is that these songs define
their career. When Exile came out back in 1972 lots of critics knocked
it, saying that the sound was muddy, the vocals were absolutely inaudible,
and that all the songs sounded the same compared to the relative experimentation
of Sticky Fingers. I've said it before, but I'll say it again because,
frankly, it gives me a kick: THE CRITICS, AS ALWAYS, WERE FULL OF SH*T.
I don't know why I put an asterisk in that word. Like removing the "i"
makes it less of a vulgarity? Especially when a preponderous of the other
reviews around here are peppered with hilarious curse words. But I digress
again.
Maybe the greatness of this album was only apparent in retrospect, but
Exile, a double LP that those wonderful folks at Virgin/EMI have
managed to cram onto one shiny CD, is the Stones' finest moment. At this
moment in time they were the utter masters of their music: this album mixes
country, hard rock, juke-joint R&B, gospel, soul, blues, and pretty
much every black form of music and does so utterly convincingly. While
there are some slow spots on the album ("Shake Your Hips" and
"Sweet Black Angel" doing particularly little for me) nothing
sounds false, forced, or affected. This is honest-to-goodness, down-home
all-American music made by five British drug addicts. (Again, stealing
shamelessly from Prindle, but it's such an appropriate sentiment.)
And it's brilliant. When it rocks, it ROARS. "Rocks Off" and
"All Down The Line" chug along like enormous freight trains,
and the speed-R&B of "Rip This Joint" is - and I mean this
without exaggeration - utterly breathtaking. It's the fastest the Stones
have ever played, and while it's on you're not sitting listening to a CD,
you're in the middle of a Birmingham night club, packed to the gills and
jumping in 110 degree heat, the band wailing and thumping, spit pouring
out of the saxophones. That song is primal therapy the likes of which everyone
needs. "Tumbling Dice" was the only hit from the album, and for
once I agree with Dave Marsh when he says that this may be the best thing
the Stones have ever put onto a 45. The lyrics are completely incomprehensible,
just a blur with a few words popping up now and then, but the sound; oh,
does it ever roll you. "Happy" is Keith Richards' spotlight,
and it's a goddamn great performance for a guy who can't sing. Or rather,
sings like he's constantly falling off a cliff.
The other great aspect of Exile is something fairly new for the
Stones: gospel. Sure, "You Can't Always Get What You Want" had
some gospel aspects, but those were somewhat perfunctory; here, it's a
lived-in, comfortable sound, on songs like "Loving Cup" and "Let
It Loose." And what's this? Mick Jagger being emotionally HEARTFELT?
All I know is that "Shine A Light" was written back in 1969-70,
and that those lyrics sound like the most touching he's ever sang, so I'm
going to assume it's a tribute to Brian Jones and let it move the hell
out of me. Don't anyone go correcting my misconceptions, either!
There are no "epics" like "Moonlight Mile," "You
Can't Always Get What You Want," or "Sympathy For The Devil"
on this album, and that's appropriate, since the songs here all sound of
a piece. That's one of the complaints levelled against the album: everything
sounds the same. Well alright, "Sweet Virginia" (as convincing
a country song as they ever did) does kinda run together with "Torn
And Frayed" but WHO CARES? Look, one of the only problems I had with
Sticky Fingers is that it was all over the place: "Sister Morphine"
followed by "Dead Flowers" doth not a good track sequence make.
On Exile many of the songs sound similar, but that's because they're
produced similarly. Exile On Main Street is a mood piece for me.
And if the sound is this GOOD, why complain? And while everyone is complaining
about how hazy the production is, did they notice that this was INTENTIONAL?
In fact, Exile is one of the best produced albums I have, in the
sense that it sounds beautiful. The vocals are buried deliberately, but
the sound of the ensemble as a whole is crystal-clear. And to be honest,
the fact that the vocals are obfuscated isn't necessarily a bad thing,
because it prevents you from realizing too quickly that "Soul Survivor,"
the album closer which kicks my ass six ways from Sunday, is all about
sailing. I kid you not.
Stadelman <mkstad@netzero.net> (09.06.2000)
How anyone can say that some of the tracks on this disc are overlong
while not finding the same fault in Aftermath's 'Going Home' is
beyond me. Actually, I would switch the ratings of the two, giving Exile
the 10 and Aftermath an 8. On Aftermath the Stones were still
developing their sound, and while there is some exceptional stuff (primarily
the tunes augmented with exotic instruments), the album has some "close
but not quite" numbers as well. On the other hand, Exile finds
the Stones at their most mature (musically speaking, of course). Here they
ingest all the ingredients that went into Rock n Roll, make it their own,
and spit it back out with a distinctive Stonesy flavor. To me this CD is
more about feel than sound. This feels like authentic, original American
music. So what if the production is muddy, this is rock music after all,
party music, music that MOVES. The Stones reached their peak on this one.
[Special author note: okay,
so maybe that's exactly what rubs me against this album. I don't
feel the 'edge' in it, see - there's no gritty danger like on their previous
three studio releases. The problem is that Beggar's Banquet, Let
It Bleed, and Sticky Fingers is much more than just party
music - they are, at the same time, daring and experimental, flashy, and
powerful social statements. Exile shows us a band that intentionally
relinquishes its edge. Where 'Going Home' was revolutionary and threatening
(a very bold move at the time), the codas on Exile just show a band
that's going back to the pub and not giving a damn about the consequences.]
<Tally05@aol.com> (08.08.2000)
Im pretty sure that you are not right in the enduring songs presented here, I cant think of any song being deleted and it has always been a standby with nary a clinker.
John McFerrin <stoo@imsa.edu> (25.08.2000)
Ooh, I'm gonna have to disagree with you here George. Now, granted,
this album does not quite measure up to the 68-69 standards (both BB
and LIB have moved into my top fifteen of all time), but I think
that to give this any less than a perfect score would be a crime. And it's
not even that the individual songs are necessarily 15 quality.
You see, this album strikes me as the Stones equivalent of Blonde on
Blonde or Electric Ladyland - albums where, in addition to mostly
terrific numbers, the 'sprawl' factor actually works to the _benefit_ of
the album, and where the numbers interact with each other to create a definite
overall image for the listener. If Blonde was an excourse into the
'mystical' nature of America (well, not always explicitly, but I can't
think of a better short summation) and Ladyland was a trip into,
well, 'Electric Ladyland', Hendrix's psychadelic fantasy world, then Exile
is a journey into a world where life is nothing but one giant drug-filled
Mardi Gras party. This album breathes _decadence_ - it's the aural equivalent
of a giant Devil's food cake. It might seem monotonous after a while, but
dammit is it good.
That being said, the main disadvantage of this is that it is one of those
albums that must be listened to as a whole to get the full effect. I'm
not sure that I will listen to it that much, for the same reason that I
don't listen to Blonde or Ladyland much - it's difficult
to get oneself into a mode where one feels like hearing it. But when the
time comes, ooh man, it's sweet.
Hutzley Jonathan D <johutz7r@gwis2.circ.gwu.edu> (12.12.2000)
I just have to say that the reason I believe Exile on Main St.
is the best Stones' album is that i think its the album that works best
as a cohesive whole. Perhaps this has only come to light with the release
of the single CD. Since you don't have to get up after every four or five
songs to flip/change the record, it really becomes evident as to just how
well-oiled the Stones were at this time. They were able to do all those
styles of music they loved from the get-go (blues, country, gospel), and
rather than just be impressive imitators of those genres, which is what
I think they were up until Aftermath or maybe even Beggars Banquet,
they were able to appropriate those genres as their own.
It's funny, but it seems to me that this is the one album where they were
able to do these uniquely American styles of music better than any of their
American counterparts at the time.
Year Of Release: 1973
Record rating = 7
Overall rating = 12
The overblown mystical album. Nevertheless, people hate it more than
they should.
Best song: 100 YEARS AGO
The peak of the Stones' career ended here abruptly; for quite a bit
of time, they were still selling their records like hotcakes, but Goats'
Head Soup marked the end of the critics' love for the band and the
alleged beginning of "slide into dinosaurism". For what reason
- I don't know, because for me, this album is really not all that much
worse than Exile.
In at least one respect it is even better: after the lengthy "roots-and-all"
period, the band gets back on the experimenting trail, trying to find some
new kind of sound - this was why the album was partly recorded in Jamaica.
Not that there's a lot of reggae on here, though, but still, their Caribbean
experience surely has something to do with a certain mystical/magical feel,
present on many of the tracks and kinda reminiscing of Satanic.
But Satanic was recorded in 1967 and smelled of little else but
innocent psychedelia; here, on the other hand, they go for a certain 'black
voodoo' sound. Indeed, while we're mentioning the titles, I'd state that
this is their true 'voodoo album' and not Voodoo Lounge.
The opening track, 'Dancing With Mr D', I suppose, had a lot to do with
the ruin of the boys' reputation. In the past years, they'd always opened
their record with a blast - major one, like 'Sympathy For The Devil', 'Gimmie
Shelter', 'Brown Sugar', or minor one, like 'Rocks Off'. 'Dancing With
Mr D', though, is definitely not a blast. It has a good riff (as
somebody noticed, it was actually the riff of 'Jumpin' Jack Flash' played
backwards!), and a certain 'swamp-darky' atmosphere around it that's certainly
interesting. But the cheap horror flick lyrics, drenched in skulls, poison,
Satanism and all, are not any more actual than Homer's list of ships,
and they don't display that sharp intelligence we'd come to expect from
Mick - there's nothing but blatant self-parody on here. And all this atmosphere
is so exaggerated and "overbuilt" that it hardly seems like the
Stones: where is their sense of balance that always kept them from crossing
the dangerous line between audacious challenge and stupid offense? This
is more Alice Cooper than the Stones. No wonder the critics were so harsh
on the record - considering that few critics usually get over the first
song into the album, the Stones signed their own death sentence with that
one. Stupid drugs, to ruin what could be yet another sterling set for the
lads...
Nevertheless, one should get over 'Mr D' (and I have to admit I
sometimes put it on cause I'm a closet pervert, I suppose), because the
songs that follow it rule! Well, many of them, at least. For instance,
'100 Years Ago' is - and I insist - a forgotten classic, a rather complex
song of loss, nostalgia and deep pain and sorrow, highlighted by Mick's
spiritual delivery, Billy Preston's solemn clavinet playing and excellent
wah-wah workouts from Taylor. I kinda wish, though, that the wah-wah solos
on the song had been longer and not overshadowed by Mick's wailings - Taylor
was really getting it on, and the fact that they faded out the solo just
as he picked up steam only goes to show that Mick and Keith were indeed
afraid of their young brother overshadowing the Glimmer Twins.
The South American theme is reprised in the hilarious buccaneer hymn 'Silver
Train' - since it's a glorious piece of boogie, old pal Stu is brought
over for the piano, and the band builds up a groove that is, at the very
least, not inferior to similar grooves on Exile, like 'All Down
The Line'. As for the magic, well, the magic theme is reprised on 'Can
You Hear The Music?': the most trippy song on here, but once again, it
rather reminds one of Santa Claus than of Timothy Leary. It's dang catchy,
too, and with a little bit of speeding up, it could have been worked into
a sweaty little funk anthem. Meanwhile, the dreary 'Heartbreaker' with
its overtly cheerful images of little girls with needles in their arms
and cops shooting young boys on the street (that's a little bit of social
critique there, in case somebody doesn't get it) darkens the scene even
further; and the glorious culmination is seen in the pompous, epic ballad
'Winter' with Jagger sounding close to God the Father. I'm not joking:
'Winter' is the most bombastic the Stones ever got, and it's kinda funny
no-one remembers the song. It's glorious, with wonderful, uplifting orchestration,
Keith's inspired leads, Nicky Hopkins' refreshing piano, and Jagger's one
hundred percent sincere vocals building up to a series of wall-rattling
mini-climaxes. There's just something about Mick carefully and tenderly
saying 'sometime I wanna wrap my coat around you' that melts m; heart...
This is what every "power ballad" should sound like.
But - just to remind you that they are the Stones and not a bunch of Doctor
Johns or anything, we have a couple usual trademarks and, strange enough,
they are the best known songs around here (I won't really prattle too much
about them because that's hardly necessary): 'Angie' is one of Mick's most
popular but unsincere ballads, while 'Star Star' is a generic Berry-esque
rocker with a great guitar sound and some obscene lexics about, well, fucking
stars (movie stars, that is). Its original title was 'Starfucker',
but they had to change it on the recording company's insistance; note that
diehard Stones fans always refer to it as 'Starfucker' and nothing
more.
Oh, and Keith has contributed 'Coming Down Again'. I hate this song and
hope so do you. It is actually the first one of his sloppy tender ballads
which tend to have very much wailing and very little melody, the father
to 'All About You', 'Sleep Tonight', 'Thru And Thru', and 'Thief In The
Night'. Nasty stuff. Tender, sincere, moving while we're at it (good
old Keith), but I need to have some melody as well.
Which brings me to my final point: yes, this is not a groundbreaking listening
experience, but it's still light years above everything if we compare it
to any ordinary hard rock band of the Seventies. Ten years of professionalism,
meticulous, self-demanding songwriting and self-discipline in recording,
production and melody making, have produced one wonderful effect: by now,
the Stones could easily be cruising on autopilot and still putting out
solid, if not ultimate, records; it took them seven years more to really
lose that 'inertia power'. So read on.
Can you hear the music? Now mail your ideas
Your worthy comments:
Jeff <Jkh1392@aol.com> (06.09.99)
This is even more underrated than Satanic. Okay, maybe not. "Can You Hear the Music" is the only weak track here by my estimation. "Coming Down Again" is good. It's a little slow, but how can you compare it to crap like "Thief in the Night"? There are a few outstanding tunes here ("Heartbreaker," "Angie"), and the rest of it is better-than-average Stones, so that would deem it a great album in my book, despite the murkiness.
Simon Hearn <simon@leehearn.freeserve.co.uk> (07.09.99)
One comment - mick taylor destroyed the stones sound on this album. He was allowed too much control on solos and this was no doubt because of keith and micks drug dependance. After the next album he departed - hurrah!
Simon Hearn <simon@leehearn.freeserve.co.uk> (26.09.99)
I know I have previously said I thought M taylor spoilt this album, but on closer and more critical listening he may have actually added a certain amount of professionalism that was lacking from keith and mick at that time. I like 'Dancing with Mr D', '100 years ago' and 'Star Star'. The other tracks are fillers and 'Angie' doesn't particularly do much for me, but 'HEARTBREAKER' is one of the best and most underrated stones songs EVER. Why it is not in their stage act is beyond me. I simply love this track - easily the equal of brown sugar. The arrangements are superb. Don't deride Goats Head. Just because it followed their best period and was a disappointment - buy it and hear for yourselves they never lost it in the 70's. Great mystical feel to the album - grab a copy
Jim Sheridan <Bolinhed@aol.com> (08.10.99)
I feel bad for people who cannot enjoy Keith's soulful vocals on the ballads. From "Comng Down Again" to yes "Thief In The Night," Keef has more soul in his burnt rasp than a million and one note-perfect singers could ever aspire too. Some people do not "get" Neil Young or Tom Waits either. Ah well, stick to yer smooth smooth pablum then. As for the feedback letter declaring that Mick Taylor "ruined" the Stones or this album - PLEASE. Compare the Stones live boots OR studio stuff with him and after. Mick Taylor had too much control on the solos?!?! Spare me! Mick Taylor should've been given MORE room to wail.
Tony Stewart <tony.remi.stewart@worldnet.att.net> (26.12.99)
I've always felt GHS got a bad rap, it doesn't neccessarily deserve.
It's all relative. We're comparing it to the former outout from the Stones.
GHS also had the misfortune to be the disc to have to follow Exile.
That's a tough slot for anyone. In '73 the Stones were primarily a Liveband
once again. They had just completed the ultimate Rocktour, as befits the
ultimate Rockalbum. The STP now hit Europe after a break that consisted
of recording a new disc, trying to absorb a whole new direction and infatuation
called Reggae, and it also involved a LOT of drugs. By now the crew was
paying the price of thinking themselves a "Rolling Stone", trying
to keep up with them. It had done many a strong man in. Andy Johns, Jimmy
Miller, Keith Harwood and Bobby Keys lived the life. The Stones will never
deny you excess. It's up to you to take care of your own ass though. They
will not provide the nurse.
So Soup didn't quite measure up to its predecessors. Some intangible
missing. They'd done miracles before with unfinished songs, but this time
the energy wasn't there to turn songs like "Hide Your Love" into
a "Stop Breaking Down". Keith was very drugged out, which shines
through on many songs where his performance IMHO is found 'lacking'.
We kick it off with "Dancing with Mr. D.". Jagger tried his very
best to make this one a hit. He saw the Disco trend coming and the "dancing,
dancing" chant was right up there, but the rather lyrics when put
side by side with "Sympathy"are a parody. GREAT video though!
"100 Years Ago". The perfect 2nd song. There are some songs that
fit just right into that medium tempo groove. Not too strong, not too weak.
It's carried by Taylor and Billy Preston on Clavinet. Jagger writes some
fine lyrics, great bridge and a cool jam which you already knew was gonna
work out great in concert. Why is it so flat then? "Coming Down Again"
is one of my favorite Stones songs. (Sorry G.) I agree that Keith has slid
into this balladeer on "his" songs on the later discs, but this
one, very long, repetitious stays with you. I can see Keith nodding out
on the piano. It's good to hear Jagger still singing on a Keith song. That
was the last time they sang together on one of them. Beautiful lyrics in
the verses. "Heartbreaker" rocks. Another one dominated by Preston
and Taylor'c Clavinet/Wah Wah sound. Whoever wrote that Hornchart-Kudos!
You know Jagger is reading his papers by addressing the right social problems
e.g. 'inner-city druguse' and 'guncontrol'. Again it's a great song, written
to rock live but...
"Angie" of course stands on it's own. Never had the Stones put
out a shmaltzier tune, but Keith just sat down and wrote that sucker and
that was that. You can tell it's one of those songs that must have flowed
out in just one sitting. Where you just pick up the guitar and play it.
It's already here just waiting for you. And Jagger did the song justice,
wrote beautiful lyrics and there wasn't a hint of parody in his vocal delivery.
It was such an obvious single. For any band but the Stones.
"Silver Train" with great Slide guitar by Taylor and built on
a very "Keithian" riff sounds like the little brother to "Happy",
"Hide Your Love" is essentially Jagger doing a demo, with him
on piano and Taylor again Sliding all over the place. Once more no Keith.
Same on the gorgeous "Winter", which is Jagger and Taylor, plus
strings really taking it home. Now this one is right up there with "Angie".
Just wonderful. Keith's one guitar contribution comes in the form of a
Leslie'd phrase. Very hypnotic with Flute and Organ combining to make it
quite a monster. The verses are a brief glimpse into what he was still
capable of,if he wanted.
To me the most baffling tune on the disc is "Starfucker". This
is the kind of song that the Stone own. And it was the first time the Stones
imitated the Stones. It's a 1-4-5 Berry style tune all the way. Hilarious
lyrics. Nice controversy with the censors. Actors suing. Oh, you could
not ask for more. It even tually became great in concert.
It sums up what is wrong with the whole disc. Trace it all the way back
and you will find the culprit is drugs. Jimmy Miller wasn't producing,
Andy Johns was miking and mixing very correctly, but there was not one
spark of adventurism in the whole affair. What had happened to the fun
and to the loose jams? Dirty Mixes and chaotic brilliance? What was REALLY
missing was Keith. This was the beginning of the period where Jagger had
to carry the Stones alone for a while. H e had to rely on partners sometimes
good, i.e. Taylor, sometimes bad,i.e. Preston. Mainly he had to rely on
the person he always has relied on:himself. But a band like the Stones
needs both Jagger and Keith.
So where Buttons was a great "unfinished" album, Soup
was not. It has aged VERY well though, surprisingly enough. Some songs
found their identity in Liveshows, others are kept alive through Taylor's
great Slide guitar, but mainly I think Jagger really deserves a great thank
you for getting a disc out at all. And let's not forget: we are still talking
about the Stones here. Watts and Wyman kick their usual ass and Keith,
when he dropped in always left an "Angie" or something behind...
Michel Franzen <crazytimes25@yahoo.com> (12.01.2000)
The DRUGS finally overtake the creativity of the band.
Jeff Blehar <jdb3@jhu.edu> (09.02.2000)
Disappointing as hell coming on the heels of Exile, but not really
nearly as bad as people might tell you. The problem with Goats Head
Soup is that there's just no ambition in it, really; I mean, they're
experimenting, but it's with PSYCHEDELIA! What the hell is "Can You
Hear The Music?" doing here? Wasn't the heyday for this music six
years previous?
So the album is pleasant. Pleasant. That's not exactly an exciting description,
I know, but this album certainly isn't edgy like the previous four. And
yet it's not a bad listen by any means. Songs like "Dancing With Mr.
D" and "Star Star" are excruciatingly juvenile, to be sure,
but that's about it. "100 Years Ago" and the Keef smack ode "Coming
Down Again" are feather-lite and soothing, and "Winter"
is almost as triumphant as "Shine A Light" or "Let It Loose."
The big hits, which were "Angie" and "Heartbreaker,"
are also two thumbs and three legs up. "Silver Train" is a good
song about a silver train, and...look, I don't want to explain every song
on this album to you. Those kinds of comments suck; I should know, I've
written a bunch of them elsewhere. George does that job for us already.
But Goats Head Soup is an intriguing and uncharacteristic collection
of songs (with the exception of "Heartbreaker" and "Star
Star" which are as Stones as the Stones got), and it's one which I've
grown pretty fond of as the years have passed. Just don't expect Sticky
Fingers or Exile, and you've got a solid collection on your
hands.
Glenn Wiener <Glenn.Wiener@Entex.com> (01.03.2000)
Like the previous listener, solid but not quite spectacular. 'Star Star' is a fun rauncy rocker. 'Heartbreaker' and 'Angie' were deserving singles. '100 Years Ago' has an excellent guitar solo courtesy of Mick Taylor. The rest is OK with the exception of the slightly overlong 'Winter' and the somewhat annoying 'Can You Hear The Music'.
Matt Reyes <No1Yanks23@aol.com> (28.05.2000)
I have not heard this album yet but how do you only give one sentence to 'Angie'? and its a bad one. All you can say is "Angie is one of Mick's most popular but unsincere ballads". 'Angie' is in the top two stones songs. Along with 'Under my Thumb'. Whats not to like the melody, the guitar its great.
Joel Larsson <joel.larsson@privat.utfors.se> (14.09.2000)
This album seems as the fans like more than necessary. The only really good songs are 'Angie' and 'Heartbreaker'. The rest are fillers, maybe 'Star star' is a little better than the rest.
Sergey Zhilkin <sergey_jilkin@yahoo.com> (04.12.2000)
Why people hate it so much? I'm not Stones' fan (at the right moment) but it seems to me that ther're so many great tunes here and so little filler. 'Do-do-do-do', 'Angie', '100 years ago' and 'Dancing with mr.D' are among my favourite Stones' songs. I fell in love with this album from the first listen. Songs are so open and it's really hard not to notice such gems. By the way, 'Angie' is Stones' 'Yesterday' which I hate as much as I like 'Angie'. My rating is 8/10.
Year Of Release: 1974
Record rating = 6
Overall rating = 11
Way too simple for a Stones album. Ballsy and all, but hey, where's
the message?
Best song: FINGERPRINT FILE
Sure it is only rock'n'roll, and a relatively low point at that.
Relatively, because there ain't a single truly bad song on here (maybe
one), but if you're looking for breathtaking experiences, you'd better
stick to the earlier stuff. Basically, the Stones seem to have finally
remembered they were nothing but a good ol' rock'n'roll band, sweaty and
ballsy and all that. Forget the darkness, forget the social message, forget
the experimentation; this is mostly a straightforward, simplistic (although
not without a charm of its own) collection of three-chord rockers and primitive
ballads. If we set apart Goats' Head Soup as an interesting anomaly
in the Stones' catalog, then It's Only Rock'n'Roll can be said to
represent a typical "inferior sequel" to its elder, wiser brother.
Indeed, if Exile On Main St. had a certain epicness to it, a strange
freshness and an overwhelming "roots-encyclopaedic" character,
It's Only Rock'n'Roll sounds similar, but seriously forced. Putting
it into the form of an understandable metaphor, one might say that on Exile
the Stones were rockin' out and not givin' a damn, but on here the Stones
are givin' a damn to prove us that they were still able to rock
out. Hence the overemotion in Jagger's voice (he screams his head off like
there was no tomorrow even in the 'softer' spots), the gruffy sound (there's
more hard-rocking guitars on here than on any of their albums since Beggar's
Banquet), and most importantly - the intentionally dumb lyrics, either
revolving round standard barroom topics ('Dance Little Sister') or revelling
in their obscenity ('Short And Curlies').
That said, the Stones are the Stones, and they had so much power and talent
still juggling around in their drug-soaked veins that even this coaster
turned out to be quite enjoyable - I still assert, for instance, that It's
Only Rock'n'Roll is a better album than anything Aerosmith could
have ever pulled off, even in their prime. Even the stupid artificial rockers
are invigorating and danceable. 'If You Can't Rock Me', for instance, despite
the awfully messy production (all these incessant vocal overdubs give me
a real headache), has a couple excellent riffs, and is a nice spot to practice
your basement riffage on, especially keeping in mind that awesome Keith
passage in the instrumental break. 'Dance Little Sister' hardly induces
the listener to do anything other than the title suggests, but what the
heck? I love the grimey guitar interplay on that one. And, of course,
there's the title track, a rightful Stones classic in its own right by
now. 'It's only rock'n'roll, but I like it': at least these guys are pretty
straight about what they're doing. Arguably the most sincere and hard-hitting
lyrical line ever committed to a rock song.
The real highlight on here is certainly the closing 'Fingerprint File':
a terrific spooky performance, saved from sounding like a parody on 'Midnight
Rambler' by Taylor's efforts. (Unhappily, there was no Taylor to pull them
out of the parody state on Undercover). Also, Jagger sounds fantastic
on that one, really giving the impression of 'feeling followed, feeling
tagged'. Also, it's a pretty rare opportunity to meet a wah-wah on a Stones'
record. (I bet this was their second try since '100 Years Ago', and they
didn't try it again until 'Out Of Control'!) Also, it first introduces
us Bill Wyman's growing passion for disco rhythms that would blossom on
the band's subsequent two albums (not to mention Wyman's solo ones) - turns
out that Jagger wasn't the only experimental force in the band.
Most of the other stuff is, however, very second-rate for the Stones. The
ballads mostly just refuse to lift me up ('Till The Next Goodbye' doesn't
suck, per se, but it's a pale shadow of the band's former efforts; 'Time
Waits For No One' is strongly derivative of 'Winter', even if it does transform
into a lengthy Santanaesque solo towards the end, courtesy of Mr Taylor
again; 'If You Really Want To Be My Friend' is slightly better, done in
the by now traditional Stones' gospel style, but then it suffers from being
overlong); the comedy number 'Short And Curlies' sucks horribly - I
could pardon them the utter derivativeness of this silly country joke (similar
to 'Casino Boogie', by the way), but the idiotic lyrics don't make it any
more than just a corny novelty ditty; the Temptations' cover 'Ain't Too
Proud To Beg' is simply nothing special - pedestrian song, pedestrian cover
version; and the reggaeish 'Luxury', while not a bad number by itself,
still turns into a long boring jam towards the end.
A lot of jovialty, good-time atmosphere, ass-kicking and all, but somehow
it all goes nowhere in particular; I suppose that was the point - to make
an album that would go nowhere - but the point is, up till now the Stones
were always a band that would go somewhere and take you on
their trip along the way. You'd expect something better from The Rolling
Stones. Really. Here they not only try to sound dorky (like they did on
Black And Blue, where it worked), they also try to convince the
audience that they are dorky. And in doing so they overdid the trick.
That said, I reiterate that even while cruising on autopilot, the boys
still managed to churn out some excellent melodies, so that should be your
consolation.
If you really want to be my friend, mail your ideas
Your worthy comments:
Jeff <Jkh1392@aol.com> (06.09.99)
So what if it's a dumb album? So what if it goes nowhere. It's so enjoyable that you really don't notice. "Luxury" is the only weak point; it's a cheap attempt at reggae that's unfortunately too long for its own good. "Til the Next Goodbye" doesn't suck-- it's got that memorable accoustic guitar playing, and it's as good a ballad as the Stones ever recorded. For that matter, "Short & Curlies" is the catchiest thing on here. It's stuck in my head right now. The Stones weren't trying to be "dorky." They were trying to have fun, and it shows. Though it's not by a long shot their best record, it's one that I listen to a lot and enjoy every time.
<LedZep3206@aol.com> (21.11.99)
What in the hell are you talking about in this review? Sorry, but this album is great. 'Luxury', 'Time Waits For No One', 'It's Only Rock n' Roll', 'Ain't To Proud to beg', they're all so great. The only ones I skip are 'If You Really Want To Be My Friend' and 'Till The Next Time I Say Good-bye' (or whatever it is).
Tony Stewart <tony.remi.stewart@worldnet.att.net> (10.02.2000)
Once again I must say that these 70's discs that
are supposedly a little weak have ALL aged very well and are standing the
test of time. More and more are we realizing what a great output of songs
these guys have put out and when we were calling them "over the hill"
back then I think a lot of it had to do with the fact that they were at
a crossroads in their career and therefore their fans with them were too.
"If You Can't Rock Me", the perfect opener that suffered the
fate of the entire album. The rough mixes are ALL better than the final
product. This one had Taylor wailing, Keith rocking hard, that break turned
into a monster live and really should have been played up a lot more, since
it's a great groove. "Ain' Too Proud To Beg" has one of Keith's
toughest solos on disc. It might only be 4 bars long but it's enough. Other
people need 12 Strings, a Doubleneck and 15 minutes. Give Keith twenty
seconds and five strings and he'll tell you what's going on.
"It's Only R&R" the slogan, the Stones' credo in 3 words.
(And by neither Mick nor Keith. Ouch!) The basic track, no matter what
cheap books say does NOT have Charlie on it; the basic track which is Ron,
Kenney Jones, Willie Weeks, Bowie and Jagger is VERY much what we hear.
What sounds like the obvious overdubbed guitars are Taylor and Keith. I
think it was a very good move by Keith especially to not re-cut the tune
and realize that he already had a gem here. It's a decision that reminds
one of the attitude with which they approached "JJF" and "SFM":
whatever works use it! And all three of those tunes are right up there
as three of their greatest hits. "Till The Next Goodbye" I have
always had a soft spot for. I just plain love this song. If anything the
line "Your Louisiana recipes let me down.." alone would do it
for me. But somehow the New York City streets covered in snow just stir
up echoes. Well, the next one is probably one of the strongest points Taylorfans
have, when they stack him up against Wood. True, Ronnie could never play
a solo like that. But neither could Keith and neither could my Grandma,
so what does it say? Why not just enjoy this gorgeous piece of music, where
Hopkins follows Taylor soaring (I hate this word), but there is no other
way to describe what Taylor does. It is undoubtedly one of his finest moments.
The lyrics also are surprisingly candid and revealing for Jagger. I think
these are the crossroads i was talking about. Time was coming a-knocking
for the first time. He was getting ready to hit 30. "Luxury"
to me has always sounded a little labored. The Reggae groove this song
is supposed to have is plainly not there yet. Keith would get a lot better
at it. The misgivings I have about this tune are strictly based on production
and technical aspects. Love the lyrics, hate the way the guitars were recorded.
"Dance Little Sister" comes dangerously close to the Stones doing
the Stones. I do believe about two minutes could have been shaved off that
one. "If You Really Want To Be My Friend" is a true gem though.
I never understand how it gets overlooked so easily. I think it ranks right
up there with the great Soulballads like "Let It Loose" or even
"That's How Strong My Love Is". Beautiful bridge with Jagger
singing"I know you think life is a thriller..", and the crescendo
at the end with jagger weaving in between Blue Magic's intricate arrangement
is breathtaking. Nicky, Taylor, Keith and Jagger in absolute top form are
all there. "Short And Curlies" I will never understand. Either
it was added to please Stu or "she's got you by the balls" was
just too strong a piece of poetry to pass up, but we know today that they
had gems like "Drift Away" and "Living Is A Harder Love"
in the can. They surely would have made a stronger statement.
They did save the best for last though. Charlie finally gets a chance to
shine. he is surpringly subdued on this disc. Again I don't attribute this
to performance but to production. Wyman sounds like he's been listening
to Ron play the Bass a lot. But the star of the song is Jagger who first
rides a true Monster of a Riff and the Funk groove, only to end up in a
paranoid whispered telephone conversation with himself and the FBI.
"Who's listening???.....
This disc I honestly believe needed a producer, and it would have taken
it's place in the pantheon along with the great ones. 8.
Glenn Wiener <Glenn.Wiener@Entex.com> (01.03.2000)
Actually its more than rock n roll. 'Fingerprint File' borders on funk. 'If You Really Want To Be My Friend', 'Time Waits For No One', and 'Till The Next Time' are ballads with a little bit of Rock. And 'Luxury' is a Rockin Regaae number. Therefore, the album is somewhat mistitled and not totally accurate. Quality wise this is on the same level as its predecessor with the two lead off songs, 'Time Waits For No One', and 'Fingerprint File' being the best of this lot.