The Beatles were 4 individuals completely committed to be the best band ever. From the tribal anti-gospel insistence of Sympathy For The Devil, through the Zeitgeist-defining sedition of Street Fighting Man, to the libertine salaciousness of Stray Cat Blues, Beggars hardened the Stones’ bad boy image into a vision of amoral excess that rock ‘n’ roll’s been trying to live up/down to ever since. Answer (1 of 8): No one Beatle would be who they became without the other three. And yet, with assistance from first-time Stones producer Jimmy Miller, Keith Richards stepped up to the plate to deliver one of their best albums.īeggars followed Satanic Majesties’ unfocussed psych with a confident redefinition of all rock could be. Though Brian Jones’ contributions - tambura here, mellotron there - occasionally haunt proceedings, his narcotic- and paranoia-debilitated state essentially left the band one man down during the Beggars sessions. The best classic rock vinyl you need to own.Interview: Keith Richards and Charlie Watts on The Rolling Stones In Exile.The top 10 best Mick Jagger Rolling Stones songs.The story behind the Rolling Stones' Exile On Main Street album artwork.With pop already starting to split along generic lines, it was no longer possible for one band to be all things to all men. Ultimately though, Undercover, while a commercial success, was to be the Stones’ last truly ambitious album.
A contemporary, Chris Kimsey co-production brought the Stones’ sound bang up to date and as before they endeavoured to cover all bases: funk ( Undercover Of The Night), rock ( She Was Hot), reggae (Feel On Baby), Jagger even rapped (Too Much Blood). Lead single Undercover Of The Night’s Julien Temple-directed promo was even deemed too controversial for MTV.įollowing Tattoo You’s archival water-tread, Undercover was the Stones’ first album of all-new material since Emotional Rescue’s disco hiccup, and re-emerging in a post- Smash Hits landscape, where synth-pop was king, rap on the rise and youth at a premium, rock’s elder statesmen had a lot to prove. The cover and the related pun is almost alone worth it.While Undercover may not have been the final occasion The Rolling Stones aimed for relevance it marked the last time the global zeitgeist was prepared to suspend its disbelief and allow them the luxury of appearing so. A unique album and a curious listening experience.
The rest ranges from curious covers of songs such as Loop De Loop, Rock Around The Clock and Subterranean Homesick Blues, to pure emotional and physical suffering in the performance of Old Forgotten Soldier.
The collaboration between Nilsson and Lennon in Many Rivers To Cross alone is worth the album, while Harry gives the best in songs like Don't Forget Me and Black Sails, as well as unleashing a magnificent and unexpected song like All My Life. The result is an album of difficult definition, at times a pain to listen to, and at times funny. With considerable damage to the vocal cords, he went through the sessions without revealing anything to Lennon, who was very angry when he learned of what had happened. Harry's reckless, partying soul peaked in mid-1970s Los Angeles, and it cost him his voice. The premises for a legendary album were all there, starting with the production by none other than John Lennon (at the time in the middle of his "lost weekend") and the long list of excellent musicians involved, but fate decided otherwise.