I was thinking about this early and it seems that the stones have covered ALOT of songs on their albums, Out of their catalog I counted 10 albums that contained all original music ( aftermath,between the buttons, satanic majesties, goats head soup, emotional rescue, tatoo you, steel wheels, voodoo, bridges and bigger bang) Am I forgetting any?
I wondered why the stones have covered so many songs. I look at a cover on a studio album one of three ways: 1. its your first album and you havent really developed yet as a song writer (IIRC wasnt the stones first album basically a reading of there stage act?) 2. you have an affinity for that genre of music or like a certain song, or 3. You need to fill space on an album. With as prolific as songwriters as jagger and richards are I would like to think the 3 choice isnt true, but ya never know... so why elese all the covers? (note im not counting live albums or sporadic covers)

Without catalogueing each one, I'm guessing that 90% of their covers are blues... that's not uncommon for (especially) british musicians of their era... they all did it.

Most people start out covering 'other' peoples tunes. That's how you learn. Look at The Beatles first album, (actually the first two or three), lots of covers on there.

I ain't stupid, I'm just guitarded.

Rolling Stones History 101: the Stones' whole aim when they first started was to let people hear the splendid music generated by the R&B and blues artists that moved them so, and they've never lost sight of that. that they don't forget and that they pass it on is a beautiful and very Stoned thing.

a really good read:
[www.timeisonourside.com]
"We thought, sure, we'd love to make records, but we're not in that league. We wanted to sell records for Jimmy Reed, Muddy, John Lee Hooker. We were disciples - if we could turn people on to that, then that was enough. That was the total original aim."
- Keith Richards, 1989


"What do you want - what?!"
- Keith



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2005-09-22 10:40 by with sssoul.

I think cobering songs is a great thing. re-interpreting them, presenting them in your own fashion...that's what music is all about then, right? It belongs to everyone. The other reason the Stones do it is to show the worls what they've been into lately. As if they want to share it with the rest. Turn the world on to Blues, Reggae, Soul.
It's a good thing.
Countless times I have read people posting that they wouldn't have heard so and so had it not been for the Stones.

Hey Chelsea I wouldn't have known YOU without the Stones....!!!

ROCKMAN