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Maindefender
Listened this morning, Amnesia really grabbed me more than previously. CH still holds up very well...

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Palace Revolution 2000
All my life I have been chasing the Stones. As they get older and slow down, and I (hopefully) get a little smarter, there are times I feel like I am catching up. Only to find they got one over on me once again.
Keith put out one of the albums of the year with 'Talk is Cheap'. It added a whole new dimension to his legacy. "Main Offender" was a little more glam; Keith at the top of his game in fighting shape with the Winos put out a strong rock album.
It seemed he was done with the Winos and solo output; especially since he and Mick made up and the Stones stayed busy.
Then he put out "Crosseyed Heart". Took him forever; not much hooplah. And the album was low-key. Keith had bonked his head, gotten a lot older and wiser. Maybe it made for an album to be respected, but not really played all that much.
Which is exactly what I did. But a few threads late;y, Rocky Dijon's post re CH make me go and listen to 'Bigger Bang" and CH.
Keith's album is stellar. I had not realized how good it is. There's low humor,lots of Blues and Country - it is what a Stones album in these years should be. He knows what he knows, and stays within it's reach. One reason Keith has always been the coolest, is because he has never put himself in situations where he isn't in control of that. You will never see Keith dancing; if it isn't his own dance, at his own time & place.

ABB comes off as crass and desperate next to it. I have tried to like ABB several times. There is not ONE song on Bigger Bang that I really like.
It has become harder to like a Stones release. I was thinking about this today. We also are getting older, and maybe as our Stones tank gets fuller and fuller we find it trickier to cram new material in there.
Re CH I think there are some weak cuts on here> "Irene" and " Just a Gift" are waste of space.
"Gift" is a cousin to "Thru And Thru" while "Illusion" is close relative to "Locked Away". Keith has this one melodic, and rhythmic phrase that he uses over and over. Where he starts low and the bottom of a scale and rises up, to end low again. "Cant be Seen", "Ei;leen", "Trouble", "Something 4 Nothing", "Illusion", "Just a Gift".

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matxil

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Palace Revolution 2000
All my life I have been chasing the Stones. As they get older and slow down, and I (hopefully) get a little smarter, there are times I feel like I am catching up. Only to find they got one over on me once again.
Keith put out one of the albums of the year with 'Talk is Cheap'. It added a whole new dimension to his legacy. "Main Offender" was a little more glam; Keith at the top of his game in fighting shape with the Winos put out a strong rock album.
It seemed he was done with the Winos and solo output; especially since he and Mick made up and the Stones stayed busy.
Then he put out "Crosseyed Heart". Took him forever; not much hooplah. And the album was low-key. Keith had bonked his head, gotten a lot older and wiser. Maybe it made for an album to be respected, but not really played all that much.
Which is exactly what I did. But a few threads late;y, Rocky Dijon's post re CH make me go and listen to 'Bigger Bang" and CH.
Keith's album is stellar. I had not realized how good it is. There's low humor,lots of Blues and Country - it is what a Stones album in these years should be. He knows what he knows, and stays within it's reach. One reason Keith has always been the coolest, is because he has never put himself in situations where he isn't in control of that. You will never see Keith dancing; if it isn't his own dance, at his own time & place.

ABB comes off as crass and desperate next to it. I have tried to like ABB several times. There is not ONE song on Bigger Bang that I really like.
It has become harder to like a Stones release. I was thinking about this today. We also are getting older, and maybe as our Stones tank gets fuller and fuller we find it trickier to cram new material in there.
Re CH I think there are some weak cuts on here> "Irene" and " Just a Gift" are waste of space.
"Gift" is a cousin to "Thru And Thru" while "Illusion" is close relative to "Locked Away". Keith has this one melodic, and rhythmic phrase that he uses over and over. Where he starts low and the bottom of a scale and rises up, to end low again. "Cant be Seen", "Ei;leen", "Trouble", "Something 4 Nothing", "Illusion", "Just a Gift".

I agree with almost everything you said but I cannot help reacting to your statement that "Irene" and "Just A Gift" are a waste of space. I love both songs deeply, especially Irene. I also don't see much connection between "Ilusion" and "Locked Away" although I sort of see your analysis about similar melody. The thing is that Keith's songs are not mainly melody-driven, and the atmosphere of the two songs is very different.
For me "Blues In The Morning" is a waste of space but I know I am virtually the only person in the world who thinks that way, so instead of writing Keith Richards a letter if he please, please will bring out a version of CH without that cacaphony, I just skip the bloody thing. I am not overly fond of the "rockers" like Heartstopper, Amnesia and Trouble either, but they are alright, they're sort of like the "hors d'oevre" before the real meal starts.

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keithsman

Just A Gift is the best track on the album imho. I don't think there is a bad track out of those 16 songs, and that is what really surprised me, that Keith could come up with almost a double album of quality songs so late in life.
Also CH made me realise just how much Keith had wasted his talent since 93'. In a way the Stones (Mick) have really held him back creatively. Be careful what you wish for Keith, hanging around to play Warhorses has come at a price creatively.
I just don't see how Keith can be fulfilled with recent Stones albums and tours, i get the impression he doesn't really like the finished article, Stones albums have become 75% Mick solo albums with Keith playing on them and providing the best few tracks. As for live performances i can't see whats in it for Keith, he's clearly bored with most of the setlist and who can blame him, he comes to life when there is something fresh to play ( Like the Fonda gig ) and does his best to try to get into Miss You etc, but i doubt his heart is in it. Too late now but i wonder what sort of career Keith would have had if he stayed solo from 88' i don't think the Stones have offered anything new since then, its just a money grab, the gravy train keeps on rolling, maybe Keith likes coin more than we realized, or maybe he just likes to hang with his old mates.

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matxil

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keithsman

Just A Gift is the best track on the album imho. I don't think there is a bad track out of those 16 songs, and that is what really surprised me, that Keith could come up with almost a double album of quality songs so late in life.
Also CH made me realise just how much Keith had wasted his talent since 93'. In a way the Stones (Mick) have really held him back creatively. Be careful what you wish for Keith, hanging around to play Warhorses has come at a price creatively.
I just don't see how Keith can be fulfilled with recent Stones albums and tours, i get the impression he doesn't really like the finished article, Stones albums have become 75% Mick solo albums with Keith playing on them and providing the best few tracks. As for live performances i can't see whats in it for Keith, he's clearly bored with most of the setlist and who can blame him, he comes to life when there is something fresh to play ( Like the Fonda gig ) and does his best to try to get into Miss You etc, but i doubt his heart is in it. Too late now but i wonder what sort of career Keith would have had if he stayed solo from 88' i don't think the Stones have offered anything new since then, its just a money grab, the gravy train keeps on rolling, maybe Keith likes coin more than we realized, or maybe he just likes to hang with his old mates.

I agree with you a 100% that's it's a missed chance. But I've read in a number of interviews, with Mick Jagger for instance, or some of the others, that one particular trait of Keith Richards is his loyalty, especially to "his" band, the Rolling Stones. I guess that was stronger than his need to go out and do something artistically more rewarding. But, yes, it's a pity.

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matxil

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keithsman

Just A Gift is the best track on the album imho. I don't think there is a bad track out of those 16 songs, and that is what really surprised me, that Keith could come up with almost a double album of quality songs so late in life.
Also CH made me realise just how much Keith had wasted his talent since 93'. In a way the Stones (Mick) have really held him back creatively. Be careful what you wish for Keith, hanging around to play Warhorses has come at a price creatively.
I just don't see how Keith can be fulfilled with recent Stones albums and tours, i get the impression he doesn't really like the finished article, Stones albums have become 75% Mick solo albums with Keith playing on them and providing the best few tracks. As for live performances i can't see whats in it for Keith, he's clearly bored with most of the setlist and who can blame him, he comes to life when there is something fresh to play ( Like the Fonda gig ) and does his best to try to get into Miss You etc, but i doubt his heart is in it. Too late now but i wonder what sort of career Keith would have had if he stayed solo from 88' i don't think the Stones have offered anything new since then, its just a money grab, the gravy train keeps on rolling, maybe Keith likes coin more than we realized, or maybe he just likes to hang with his old mates.

I agree with you a 100% that's it's a missed chance. But I've read in a number of interviews, with Mick Jagger for instance, or some of the others, that one particular trait of Keith Richards is his loyalty, especially to "his" band, the Rolling Stones. I guess that was stronger than his need to go out and do something artistically more rewarding. But, yes, it's a pity.

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keithsman

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matxil

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keithsman

Just A Gift is the best track on the album imho. I don't think there is a bad track out of those 16 songs, and that is what really surprised me, that Keith could come up with almost a double album of quality songs so late in life.
Also CH made me realise just how much Keith had wasted his talent since 93'. In a way the Stones (Mick) have really held him back creatively. Be careful what you wish for Keith, hanging around to play Warhorses has come at a price creatively.
I just don't see how Keith can be fulfilled with recent Stones albums and tours, i get the impression he doesn't really like the finished article, Stones albums have become 75% Mick solo albums with Keith playing on them and providing the best few tracks. As for live performances i can't see whats in it for Keith, he's clearly bored with most of the setlist and who can blame him, he comes to life when there is something fresh to play ( Like the Fonda gig ) and does his best to try to get into Miss You etc, but i doubt his heart is in it. Too late now but i wonder what sort of career Keith would have had if he stayed solo from 88' i don't think the Stones have offered anything new since then, its just a money grab, the gravy train keeps on rolling, maybe Keith likes coin more than we realized, or maybe he just likes to hang with his old mates.

I agree with you a 100% that's it's a missed chance. But I've read in a number of interviews, with Mick Jagger for instance, or some of the others, that one particular trait of Keith Richards is his loyalty, especially to "his" band, the Rolling Stones. I guess that was stronger than his need to go out and do something artistically more rewarding. But, yes, it's a pity.

Yes that's it, Loyalty, that is the characteristic in Keith that prevails over everything else. He loves the band, he loves his mates, he calls them the constant ones.
It's like when he finished Crosseyed Heart, he waited and waited for the right time to release it, i think it was like two years or something, i got the feeling he was waiting for the Stones to call it a day, and then Keith might have taken CH on the road. But his first love, The Rolling Stones continue and he's never going to fulfill that ambition now imho.

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keithsman
But that's what i can't get my head around, even Ronnie and Keith put out solo albums since the last Stones album, no solo album from Mick in 14 years and the clock is still ticking. If he really could write a great solo album with the music that he wants to make, where is it. This is why writers block comes to mind.

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Maindefender
Seems as if the lack of new Stones album has elevated the appreciation for CH.....quote]

Maybe it has ...but CH is also proving to be one of those albums that grows.... and maybe surprises some folks when they listen again after a time.

I've listened to it quite a lot.... and it still gets better with every spin .

The sure sign of a good record

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DandelionPowderman

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keithsman
But that's what i can't get my head around, even Ronnie and Keith put out solo albums since the last Stones album, no solo album from Mick in 14 years and the clock is still ticking. If he really could write a great solo album with the music that he wants to make, where is it. This is why writers block comes to mind.

He did Alfie and Superheavy, though. He put a lot of effort in those albums, I reckon.

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DandelionPowderman

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keithsman
But that's what i can't get my head around, even Ronnie and Keith put out solo albums since the last Stones album, no solo album from Mick in 14 years and the clock is still ticking. If he really could write a great solo album with the music that he wants to make, where is it. This is why writers block comes to mind.

He did Alfie and Superheavy, though. He put a lot of effort in those albums, I reckon.

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keithsman

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matxil

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keithsman

Just A Gift is the best track on the album imho. I don't think there is a bad track out of those 16 songs, and that is what really surprised me, that Keith could come up with almost a double album of quality songs so late in life.
Also CH made me realise just how much Keith had wasted his talent since 93'. In a way the Stones (Mick) have really held him back creatively. Be careful what you wish for Keith, hanging around to play Warhorses has come at a price creatively.
I just don't see how Keith can be fulfilled with recent Stones albums and tours, i get the impression he doesn't really like the finished article, Stones albums have become 75% Mick solo albums with Keith playing on them and providing the best few tracks. As for live performances i can't see whats in it for Keith, he's clearly bored with most of the setlist and who can blame him, he comes to life when there is something fresh to play ( Like the Fonda gig ) and does his best to try to get into Miss You etc, but i doubt his heart is in it. Too late now but i wonder what sort of career Keith would have had if he stayed solo from 88' i don't think the Stones have offered anything new since then, its just a money grab, the gravy train keeps on rolling, maybe Keith likes coin more than we realized, or maybe he just likes to hang with his old mates.

I agree with you a 100% that's it's a missed chance. But I've read in a number of interviews, with Mick Jagger for instance, or some of the others, that one particular trait of Keith Richards is his loyalty, especially to "his" band, the Rolling Stones. I guess that was stronger than his need to go out and do something artistically more rewarding. But, yes, it's a pity.

Yes that's it, Loyalty, that is the characteristic in Keith that prevails over everything else. He loves the band, he loves his mates, he calls them the constant ones.
It's like when he finished Crosseyed Heart, he waited and waited for the right time to release it, i think it was like two years or something, i got the feeling he was waiting for the Stones to call it a day, and then Keith might have taken CH on the road. But his first love, The Rolling Stones continue and he's never going to fulfill that ambition now imho.

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DandelionPowderman
Supposedly, only a very few songs were vault stuff, like Trouble and Nothing On Me. But even Trouble got new lyrics, melodies, riffs and hooks.

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retired_dog

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DandelionPowderman
Supposedly, only a very few songs were vault stuff, like Trouble and Nothing On Me. But even Trouble got new lyrics, melodies, riffs and hooks.

That's how it looks like on the surface, but I think more than 20 years between Main Offender and CH are telling enough... But like I said, there's nothing wrong if an artist finally decides to get all the unfinished recordings, recorded licks, song sketches and ideas together to finalize an album.

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Hairball
And the minimal acoustic title track - Crosseyed Heart...doesn't sound like something he spent too much time on or something he'd been hanging on to for years.
Might have even been spur of the moment at the last minute..."That's all I got..."