Comments, input and alterations are very welcome!
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Following The River
(Mick Jagger / Keith Richards)

Rolling Stones Mobile Recording Unit, Villa Nellcote, Villefranche-sur-mer, France, July 10 - late July & October 14 - November 23, 1971 and
One East Studio, New York City, New York, US,
Henson Recording Studios & The Village, Los Angeles, California, US, Fall 2009

Mick Jagger - lead vocals, acoustic guitar, tambourine
Keith Richards - acoustic guitar, electric guitar
Charlie Watts - drums
Bill Wyman - bass
Nicky Hopkins - piano
David Campbell - strings
Lisa Fischer - backing vocals
Cindy Mizelle - backing vocals

There's something I should tell you, why don't you sit there in that chair
You're looking good today, I love the way your comb's tucked in your hair
My cards are on the table, but the drinks have all run out
There's been some others in this room with me, well, really quite a crowd
It's hard to break it gently, but I really thought it through
I don't think there's much future left for me and you, me and you

I've been following the river till it joins hands with the sea
I've been thinking of you so bad, cause you always saw the best in me

You'll probably forget me and I'll fade back in the fog
Just a face disappearing without trace, I'll be lost, I'll be lost
One day I'll hear some laughter in an out-of-town café
I'll be reaching for your number, I'll be calling out your name, calling out your name

I've been following the river to join hands with the sea
I've been thinking of you all the time, cause you always saw the best of me
I'll be following the river, oh my, till it spills out in the sea
And I've been thinking of ya, oh dear
Cause you always saw the best in me, always saw the best of me, of me, yeah
I'll be following the river till it joins hands with in the sea
Ah, if I can't have ya, I'll be dreaming all about ya
Cause you always saw the best in me
I'll be following the river, oh, till it joins hands with the sea
I'll be thinking of ya, now baby, cause you always saw the best in me

Produced by Jimmy Miller, Don Was & The Glimmer Twins

First released on:
The Rolling Stones - “Exile On Main Street” 2CD
(Universal 273 429-5) UK, May 14, 2010



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2010-06-14 10:32 by René.

Great unusual beautiful song.Unique in the Rolling Stones repertoire. Great Mick singing. Very interesting video.

I don't know what it is about rivers, but it always tends to be great songs and so is also Stones River-song...

other is Springsteens - The River, Dylans - Watching the River Flow, Nick Drakes - River man and so on...

loved by many here - i cant stand it: jaggerised kitsch....
the main problem with alomost all the new stuff is the production. it's just to clean and what is even worse: i dont "believe" micks emotions anymore. it sounds fake - cant tell you why exactly....

All the jaggerian clichés are in this title (this is probably why he seems to love this title that much).
This song is a joke.
Even Andy Johns couldn't have save this dung.

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mitch
All the jaggerian clichés are in this title (this is probably why he seems to love this title that much).
This song is a joke.
Even Andy Johns couldn't have save this dung.

But we love those clichés.

Great song, great video, great lyrics, great singing. What more do we want?

Agrreeee Dandelion!!!

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DandelionPowderman
Great song, great video, great lyrics, great singing. What more do we want?

shurely not more of this...;-)

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1962
But we love those clichés.

Not me. Everything sounds "fake" in this track.
We are here far below RS standards (especially the 1971 ones!)
When I buy a RS record, I don't really expect to listen that kind of stuff.
Btw, if I find the other reworked tracks great, this one is totally failed.

Following The River.....hrmmf - not much to say about it, over here, just turn it off.....please

Although I do understand some of the restrained reactions to Micks vocals (I think I feel
about the same), I must say (and I can not help myself) this song sticks in my head quite
easy. I've found myself humming or whistling it on a number of occasions these last weeks.

gREAT TUNE.................GREAT MJ AND NICKY HOPKINS........

There are people who can't listen to songs like Angie or Fool To Cry, or Following The River, because those are not the normal Rolling Stones for them.

Lady Jane, Tell me, Ruby Tuesday, She smiled sweetly............Indian girl.....

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1962
There are people who can't listen to songs like Angie or Fool To Cry, or Following The River, because those are not the normal Rolling Stones for them.

Aaaah! I was waiting for that one... you forgot Miss You!

The Stones crossed the decades because they knew develop/explore different aspect of their music, they succeed very well, and that's why I love them.
Angie, Fool To Cry and Miss You (among others) belong to that kind of tracks.
FTR brings nothing new, it is only a pastiche.
I find it a bit excessive to place it at the same level as Fool To Cry or Angie! Why not Wild Horses or Let It Loose?

Only my 2 cents...

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1962
There are people who can't listen to songs like Angie or Fool To Cry, or Following The River, because those are not the normal Rolling Stones for them.

Thanks for explaining to me why I feel like I do....you read me like an open book

Yeah I hate every single Rolling Stones song that's not dancing on the edge between "hard rock" and "heavy metal"

Ballads....whew - what emotional baloney



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2010-06-14 20:31 by Erik_Snow.

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1962
There are people who can't listen to songs like Angie or Fool To Cry, or Following The River, because those are not the normal Rolling Stones for them.

love angie and fool to cry, both feature great mick vocals. his vocals on following the river are a joke.

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Slick

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1962
There are people who can't listen to songs like Angie or Fool To Cry, or Following The River, because those are not the normal Rolling Stones for them.

love angie and fool to cry, both feature great mick vocals. his vocals on following the river are a joke.

Not to forget Emotional Rescue. Erik?

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Erik_Snow

Quote
1962
There are people who can't listen to songs like Angie or Fool To Cry, or Following The River, because those are not the normal Rolling Stones for them.

Thanks for explaining to me why I feel like I do....you read me like an open book

Yeah I hate every single Rolling Stones song that's not dancing on the edge between "hard rock" and "heavy metal"

Ballads....whew - what emotional baloney

Gosh Erik, you mean you can be an enlightened guy and still not like that song? Are you sure?

Here's my take: great piano, nice melody. The lyrics are pretty typical modern Mick. Mick is still a fine singer, and he works this song pretty hard. However, I agree with guitarbastard on this one -- I just don't believe the emotions. It's like he's become such a craftsman that he dials up the "I'm angst-ridden and sad" voice. He's sending all the right signals, but somehow I'm just not feeling it...maybe I'm way off base, but that's my take.

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1962

Quote
mitch
All the jaggerian clichés are in this title (this is probably why he seems to love this title that much).
This song is a joke.
Even Andy Johns couldn't have save this dung.

But we love those clichés.

That's right - they are Jagger cliches!
LOL

here's the original lyrics that mick improved upon for this release...

'...i'm followin' the money till it joins hands with me
it hurts so bad its really sad i got to split it up with keith
...you look so fine with that comb in your hair can i possibly borrow it?...
...yess i'm followin' the money till my ashes hit the barrel
if i really gave a shit you wouldn't have chuck or darrylll....

...cuz followin the music don't mean that much to me...
i sell out my hard earned rep and then have a spot of tea....

...followin the cliche..tbc

I don't care, nothing the haters say takes away my enjoyment of this track.
To each their own.

[thepowergoats.com]

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texas fan
Here's my take: great piano, nice melody. The lyrics are pretty typical modern Mick. Mick is still a fine singer, and he works this song pretty hard. However, I agree with guitarbastard on this one -- I just don't believe the emotions. It's like he's become such a craftsman that he dials up the "I'm angst-ridden and sad" voice. He's sending all the right signals, but somehow I'm just not feeling it...maybe I'm way off base, but that's my take.

That's a good way of putting it. Jagger is not sincere at all - and it makes the whole river a stone river in a second.

I don't like hearing my favourite band doing such an *act* - which both Jagger and the listener knows is a dial-up-combination-thingy.....
It wouldn't had to be a ballad, either, for me to dislike a song for this reason....there are also dial-up-rockers, with no real *energy* or *fun* being sensed from the performer. it's like the smile from a clerk at Walmart....the smile means zero to both me and the clerk....the clerk's only interested in getting paid



Edited 4 time(s). Last edit at 2010-06-15 02:10 by Erik_Snow.

Don't like it. Too latter era Mick lyrics, leftovers from Wandering Spirit and Goddess sounding. Musically it's A LOT like Let It Loose, which is loads better, combined with Loving Cup. It's obvious why it didn't get finished for the album.

I agree with that part about the music, skip. very similar.

[thepowergoats.com]

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jamesfdouglas
I don't care, nothing the haters say takes away my enjoyment of this track.
To each their own.

jimmy let me tell you what a hater is. what cynicism is...

it might be someone who forces everyone here to look at his own promotion pic of an alien with a drooling shrimp coming out of it's mouth who is being struck by lightning just above his mule ears....

one sentence of text on various threads; and then your promo longer than your usually sillyass opinions...and bang. there it is again and again; the power alien mice eating shrimp getting struck by lighting with their mule ears up....

oohhhh kaaaaayyyyyy. times a hundred or a thousand. man that's pollution not promotion. why do you hate us so much?

James, I think it's cool that you like it. It was not my intention to lessen anyone's enjoyment. I'm sure glad Mick's out there doin' his thing. I'm not looking forward to a world without them. But those were my thoughts about this particular song. It's funny to say he's trying too hard, but I'd like for him to try relaxzing just a bit....

.....interesting to see all the arguments.....except I think some of the criticism of Jagger is a bit harsh. If people are so upset with his singing and his input they should also be alarmed and pissed at KR....

>> I'd like for him to try relaxing just a bit <<

ohh me too - and he's got it in him, i know he has


i love the Rolling Stones