The Rolling Stones - Exile On Main St. - album review

The apotheosis of the Rolling Stones' 1968-1972 purple patch, Exile On Main St., released in 1972, is for many the ultimate rock n roll album of its type, encompassing most of the styles which had inspired the group, and exuding an inimitable swagger and gritty authenticity.

This may or may not have been the musical blend which the Stones had always coveted, and whether it was arrived at consciously is open to question. I prefer to believe that the circumstances under which it was recorded, added to a myriad of other personal and musical factors, combined to create this compelling and effervescent vibe. Above all, they were not trying too hard, but just playing music and seeing where things took them.

People have often asserted that this is "Keith's" album, citing the evidence of his musical and "spiritual" footprint throughout the record. It is true that the mood and the direction bear the hallmarks of Keith, but I would argue that Mick Jagger and the supporting cast all contribute handsomely towards realizing the intoxicating mix. The fragmented nature of the sessions, together with the fact that the usual, conventional Stones unit did not play together on all the tunes, also played a role.

Exile On Main St. commences with as stark a statement of intent as could be imagined, in the form of the tracks "Rocks Off" and "Rip This Joint". Both songs exemplify the spirit behind the project, and introduce us to the murky mix and endearingly "ragged" sound which permeate so much of the record.

The running order is astutely arranged in order to illustrate the full diversity of roots genres on display - blues, soul, country and so forth. The album also benefits from having few "famous" numbers or hit singles on it. It is an album in the true sense, and not a collection of catchy tunes supported by filler. Despite the variety of styles which we hear, there is also a uniformity of "groove", difficult to describe in words, which is one of the keys to the album's greatness.

The impression of spontaneity which emerges is heightened by the naturalness of the singing and vocal harmonies on many numbers. "Sweet Virginia" is a good exemplar of this trend, a song which one could envisage being sung around a camp-fire....

Several other ingredients embellish the picture. Rarely has the undemonstrative, laconic brilliance of Charlie Watts' drumming been more clearly captured, and Mick Taylor has ample opportunity to exhibit his finesse and versatility on guitar.

Some of the songs on "Exile" are among the most substantial and emotionally gripping in the Stones' catalogue, but these songs do not loom that largely in the wider public consciousness. I am thinking of the likes of "Let It Loose", "Soul Survivor" and "Shine A Light".  "Soul Survivor" is searing and defiant, and appropriately closes out what was the band's most fertile phase, "Let It Loose" a haunting ballad which musically dwarfs other such Stones efforts.

It is possibly true that, individually, some of the lesser songs on this LP are not as strong as their counterparts elsewhere in the Stones' oeuvre. However, this misses the point. The various curios and minor items fit perfectly into the framework of "Exile" (a double album when issued on vinyl)  and thereby endow it with its distinctive character. 

"Loving Cup" has always been a favourite of mine; I adore the melody as well as Keith's heartfelt harmonies. Everybody I suspect has their own favourite tunes from this record, and the fact that opinion is divided on many of them is a strength rather than a weakness.

Of the track listing, "Tumbling Dice" is almost certainly the best-known. Here, it is just another song, and somehow for those who were familiar with it before hearing all of the album, it almost seems out of place, guilty of having puts it head above the parapet and stood out from the crowd....

The outward confidence and unity depicted by Exile On Main St. could be said to be illusory, as the Stones were never to scale these heights again. Circumstances helped create the chemistry which triumphed here, but it could not last. Like so many albums whose reputation and appeal endures, it was met with mixed reviews when it first came out. If anybody asks me these days what the Rolling Stones were, and still are, all about, I would recommend that they listen to this captivating and joyous album.

Beggars Banquet - The Rolling Stones - album review

One or two critics have asserted that Beggars Banquet, released by The Rolling Stones in 1968, is the greatest album of the Sixties. I might not go that far myself, but it is certainly a wonderful album, and one which helped to usher in the band's most creative and turbulent period.

The group, clearly ill-at-ease during the psychedelic era, appeared to be much more at home in 1968's changing cultural and social climate.  They were also more comfortable performing rootsier music, and these sounds somehow more closely reflected and complemented the uneasy or revolutionary sentiments which were supposedly prevalent in '68.

Beggars Banquet also witnessed a solidifying of the Jagger-Richards axis, as their songwriting became ever more prolific and and focused, and Brian Jones' influence gradually diminished.  Did the image of Keith Richards as the "heart and soul" of the Stones arise from necessity, as he was obliged to perform many of the functions previously undertaken by Jones?

In the past, I have tended to view some of the songs on this record as trite or lacking in cultural finesse, trying a little too hard to reflect the tenor of the times. However, after repeated scrutiny I would say that surprisingly little of it sounds corny or misjudged nowadays. I wasn't around in 1968, so I can't comment on how it might have sounded in the context of what was "going on" in those days.  The Beatles did seem to evoke the uncertainty and edginess of the time more acutely on "The White Album", with a minimum of effort and the conspicuous absence of any soap-box, but then again popular perception would have expected the Stones to put out a more overtly "angry" and visceral commentary.

The sound and production have a distinctly earthy flavour to them, redolent of honest toil, and therefore in keeping with the ethos which may or may not have been underpinning the project. Whether this was a conscious effort is difficult to say; what is certain is that the album would not have had the same gravitas and vigour had it been given a smoother and more polished sheen. The guitars (both electric and acoustic) sound splendid throughout.

As opening tracks go, "Sympathy For The Devil" takes some beating, and does kind of set the tone, both musically and atmospherically. The Stones had hinted at such "menace" in the past, but here was its most vibrant and stark manifestation. Opinions may vary as to precisely what Mick and Keith were getting at here, but none can deny that it captures the essence of the album and the popular image of 1968.

If "Sympathy For The Devil" is seen as being a standard-bearer for the spirit of Beggars Banquet, then tracks such as "No Expectations" and "Dear Doctor" are its DNA, with their acoustic bluesy rawness. The former features one of Brian Jones' last notable musical contributions as a member of the Rolling Stones, in the form of his haunting slide guitar part. The rendition of "Prodigal Son" is in a similar vein.

Of course, another song which attracted, and continues to attract, much attention is "Street Fighting Man", with its nicely ambivalent lyrical outlook and its blistering acoustic guitars. What it perhaps lacks in melodic subtlety it more than makes up for in power and robustness, and the instrumentation is pleasingly fuzzy.

I used to dismiss "Jigsaw Puzzle" as superior and stylish filler, but over time it has grown on me. The lyrics sound less and less like a poor man's Bob Dylan the more I listen to them, and the melody is deceptively vibrant and clever. Some more good slide guitar here, and nice separation between the instruments ensures that the rhythm section and the piano can be appreciated with some clarity.

Some people might dismiss "Stray Cat Blues" as a mere prototype for future Stones endeavours, or even "Stones by numbers", but in my view it is one of their finest and most formidable album tracks. Many elements coalesce to make it memorable, including the riffs and feline guitar lines, Charlie Watts' muscular drumming, and Jagger's lascivious vocal delivery.

The set is concluded with the two most obviously "blue collar" and "proletarian" items, "Factory Girl" and "Salt Of The Earth". "Factory Girl" is a rather charming and unpretentious number.  The song which follows it is musically strong, although the "anthemic" choruses can be grating, and the excessive second half of the song rather spoils the effect for me . Very much "of its time", and it is therefore churlish to be too harsh forty-seven years later.

I would say that Beggars Banquet ranks very high for me as far as Stones albums are concerned, second only to Exile On Main Street I would say.  There is very much a demarcation between what was recorded in 1968 (we should include the single "Jumping Jack Flash" in such deliberations) and what had gone before. This record is not as immediately enjoyable or accessible as Sticky Fingers, Some Girls or even Let It Bleed, and it might seem like hard work to begin with, but soon enough its abrasive self-confidence becomes evident.  Essential to an understanding of the Stones and the evolution of their music.

Goats Head Soup - The Rolling Stones - album review

A little while ago I wrote an article about what, by common consent, was the most fruitful and inventive period in the illustrious career of The Rolling Stones, namely 1968 to 1972:-

The Rolling Stones 1968-1972


The first thing to acknowledge is that the Stones faced a quandary in the aftermath of Exile On Main Street.   Should they try to match or emulate their magnum opus, consciously move in a different direction, or just see where things naturally took them?  On balance, they appear to have followed the latter option, perhaps sensing that the first would invite disaster, and that the second would impose a straitjacket.

The first album which the band released after "Exile" was Goats Head Soup, which unsurprisingly betrays most signs of the comedown from the fertile and productive days of 68-72.  Just as it is often proclaimed that the classic 1972 double album is largely a "Keith album", then at first glance its follow-up shows up more of Mick Jagger's fingerprints, stylistically as well as lyrically.

A certain "fog" and pall hangs over this record, symptomatic of fatigue and jadedness, the effect being similar to a hangover  (which, in career terms, this album essentially was).  The emphasis of the lyrics has changed from the vibrant mixture of "Exile" to an overall, almost sinister, gloominess. The tone is set with the opening number, "Dancing With Mr D".  Electric piano and wah-wah guitar abound, making this LP distinctly "of its time", an accusation that can not be as easily levelled at "Exile".

It has often been asserted that Exile On Main Street represented the culmination of everything which the Stones had been striving towards for the previous decade. After scaling the metaphorical peak, the 1973 follow-up sees them wearily, if happily, descending, seemingly not taking too much trouble over the precise route down, or the style in which it was accomplished.

After the menace of the aforementioned "Dancing with Mr D", we move on to the languid "100 Years Ago". It is driven by electric piano, and contains just a trace of the magic of earlier albums, possessing a melodic shape and sense of purpose, but at the same time, it is also very typical of what was to characterise the mid-70s output.  In these respects it feels like a hinge between eras.  Similar sentiments could be applied to the song which follows, "Coming Down Again".

"Doo Doo Doo Doo Doo (Heartbreaker)" is possibly the strongest and most memorable track on the album, having genuine drive and abundant drama. The lyrics complement the music, and greatly contribute to the overall effect.  This is one of the songs on Goats Head Soup on which the band sounds truly interested, focused and motivated.  It has also proved very effective in the concert environment.

I imagine that "Angie" has the knack of dividing opinion among Stones fans, but looking at things objectively it is a fine and strong pop/rock composition, featuring a confident and authoritative Jagger vocal.  The song also serves to anchor an album which can feel rather lacking in direction and purpose.

"Silver Train" borders on "Stones by numbers", and is the rootiest number on the record, largely by dint of the slide guitar flourishes. Although a touch bland, and "meat and potatoes", it does inject some welcome relief in the context of what surrounds it. The next item, "Hide Your Love", is another track which although in itself unremarkable, does hark back vaguely to the glories of 1968-72.

Another ballad-like track follows in the shape of "Winter".  Largely unexceptional, it seeks to project itself as an epic, but ends up doing very little and going almost nowhere.  The run of superior mediocrity continues with "Can You Hear The Music" which, although equipped with a reasonably promising melodic base, is let down by a failure to accentuate and exploit its strengths.  A missed opportunity, methinks....

When people refer to the Stones descending into self-parody, "Star Star" could be presented as Exhibit A. It is difficult to ascertain what is and what is not intentionally tongue-in-cheek, and this song comes dangerously close to being the fly in the ointment. In a strange way, it is an apt way to close this album and presage the Stones' future career.

Having gone through Goats Head Soup track by track,  my conclusion is that it contains some decent songs, and flashes of excellent musicianship, but the overall effect is diminished by the sense of inertia, and a shortage of energy and inspiration. It is by no means a bad album, and it has a kind of semi-kitsch period charm of its own, exemplifying the sluggish hedonism which coloured much of the Stones' work for some time afterwards.

Stephen Stills and Manassas

Some years ago, I embarked on a journey through the California rock movement of the 60s and 70s, encompassing country-rock, the singer-songwriter movement, and the tangentially connected "scenes".

One day in my favourite record store, I discovered the 1972 debut album by Stephen Stills' group Manassas. To my shame, I had not previously even been aware of the existence of the record or the band. I distinctly recall standing in the shop, gazing at the cover of the CD, with the names of the group members in white lettering, and thinking that this was almost too good to be true.  I had no internet access back then, and so without undertaking any additional research, purchased the album, feeling reasonably certain that it would accord with my tastes.

As soon as I played the album, I "got it".  A bunch of accomplished and skilled musicians, performing songs embracing a number of styles - blues,country,folk,Latin,R&B and straight rock, these genres often being amalgamated.  The record instantly appeared diverse,funky and broad in its scope, almost an embarrassment of riches, the music equivalent of a delicious plum pudding!  Having not heard of the Manassas project before, it was akin to discovering a box of hidden treasure.

Another thing which occurred to me right away was the lack of artifice or self-indulgence on the album, in spite of the calibre of the musicians featured on it.  Manassas is almost entirely founded on concise songs.  Tentative parallels may perhaps be drawn with another double-album issued in 1972, Exile on Main Street by the Rolling Stones.  Both exuded rootsiness, and the joy of a group of guys making music almost for the hell of it.  Of course, Stephen Stills had some links with the Stones around this time, and Bill Wyman makes a guest appearance on Manassas.

Mercifully, in digital formats (those which I have heard, anyway), the music retains its essentially organic and earthy ambience, the emotion and grit not being sucked out by over-zealous remasterings. The sounds are permitted to breathe....

In addition to the presence of Stills himself, other elements go towards making this such a fine album. The pedal steel of Al Perkins injects vital nuance, soul and novelty throughout.  The variety of guitar sounds adds depth, with Perkins complementing Stills' own prowess. Joe Lala's percussion adds a certain funkiness and rhythmic vigour to many of the songs.

The role of Chris Hillman is also crucial, his harmonies being an important, but underplayed, element. To describe him as Stills' right hand man here may be inaccurate, but his input and presence add a subtly different dimension to things; a welcome counterweight to the other participants.

On an album which is so uniformly enjoyable, it is a tough task to select highlights, but I'm going to do it anyway!  "So Begins The Task" has an enigmatic, ethereal and haunting quality about it, with a tasteful backing track overlaid by some affecting and inventive pedal steel. The vocal harmonies in the chorus are perhaps the most impressive on the album.

"It Doesn't Matter" features some languid vocals.  This track is almost "Byrdsian", but with a seductive and hedonistic "Seventies" feel, mostly by virtue of the glitzy guitar parts.  Another deceptively strong melody.  On Manassas, many of the songs are subsumed into the whole, seemingly not wishing to draw attention to themselves. 

A powerful, driving core is at the heart of "Right Now", with quite a breathless riff holding things together.  The track is propelled along by the efforts of the whole musical combo.

The penultimate number, "The Treasure", contains what could be loosely termed a "guitar jam", but it is a strong song in its own right, with some pleasing changes and hooks.  When the guitars do kick in, some variety and invention at least partially answer any charges of excess. 

One of the delights of Manassas is its ability to offer up hidden gems, and for the beauty and charm of some of the songs to reveal themselves gradually. Even many years after first hearing it, I am still constantly discovering hitherto neglected corners and depths.  Is it probably true to say that none of the individual songs are outright masterpieces, but this is to miss the point.  This is an album, in the truest sense, with a real vitality about it. 

The running order is arranged astutely, divided into four sides (as per the original vinyl LP), each one nominally covering a musical style, or the subject matter.  This itself is not immediately conspicuous, but the scheduling works well in practice.  There is some "light and shade", and this all helps to keep the listener intrigued.

The Manassas combination released a second album, "Down The Road", in 1973, and although this possessed its stylish, entertaining and appealing moments, it could not fully recreate the magic and zest of its predecessor. 

A contentious point, I know, but the Manassas album might just be the most fully realised, coherent work which Stephen Stills ever committed to record.

The Rolling Stones 1968-1972

Some artists or groups have a fairly regular and consistent career path, with occasional peaks and troughs along the way.  However, I struggle to think of an act whose time of greatest creativity and zest is so clearly defined as the Rolling Stones are by their output in the period 1968-1972.

During this four or five year span, the Stones fashioned their most consistent and coherent creations, and their records immediately preceding and succeeding it sound anaemic and uninspired by comparison. The band released four studio albums, with a stellar live set (Get Yer Ya-Yas Out) neatly sandwiched in between.  Each of those albums has a distinct character, reflecting not just developments within the Rolling Stones, but also in the wider world.

So what was the background to this vibrant phase? 

From the start of their recording career, the Stones had leavened their gutsier, bluesier persona with more pop-orientated material. The psychedelic experimentation immediately prior to 1968 may have met with ambivalence and even incredulity, but it did see the consolidation of the Jagger/Richards axis, and the diminishing role and influence of Brian Jones. The Stones were being re-shaped, but for what future purpose was not yet totally clear.

As 1968 dawned, however, it became clear that "flower power" was losing much of its urgency and lustre. As it turned out, this shift worked in the Stones' favour.  Rock music was preparing to move in a more rootsy direction (Bob Dylan, The Byrds, The Band), and other artists looked to embrace this to some degree or other. The Stones were no exception.

In this climate of social and political ferment, the stage was ideally suited to the Stones' edgier, rebellious, anti-establishment take.  The vogue for stripped-down and less elaborate sounds in a time of upheaval was not entirely coincidental.  Many were disenchanted with the naivete of 1967, and were looking to alternative methods and agendas.  The artifice of much psychedelic music seemed incongruous against this backdrop.

Above all, the Stones must have felt liberated from the need to conform and compromise, as they had done for much of the previous two years.  They could be "themselves" once more....

The first fruits of this rebirth came with the single "Jumping Jack Flash".   Even from the scuzzy opening guitar chords, and the sinewy riff which follows, once can feel that this is a new, more purposeful Rolling Stones. The recruitment of producer Jimmy Miller helped to sculpt this new sound.

The same groups of recording sessions spawned the Beggars Banquet album. Few albums before or since have defined their times as pertinently as this one did.  The edginess, uncertainty, menace, belligerence even, are palpable. The idealism and optimism of 1967 had given way to realism and cynicism.

It is open to debate whether Beggars Banquet should be regarded as the soundtrack to a year, as it was released in December of 1968, but the Stones slotted seamlessly into their role.  Country blues sounds are prominent on the album, and the earthiness and sincerity are perfectly in tune with the mood. 

The widespread use of acoustic guitars on the album adds to the authenticity, grit and immediacy. They seem more "proletarian" than vulgar electric ones!  And no attempt is made to conceal finger noises and other imperfections.  This "warts and all" approach is one of the secrets to the power of Beggars Banquet.

"Sympathy For The Devil", epic and sinister, sets the tone as the opening track.  Engagingly and defiantly different and percussive, this song and its message seem symbolic of the shift in the Western mindset around that time. A shrewd choice with which to commence proceedings.

Another linchpin of the album is "Street Fighting Man", which has been the focus of heated debate down the years. More acoustic guitars, and what seems an ambivalent, sardonic and slightly mocking view of the year's events.  Whichever interpretation we place on this song, it remains a powerful piece, lyrically and musically.

Two of the numbers on the album, "Parachute Woman" and "Jigsaw Puzzle", with its sub-Bob Dylan words, would normally be filed under "filler", but here they blend into the whole, so their mediocrity is less conspicuous. "Stray Cat Blues" is a nod to traditional Stones territory, and fits in musically, even if its lyrics are out of place.

Beggars Banquet closes with two paeans to blue-collar values, "Factory Girl" and "Salt of The Earth".

By the time the Stones commenced recording Let It Bleed, Brian Jones was a peripheral figure at best, and appears on only two tracks.

In places, Let It Bleed is indeed apocalyptic and incendiary, but to these ears is nowhere near as uniformly strong or cohesive as Beggars Banquet.  This may have been partly intentional, and the traumas being undergone by the Stones also played a role, but I would say that Let It Bleed's reputation is ever so slightly out of proportion to its aesthetic merit.

In spite of my mild misgivings, I still rate some of the songs on Let It Bleed.  "Gimme Shelter" , as well as being au courant for the end of the 1960s, is one of the outstanding slabs in the Stones catalogue, and indeed the whole of rock music, and "Love In Vain" is one of their most effective covers, but the rest is uneven and patchy. 

There is something vaguely tired and listless about much of Let It Bleed, and I am still not fully convinced by the efforts of some critics to talk these things up as if they represent virtues. It might have sounded relevant and important in 1969, but to more dispassionate modern ears it is by far the weakest of the four studio albums released during the period which we are looking at.

Many changes had occurred by the time of the 1971 release of Sticky Fingers. The world was a different place, much of the revolutionary fervour having evaporated.  Mick Taylor was now fully integrated into the set-up, rather than being a hired hand.

Sticky Fingers is civilised, well-structured and shrewdly produced.  It lacks the rambling, informal quality of Exile on Main Street, but the material is strong and memorable.  The lyrical spotlight is firmly on the hedonistic, reflecting perhaps the jaded resignation characteristic of the young decade.

When listening, it is immediately noticeable how much Mick Taylor's guitar flourishes add to the palette, complementing the de facto rhythm section of Keith Richards and Charlie Watts.  There is more texture and depth than before, and the addition of Taylor also facilitates more instrumental virtuosity and experimentation, as evidenced by the closing section of "Can't You Hear Me Knocking?". The sound on Sticky Fingers is accessible and clear, but the trademark Stones grittiness is not sacrificed.

There is a sensible balance between rockers and ballads.  The album, though, is almost entirely devoid of social commentary, and therefore verges on the one-dimensional lyrics-wise. This may be where Sticky Fingers acquired its reputation as the one which most embodies the fabled Stonesy "swagger".   "Brown Sugar" is an absolute gem, but could also be termed "Rolling Stones by Numbers".

Exile On Main Street is often cited as the culmination of everything that the Stones had been working towards, but I'm not altogether sure about this.  The 1972 release should be seen as a unique entity, or a tangential work, because of the conditions under which it was recorded, and its groove.  If you're looking for the "quintessential" Stones album, you might be better stopping off at Sticky Fingers.

No, I tend to regard "Exile" as a project all by itself, differing in vibe and sound from those which came before, less concise and less concerned with structure and form.  It could almost qualify as a compendium of American "roots" music (blues,country, R&B,soul,gospel), but that was unlikely to have been the intention.

I know that some people, on their initial listen, can find "Exile" a touch alienating, because of its slapdash nature and the "foggy" sound. Persevere, though, and these are the things which you will find most endearing about the project. 

Exile on Main Street begins and ends with some of its most recognisable tracks ("Rocks Off", "Rip This Joint","Soul Survivor"), but in between is an eclectic blend of offerings, some of them on the surface sounding like lightweight afterthoughts, but forming an appetising whole.

In comparison to the more considered sheen of Sticky Fingers, "Exile" almost feels like a series of "demo" versions of new songs, but it is to the Stones' credit that they resisted the temptation to go for the easy option in 1972, and come up with more of the same.  Above all, it sounds like the Stones and their entourage had a swell time putting these songs together, and this exuberance oozes from every chord.

We have mentioned the raw and loose playing on the album, and this is all held together with a glorious soulfulness, most clearly found on such songs as "Let It Loose", "Shine A Light" and "Loving Cup".  Hard to define, but very much there.

The Stones made great records before 1968-1972, and some great ones since, but never again did they recapture that "sweet spot", that intangible spirit which informed their music during their halcyon period. 

Rather than lament the relative lack of inspiration in the post-1972 catalogue, I think that we should just enjoy and savour these four albums......