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WeLoveToPlayTheBlues

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mtaylor
Last No. 1 Stones song on US Mainstream rock hit list!!

It was? I mean, it made it to #1 on that chart? It was on the radio for 3 days.

It was #1 on the US rock chart during 3 weeks, they really peaked on US rock radio during 1989-1991 with 4 #1 hits (Mixed Emotions, Rock and a Hard Place, Almost Hear You Sigh and Highwire), these songs and Start Me Up were the Stones' only #1's on that chart.

love the song. play it live. love the beat and they lyrics are genious.

This track doesn't ring my bell. It needs work. Not the best tune or the best performance. Not even close to the Stones in their glory.

Makes me believe that 1989-1991 were years when high positions on the US Rock chart was quite literally bought and paid for, again. Sorry. Next. peace



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2012-03-08 12:06 by Naturalust.

What is he reffering to in the verse "Another Munich we just can't afford"?

Is it about assasination of athletes during 1972 Summer Olympics? Or about Nazis rising to power in 30s with Munich being their headquater?

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franzk
What is he reffering to in the verse "Another Munich we just can't afford"?

Is it about assasination of athletes during 1972 Summer Olympics? Or about Nazis rising to power in 30s with Munich being their headquater?

I think it's probably the latter particularly if you take into account the previous line:
Sometimes dictators need a slap on the wrist
Another Munich we just can't afford


"As we say in England, it can get a bit trainspottery"

It´s brilliant, absolutely brilliant, amazing!
I remember that I played it over and over again countless times when it came out on Flashpoint. I still love it, it´s one of their greatest tunes (not only post-1981). The drums, the guitars, Mick´s vocals, the lyrics - everything´s top notch. They never ever did it live, I guess?

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Deltics

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franzk
What is he reffering to in the verse "Another Munich we just can't afford"?

Is it about assasination of athletes during 1972 Summer Olympics? Or about Nazis rising to power in 30s with Munich being their headquater?

I think it's probably the latter particularly if you take into account the previous line:
Sometimes dictators need a slap on the wrist
Another Munich we just can't afford

Boff... It's a reference to Neville Chamberlain capitulating to the Nazi's at the 1938 Munich conference and selling out Czechoslovakia and letting it get sliced up. This was a major step on the path towards WWII.

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MileHigh

Boff... It's a reference to Neville Chamberlain capitulating to the Nazi's at the 1938 Munich conference and selling out Czechoslovakia and letting it get sliced up. This was a major step on the path towards WWII.[/quote]

Correct

Horrible song.

Horrible?
I´d like to know what exactly is so "horrible".

Imo, not liking very-stonesy Highwire is almost like saying: "The Stones are a horrible band. I never liked any of their songs."

I think Highwire has everything one might expect of the Stones.

Hope they do it next year, live. Like it.
Jeroen

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HMS
It´s brilliant, absolutely brilliant, amazing!
I remember that I played it over and over again countless times when it came out on Flashpoint. I still love it, it´s one of their greatest tunes (not only post-1981). The drums, the guitars, Mick´s vocals, the lyrics - everything´s top notch. They never ever did it live, I guess?

I still love this song!
Last real Stones'song with Mixed Emotions.

I like Highwire, but it's a "Mick-song", with some fills added by Keith and a brilliant solo by Ronnie. Mick plays the open G-guitar.

The chorus doesn't quite live up to the punch and power of the verse and bridge, imo.

First rate. Jerry Hall was profiled in Mustique in Vogue to push her swimwear line, and Mick was there and Highwire was just out and Jerry said, "You can't tell by the song if he's for or against the [Gulf] war. But he's against it." Mick and Keith were very angry Bill went AWOL for the video shoot. Wish he were in it.

Highwire

Highwire just makes me wanna

Doom and Gloom makes me wanna go

Masterworks.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2016-08-21 22:44 by RipThisBone.

[www.youtube.com]

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HMS
Horrible?
I´d like to know what exactly is so "horrible".

Imo, not liking very-stonesy Highwire is almost like saying: "The Stones are a horrible band. I never liked any of their songs."

I think Highwire has everything one might expect of the Stones.

well a shallow dated attempt at being up to date. They sound like old farts. The supposed political stuff is just stupid and childish. Theres a disturbing distance between the song and the performers.

Highwire belongs to there best songs of last 20 years...........the riff comes close to JJF and SFM
Thanks KRiffhard for the link....................

__________________________




Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2016-08-22 01:46 by NICOS.

Crap.

The 'Get up, stand up' part after the somewhat decent guitar solo ranks as one of the worst moments ever committed to a Stones record.
And cheesy lyrics - Mick should have kept it for one of his solo albums where it belongs.

_____________________________________________________________
Rip this joint, gonna save your soul, round and round and round we go......

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HMS
I think Highwire has everything one might expect of the Stones.

And that's exactly the problem with the song. It sounds forced. It sounds like they used all those Stones trademarks to create another Stones classic, but it ends up sounding like a Stones parody instead. See also Don't Stop - a quite similar case of copying themselves.

I used to like it when it came out, but it quickly wore off. Haven't intentionally listened to it for at least 15 years.

Oh, and I think Bill was right when he left at this point. Maybe not financially, but artistically for sure. I remember his quote "...after Steel Wheels and the 1989/1990 I felt that everything was said and done" quite well.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2016-08-22 04:46 by alimente.

Some of those lyrics sound wrong. I always thought it was "catching the fight on the primetime" and "park in the sunshine"

"tell'em to pipe in the sunshine..."


[www.youtube.com]

Great song! It was especially great to get a new studio track with a live album.

Rolling Stones, Linea Alta - Highwire - Translucent Brown Vinyl, Mexican, Promo




UNITED STATES - AUGUST 22: Keith Richards of The Rolling Stones photographed on the shoot of the video of their singe 'Highwire' in NYC. 1990 (Photo by Vinnie Zuffante/Getty Images)

"Highwire" is an anti-war song by The Rolling Stones featured on their 1991 live album Flashpoint.[1]
Written by Mick Jagger and Keith Richards, "Highwire" is one of the rare examples of the Stones taking on political issues - in this case, the fall-out from Persian Gulf War. On the song, Jagger said at the time of its release, "It's not about the war. It's about how it started."[2] Richards continued, saying, "This is not about the war. It's about how you build up some shaky dictator. You can't build them up, 'cause then you've got to slam them down."[2]
The song's lyrics deconstructed the build-up to the war, and criticized the politics behind it:
“ We sell 'em missiles, We sell 'em tanks; We give 'em credit, You can call the bank; It's just a business, You can pay us in crude; You love these toys, just go play out your feuds; Got no pride, don't know whose boots to lick; We act so greedy, makes me sick sick sick.
”
An accompanying video directed by Julien Temple was released and depicted the Stones in an industrial set performing the song.

[en.wikipedia.org])


"Highwire, the Stones' track that attacked the West's role in the Gulf War."



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2016-08-22 10:34 by exilestones.

Ya gotta gotta love Mick's --- Blue Velvet-In Dreams microphone .....



ROCKMAN

Underrated. Much better than stadium rock shit like Mixed Emotions or You Got Me Rocking. It's one of the many great singles never played live, not even in 1994.

Whereas to me "Start Me Up", possibly provoking to some, is rather cheap and the mother of "Stones-by-numbers" songs, I experience "Highwire" as the real thing as far as Rolling Stones music is concerned.

The Rolling Stones used to be subtle. They could steal bits and or come up with something of their own and use minimalism, sound, production, mix, layers, musicianship to construct and create a great track. And 50 years later we are discussing influences (Cooder, Mayfield, Wolf, Parsons, Winwood) and recording technique, studios and guitars and who played what and when.

Highwire has nothing of that spark and tingle. It's something a really bad cover band would record in that one day they hired a real expensive studio (in the early 90s).

Keith described Bill's best trait in one word, Timing. Bill knew it was time to go if they were going to put out POS records like Highwire. It's a B side at best. Bill's bass playing even sounds like he's out the door, ready to raise a lovely bouquet of daughters. I don't consider this Bill's swansong with the Stones, probably more like contractual obligation. Slipping Away is what I will always think of as Bill's goodbye. It's also goodbye to the Golden Era. Highwire is down there with those 4 new songs thrown on Forty Licks, pure filler garbage.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2016-08-23 09:50 by 24FPS.