You are a smart man HonkeyTonkFlash...

Sympathy was always my fav Stones track.
Cant listen to it now from the current show.
In fact i have no time for it after the mid 70's.
1989 was ok...but essentially all versions 1968-1970 were perfect..i.e. they portrayed the song the way it should be..the rest phoney.

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Eleanor Rigby
You are a smart man HonkeyTonkFlash...

Sympathy was always my fav Stones track.
Cant listen to it now from the current show.
In fact i have no time for it after the mid 70's.
1989 was ok...but essentially all versions 1968-1970 were perfect..i.e. they portrayed the song the way it should be..the rest phoney.

Right, and what happened to SFTD is fairly representative of what happened to the Stones live show in general. Up until 1981-82 they played for Stones fans. Most of us liked the fact that they re-arranged their songs for the stage instead of slavishly copying their studio versions. What they did in 1989 was kind of cool simply because they'd been gone for so many years, but from then on they kind of neglected their diehards and catered to casual "classic rock" fans who wanted to hear the hits just like they remembered them from the records. I've seen the Stones four times since 1989 and enjoyed them but for me The Rolling Stones that I truly loved did their farewell tour in 1981-82. In 1989 they debuted the world's most spectacular Rolling Stones Tribute Band and have continued as such ever since. At least in 1989 I still naively held out some hope that on a future tour they might try reviving a guitar-driven version of Sympathy ala Ya Ya's or Love You Live. Obviously, that will never happen again. The horns, the backing singers, the loops...all were harbingers that we would never see the real Rolling Stones again. I still love them and wouldn't mind seeing them again. But for me, part of the thrill of seeing them live was wondering how they would change their songs for the stage. Those days are long gone.

"Gonna find my way to heaven ..."



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2017-01-08 16:29 by HonkeyTonkFlash.

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HonkeyTonkFlash

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TheflyingDutchman

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HonkeyTonkFlash
Speaking of SFTD, I just have to say this regarding the Ya Ya's version. Pure magic, especially towards the end where Taylor picks up the solo and Keith drops into rhythm. Keith's thrashing behind Taylor's lead is - for me - the most excellent example of why Keith Richards was the greatest rhythm guitarist of all time.

There are many examples showing us that Keith was one of the greatest -if not the greatest rhythm guitarist in rock music.

Very true, but I'm just saying that for me his work on Ya Ya's Sympathy is a peak moment. And Ya Ya's has plenty of examples of it. Stray Cat Blues comes to mind and many others. I would also add his driving, chugging playing on songs like All Down The Line as heard on Some Girls Live and other performances of that era. His rhythm playing for the most part from 1969 - 1981 was from a whole other planet. I think working with Taylor, who played so much lead made Keith develop a very unique style. He is still a very good rhythm player at times but it seems that since 1989, he started that habit of taking his hands off the guitar more often and posing as contrasted with constant relentless aggressive playing. Actually, there were moments of such behavior quite a bit in 1981. I liked him best when he played those driving rhythms constantly throughout the songs.

I agree with most you write. I'm Free, Baltimore '69 and Gimme Shelter, Philly '72 are other great examples (re the bold letters) I think Richards and Taylor got the best out of each other when they played together, on stage in particular.

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TheflyingDutchman

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HonkeyTonkFlash

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TheflyingDutchman

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HonkeyTonkFlash
Speaking of SFTD, I just have to say this regarding the Ya Ya's version. Pure magic, especially towards the end where Taylor picks up the solo and Keith drops into rhythm. Keith's thrashing behind Taylor's lead is - for me - the most excellent example of why Keith Richards was the greatest rhythm guitarist of all time.

There are many examples showing us that Keith was one of the greatest -if not the greatest rhythm guitarist in rock music.

Very true, but I'm just saying that for me his work on Ya Ya's Sympathy is a peak moment. And Ya Ya's has plenty of examples of it. Stray Cat Blues comes to mind and many others. I would also add his driving, chugging playing on songs like All Down The Line as heard on Some Girls Live and other performances of that era. His rhythm playing for the most part from 1969 - 1981 was from a whole other planet. I think working with Taylor, who played so much lead made Keith develop a very unique style. He is still a very good rhythm player at times but it seems that since 1989, he started that habit of taking his hands off the guitar more often and posing as contrasted with constant relentless aggressive playing. Actually, there were moments of such behavior quite a bit in 1981. I liked him best when he played those driving rhythms constantly throughout the songs.

I agree with most you write. I'm Free, Baltimore '69 and Gimme Shelter, Philly '72 are other great examples (re the bold letters) I think Richards and Taylor got the best out of each other when they played together, on stage in particular.

Yes, I get the impression that Keith started playing in a somewhat "weaving" style with Brian Jones - which he would later revisit with Ronnie, but Mick Taylor's penchant for playing lead lines through much of the songs led Keith to really take rhythm guitar to a whole new level. Much of his rhythm playing during the Taylor years and even up to 1981 was just transcendent.

"Gonna find my way to heaven ..."

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HonkeyTonkFlash
... his driving, chugging playing on songs like All Down The Line as heard on Some Girls Live and other performances of that era. His rhythm playing for the most part from 1969 - 1981 was from a whole other planet.

The greatest rhythm playing I've ever heard from Keith is on the two Chuck Berry tunes on GYYYO!, which is how you just described it - that chugging. There's something weird about the styling of it, it feels like it has a lag to it but it doesn't. He does a much tighter and faster chugging on Rocks Off, which is just stellar.

His playing on Midnight Rambler on GYYYO! is just razor sharp. The huge open bulldozing playing on Street Fighting Man with those huge clanging riffs is exceptional.

Definitely a peak time for Keith regarding is rhythmic style, execution and musicianship, 1968-1973 (not so much with GOATS HEAD SOUP but the tour).

LA Friday 1975. The Best.

video: [vimeo.com]

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muffie
LA Friday 1975. The Best.

video: [vimeo.com]

Lovely - but NOT better than the studio or GYYYO

Rod

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muffie
LA Friday 1975. The Best.

video: [vimeo.com]

I love it.

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bitusa2012

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muffie
LA Friday 1975. The Best.

video: [vimeo.com]

Lovely - but NOT better than the studio or GYYYO

Agree. Ronnie did most of the work. Keith doesn't turn it on until 4:15. Still, a superb version. Some girls of course make it special.

it's one of those songs that cant be compared to anything else. nothing sounds similar. bowies heroes is also a song like that. like an own genre.
it's not among my personal favs. but i mus admit it's a killer song!

Hi Folks

I am searching for a video with the full original text inclusive of the following text passage:-

I watched with glee
While your kings and queens
Fought for ten decades
For the gods they made

I shouted out,
"Who killed the Kennedys?"
When after all
It was you and me

Let me please introduce myself
I'm a man of wealth and taste
And I laid traps for troubadours
Who get killed before they reached Bombay

Can anybody help please?

Thanks - d.f

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dead.flowers
Hi Folks

I am searching for a video with the full original text inclusive of the following text passage:-

I watched with glee
While your kings and queens
Fought for ten decades
For the gods they made

I shouted out,
"Who killed the Kennedys?"
When after all
It was you and me

Let me please introduce myself
I'm a man of wealth and taste
And I laid traps for troubadours
Who get killed before they reached Bombay

Can anybody help please?

Thanks - d.f

Drew

I love Sympathy live! Although, it has to have the all the effects - the pyro, Mick in his hat and trench coat that seems to have been missing in the past coupla years. To me, this was the true highlight of the show - my Rambler if you will. I always enjoyed this one live. It was quite the spectacle!!!!

Thank you Drew.

But are there any such live videos around?

d.f

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HonkeyTonkFlash

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Eleanor Rigby
You are a smart man HonkeyTonkFlash...

Sympathy was always my fav Stones track.
Cant listen to it now from the current show.
In fact i have no time for it after the mid 70's.
1989 was ok...but essentially all versions 1968-1970 were perfect..i.e. they portrayed the song the way it should be..the rest phoney.

Right, and what happened to SFTD is fairly representative of what happened to the Stones live show in general. Up until 1981-82 they played for Stones fans. Most of us liked the fact that they re-arranged their songs for the stage instead of slavishly copying their studio versions. What they did in 1989 was kind of cool simply because they'd been gone for so many years, but from then on they kind of neglected their diehards and catered to casual "classic rock" fans who wanted to hear the hits just like they remembered them from the records. I've seen the Stones four times since 1989 and enjoyed them but for me The Rolling Stones that I truly loved did their farewell tour in 1981-82. In 1989 they debuted the world's most spectacular Rolling Stones Tribute Band and have continued as such ever since. At least in 1989 I still naively held out some hope that on a future tour they might try reviving a guitar-driven version of Sympathy ala Ya Ya's or Love You Live. Obviously, that will never happen again. The horns, the backing singers, the loops...all were harbingers that we would never see the real Rolling Stones again. I still love them and wouldn't mind seeing them again. But for me, part of the thrill of seeing them live was wondering how they would change their songs for the stage. Those days are long gone.

I think that many of us will identify with your comments ....but by now I suspect most of us are just reconciled to it .

[I still enjoy some of Keith's subtle changes and inflections of the beat on the old "Warhorses" though ]

For the Stamp Collectors amongst us.....

There is a 7-inch version of One Plus One that is coming out in early-November. I've actually never seen Sympathy For The Devil, though I own it on DVD - the faded yellow cover version, with Mick sitting on a stool kind of in the center of the cover. I'm not sure if One Plus One is on that particular copy or not, and since my collection is mostly in storage at the moment, I have no way of confirming yes or not.

I ordered my copy of this new version from YesAsia, as it was the only place that I could find this particular version, but I see now that it's also available on Amazon.JP. I'm not sure now if it's an official release, or an unofficial one, but the 7-inch size is cool, and it will look nice alongside the other 7-inch sized, re-releases. It also comes with a limited edition poster of the memorial screening after Charlie's untimely passing. I don't recall reading anywhere that this movie was played - was it? The Amazon site has some more info than YesAsia, but I still can't really make out who the manufacturer is. In any case, I wanted the Stamp Collectors to be aware of its existence!!!

One Plus One