We hardly ever talk about this one. There's 'Wandering Spirit' and "Goddess in a Doorway' that are good; there's "Primitive Cool" in the trashbin, there's the Big Hits, Alfie and performance - all pretty good.
What do you guys think of "She's the Boss"?
It's pretty different from "Primitive Cool". Both are still trying real hard, too hard 4 chart dominance, 4 maybe establishing Jagger as a solo artist. Spirit and Goddess don't have that particular goal in mind anymore.
The songs are pretty horrible, right? It's hard to find the core song under the 80's bombast. "Just another night" and "Hard Woman" come to mind as front runners.

it's an album from the mid-80's. 'nuff said.

I got this orininally on vinyl through a pal of mine who did a bit of DJing,so I got it at a reasonable price so it tempers my judgement a bit,some decent enough songs on there,a lot of ordinary stuff,cried out for someone else to add some direction even constructive criticism
Rebought it a few years back on CD to complete my collection ,but that about sums it up ,''I bought it to complete my collection'',except for the title track can't even remember any of the other song titles.

The production ruins a lot of the songs for me but I really like Lonely at The Top, 1/2 A Loaf and Hard Woman.

There's quite some good tracks on it, from the day that Jagger still could write and sing. There's no need to discuss the production though...

Mathijs

Just Another Night was a decent single with a pretty spanish guitar in it. Hard Woman on the album is good, but they ruined it with some disco mix for a 45. Lonely At The Top is OK I guess, but he should have released that one with the Stones. Rest of the album I never play at all.

By the way, I agree with Wandering Spirit being a great album, but Goddess is pretty bad.

Pete.

Hard Woman is the only decent track on it. The rest is terribly awful and the extremely dated production makes it unlistenable for me.

Production is awful, indeed
But some tracks are quite good; considering they're from the 80s and all. Hard Woman, Secrets and Just Another Night are quite allright; all things considered, at least if you can get past the "80s feel". And Half A Loaf is not too shabby either.

Poorest track on the album for me is "She's The Boss" and "Running Out Of Luck". ....and it's also quite tiresome that "Lucky In Love" goes on forever and ever, with the same kind of Jagger yelling as he does by the end of "She's The Boss".

I'll give the album 2 out of 6 stars.

I'm going to see both Sting and Prince in December within about a week of each other.

As this brings back 80s memories, I may haul out She's The Boss and Primitive Cool and give them a nostalgic whirl.

I really liked this album when it first came out, but understand I was young and stoopid, and when compared with Duran Duran or Kajagoogoo, mid-eighties Mick sounded like Dylan or Neil Young.

Ah well, we all have lapses of taste.

I like it. It's got some decent songs and it doesn't sound like the Rolling Stones. But looking for a different angle/sound is probably the whole point of doing something outside of the band.

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Mathijs
There's quite some good tracks on it, from the day that Jagger still could write and sing. There's no need to discuss the production though...

Mathijs

Yes. Spot on.

I think 'She's The Boss' very much shows Mick being influenced by contemporary fashion, which may have seemed fairly fitting for the time, but over the longer period this has resulted in 'She's The Boss' almost sounding unlistenable to many ears. Jagger is more seduced at this point in the aim of maximising any potential success, than actually having a genuine desire to make great music. Luckily, in part, Jagger actually manages to write the odd good song, and there are also moments when the production to a degree works effectively to enhance the songs strengths. 'Just Another Night' is perhaps the best example of this, and although i think i'd be hard pushed to describe the song as a classic, i think everything contained within this song actually works ultimately to the song's advantage. 'Hard Woman' works reasonably well too, although i do have a few reservations concerning parts of Jagger's vocal, and 'Lonely At The Top' works well as a song in part, but the heavy handed nature of the production doesn't do it any favours. Many of the other tracks are so engrossed in the eighties sound that it becomes difficult to detach them from that time period, and analyse them in a more impartial way. 'Secrets' may have been good in another context, the same with 'Half A Loaf', but the title track especially, exists purely as a way of demonstrating the contemporary feel of the album.

I did feel at the time that Jagger had really made a special effort to give 'She's The Boss' a contemporary relevence within the 1985 pop landscape, in a much more self conscious way than anything he had afforded with the Stones, but ultimately that has proved the album's great undoing. Jagger, in many ways, seemed extremely meticulous in his aims to produce a genuinely impressive album. Vocally, he was beginning to lose a little of his sensitivity too, and his gruff vocals, while working great on some occasions, actually would have been more effective if they had been a little more flexible at other times. Around 1986 i would have said 'She's The Boss' was more effective than both the Stones 'Undercover' and 'Dirty Work' albums simply because it seemed more up to date, but it is strange how perspectives change, because while i can occasionally find some amiable features on both of those Stones albums, and perhaps some raw energy, 'She's The Boss' ultimately flounders badly under its self consciousness.



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 2011-11-05 17:49 by Edward Twining.

Well...as we all know...Lonely At The Top was a Stones leftover...an OK tune...if it was great it would have made Some Girls or Emotional Rescue...

I LOVE "1/2 A Loaf" and "Secrets"...Secrets rocks...it really does.

"Lucky In Love" and "Just Another Night" are good too...Ok singles for the time.

The rest is pretty much forgetable...to put things in prospective..."Back To Zero" didn't make this record...how bad is "Back To Zero"????

PECMAN

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treaclefingers
I'm going to see both Sting and Prince in December within about a week of each other.

As this brings back 80s memories, I may haul out She's The Boss and Primitive Cool and give them a nostalgic whirl.

Cool for the top two but the bottom one, wow, that's really...that's almost tragic there. You have left me numb.

I think Mick still owes the public an apology for this one.
I don't remember getting one? Anybody?

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Erik_Snow
Production is awful, indeed
But some tracks are quite good; considering they're from the 80s and all. Hard Woman, Secrets and Just Another Night are quite allright; all things considered, at least if you can get past the "80s feel". And Half A Loaf is not too shabby either.

Poorest track on the album for me is "She's The Boss" and "Running Out Of Luck". ....and it's also quite tiresome that "Lucky In Love" goes on forever and ever, with the same kind of Jagger yelling as he does by the end of "She's The Boss".

I'll give the album 2 out of 6 stars.

That pretty much says the way I see that album; except the one cut I always dug was "Turn the Girl Loose". I d forgotten about "Lucky in Love" - man I hated that song even back then. I must say that "Lonely at the Top" is terrible IMO. Jagger overdoes the 'Stones-thing' to the nth degree. Like Edward T. says 'heavy handed'.
On those first two solo albums Jagger really went low with the final tracks: She's the Boss and War Babies. Dan Akroyd used to do the Bad Cinema Review: "Bad stuff;truly Bad".

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Palace Revolution 2000
I must say that "Lonely at the Top" is terrible IMO. Jagger overdoes the 'Stones-thing' to the nth degree. Like Edward T. says 'heavy handed'.

Completely agree. I understand some people find "Lonely At The Top" to among Jagger's best solo rockers - but I find it impossible to enjoy that one. It's a very tiresome over-the-top vocals.

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Munichhilton
I think Mick still owes the public an apology for this one.
I don't remember getting one? Anybody?

Hi apology was a big 'F.U.'...it was called "Let's Work".

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DragonSky

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treaclefingers
I'm going to see both Sting and Prince in December within about a week of each other.

As this brings back 80s memories, I may haul out She's The Boss and Primitive Cool and give them a nostalgic whirl.

Cool for the top two but the bottom one, wow, that's really...that's almost tragic there. You have left me numb.

I was being facetious (in that I won't actually play them...well, now that I'm sitting here talking about them, maybe I will...I'll see later if I'm feeling any self-loathing) and a little self deprecating (because of the Prince/Sting indulges).

All I can say, is I didn't spend very much for tix...hey, it's a night out!

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treaclefingers

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Munichhilton
I think Mick still owes the public an apology for this one.
I don't remember getting one? Anybody?

Hi apology was a big 'F.U.'...it was called "Let's Work".

Ha!
I guess you're right
what a throwaway

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Munichhilton

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treaclefingers

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Munichhilton
I think Mick still owes the public an apology for this one.
I don't remember getting one? Anybody?

Hi apology was a big 'F.U.'...it was called "Let's Work".

Ha!
I guess you're right
what a throwaway

pun intended?!

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treaclefingers

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Munichhilton

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treaclefingers

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Munichhilton
I think Mick still owes the public an apology for this one.
I don't remember getting one? Anybody?

Hi apology was a big 'F.U.'...it was called "Let's Work".

Ha!
I guess you're right
what a throwaway

pun intended?!

With my apologies...sorry to kow tow

If you don't like, go @#$%& you ... Simple ...

Hard Woman and Lucky In Love are still on my ipod rotation, still good songs.

Unlike Their Satanic Majesties, She's The Boss hasn't aged exactly well. Some decent tracks on it, but close to unlistenable today. Besides, at the time I was listening more and more to bands and artists like The Clash, Patti Smith,The Cure, Sisters Of Mercy, The Mission, Lords Of The New Church, Green On Red, Rain Parade, Mighty Lemon Drops etc. because I increasingly felt that the Stones were more and more missing the boat after Tattoo You.

In a way it is the precursor to Steel Wheels. Just Another Night = Terrifying

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Munichhilton

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treaclefingers

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Munichhilton

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treaclefingers

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Munichhilton
I think Mick still owes the public an apology for this one.
I don't remember getting one? Anybody?

Hi apology was a big 'F.U.'...it was called "Let's Work".

Ha!
I guess you're right
what a throwaway

pun intended?!

With my apologies...sorry to kow tow

huh...no peace for the wicked eh?!

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Shezeboss
If you don't like, go fuc*k you ... Simple ...

That was quite nasty...did someone piss you off?

Out of all Micks solo albums "Shes the Boss" is my favourite

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colonial
Out of all Micks solo albums "Shes the Boss" is my favourite

I'm afraid I'd go with Wandering Spirit, then Superheavy, Performance Soundtrack (if just for Memo From Turner) then Primitive Cool, then She's the Boss, then Alfie, then Goddess.