The studio recordings of 1968 - 1971 (very little of Exile was recorded 1972) are without doubt their greatest!!
I can´t really pick one year here, but as Sticky Fingers is my favourite, followed by Let It Bleed, I´d say 1969-1970.

Live, though, 1969 is perhaps the freshest - the start of something new (=their best live period 1969-1973).
Mostly I prefer Brussels 1973, partly because of Mick Taylor being outstanding.
1972 may be the best overall tour, though. They´re really "into" it in 1972!

But I tend to think that the best is what i listen to at the moment, which mostly is the 1964 - 1974 period...

Mind you, come to think of it the 12 months from summer 65-summer 66 are pretty defining too.

Let's see now - for the UK we have the Out Of Our Heads, Aftermath and High Tide And Green Grass albums and then the singles:

(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction
Get Off Of My Cloud
19th Nervous Breakdown
Paint It Black
Have You Seen Your Mother, Baby, Standing In The Shadow?

Silver Dagger, a great observation (and reminder). During the year they released their biggest song ever and some other big number ones, came totally self-sufficient in materialwise, conquered the world... The peak of Stonesmania, they were to be the princes of Swingin' London...

- Doxa

check out the 30th anniversary of the Stones bootleg Liver than you'll ever be... An incredible set from their Oakland show of Nov. 9, 1969. I was there and will never forget! Includes their whole set of 16 songs, all the ones on the new Ya-ya's reissue plus Gimme Shelter...

Liver than you'll ever be was the first bootleg I bought. It was exciting to hear that material again after seeing them in Chicago on that tour. The release was shortly after the tour as I recall. This was the show where Keiths amp appeared to blow. I hope some soundboard material emerges from this tour. We are getting a taste with the upcoming releases that to my ear do not sound remixed with overdubs the way YaYa's was.

Why is Let It Bleed considered by so many to be superior to Beggars Banquet? I find it difficult to rank one above the other. LIB has Gimme Shelter (a great), but BB has Sympathy. That said, 1969 was no doubt a banner year for the Stones.

To me, "Ya-Ya's" is the ultimate Stones album, period, live or otherwise.

Doxa -- a very wise, fair, non black-and-white, keen observation:

but I dont think they ever got better, just different...


I wish we could all be as wise and fair. Thanks for the words and the thought.


plexi