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Turner68
I was a teenager when this came out, and was really unfamiliar with what it was supposed to feel like when a new Stones album came out.

My excitement was immense when I put Undercover on. The cover sure looked cool. I felt like "this could be the next Sticky Fingers!" It really seemed like every new Stones album held that sort of promise back then, back before the string of albums like this made me jaded and cynical.

Anyway, I remember being really bummed after listening to it as a tender young lad and wondering if it was just me, that I just didn't get what they were doing, or if it really just wasn't a very good album.

By the time I got to college and went back and listened to it more i realized how mediocre it really was. It would be false to call this a "bad" album, but in the context of 1983 , it was a bad Stones album, and worse, a sign that perhaps the IORR and GHS level of quality was the "new normal" rather than those albums just being a really bad dry spell.

I could have typed the above from word to word. And the same thing happened with DIRTY WORK and STEEL WHEELS as well. Thrilled first but rather soon more seeing things a bit more 'realistically'. The first time I actually was disappointed, from the first listening, was VOODOO LOUNGE. But it didn't really matter, since by that time I had lost the hope that we are going to get another STICKY FINGERS, or even SOME GIRLS or TATTOO YOU class of album (even though the reviews were always screaming that back then - one of teh reasons I started ignoring them...).

The time has not been very kind to any post-TATTOO YOU albums, but of the older ones, I have mostly started to appreciate three albums I didn't much respect back in the 80's when I did my fundamental Rolling Stones courses. Those are SATANIC MAJESTIES, GOATS HEAD SOUP and EMOTIONAL RESCUE. Those albums are the ones I could say having 'grown on me'. But man, did they had a bad reputation back then...

But about UNDERCOVER. I guess it has been one of the most talked albums ever here in IORR. And with most mixed feelings. That's maybe the reason why this 'album talk' doesn't seem to gather much attention (this could be said of many other albums as well). At least I have run out of bullets a long time ago...

- Doxa

Why did Emotional Rescue have «a bad reputation»? Never heard that before. It usually is among every Stones fan's top 8-10 albums.

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DandelionPowderman
Why did Emotional Rescue have «a bad reputation»? Never heard that before. It usually is among every Stones fan's top 8-10 albums.

I remember being that 'forgettable album' between SOME GIRLS and TATTOO YOU. A 'fact' like the 70's downhill period (GHS, IORR, BA. A disappointment after 'back to the form' SOME GIRLS but making TATTOO YOU sound even that better... This said, the value and significance of TATTOO YOU in their catalog ('their last great album') wasn't so clear until they had relaesed some mediocre albums...

I think some of the reasons for the re-evaluation of some of their lesser past works generally is the not-so-exciting quality of post-TATTOO YOU albums. The 'weak' albums back then weren't really that weak looking now...

I still doubt if EMOTIONAL RESCUE would make "every fans's top 8-10".

- Doxa

Taken from Wiki, which describes the album's reception and sales:

Release and reception:

Released in June with the disco-infused hit title track as the lead single, Emotional Rescue was an immediate smash. The title track hit No. 3 on the Billboard Hot 100. The album gave the Rolling Stones their first UK No. 1 album since 1973's Goats Head Soup and spent seven weeks atop the US charts. The follow-up single "She's So Cold" was a top 30 hit while "Dance Pt. 1" reached No. 9 on Billboard's Dance chart.

Just to put things in perspective, Emotional Rescue was a huge success for the Stones, just like SG and TY were. So, at the time, there weren't really a huge disappointment and any bad reputation.

Mostly, the people who don't like ER are people who miss Taylor, and can't stand the Stones without him – in the bigger picture that's a marginal group of the total amount of fans.

But the group who BOTH miss Taylor AND can appreciate a good Stones record when they hear one is way larger. That's my experience anyway

I dont miss Taylor on the post-75-albums at all. At the same time I do not miss Ronnie on the albums before 1975

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DandelionPowderman
Taken from Wiki, which describes the album's reception and sales:

Release and reception:

Released in June with the disco-infused hit title track as the lead single, Emotional Rescue was an immediate smash. The title track hit No. 3 on the Billboard Hot 100. The album gave the Rolling Stones their first UK No. 1 album since 1973's Goats Head Soup and spent seven weeks atop the US charts. The follow-up single "She's So Cold" was a top 30 hit while "Dance Pt. 1" reached No. 9 on Billboard's Dance chart.

Just to put things in perspective, Emotional Rescue was a huge success for the Stones, just like SG and TY were. So, at the time, there weren't really a huge disappointment and any bad reputation.

Mostly, the people who don't like ER are people who miss Taylor, and can't stand the Stones without him – in the bigger picture that's a marginal group of the total amount of fans.

But the group who BOTH miss Taylor AND can appreciate a good Stones record when they hear one is way larger. That's my experience anyway

I wasn't talking about its commercial success; it did sell damn well (as did, and even better, GOATS HEAD SOUP, or STEEL WHEELS and VOODOO LOUNGE if you like, by the way), but about a half what SOME GIRLS did (to put things in perspective). No, I was about talking about the reception (its 'legacy') after its heyday, what impact it had in a longer run, and recalling what the musical press and, yeah, Stones fans, were thinking at the time (from the times I started reflect these kind of things, from 1981/82 on). It was clear at the time that the title track, a hit single yeah, didn't turn out to be any kind of Stones classic to be remembered, a'la "Miss You" or "Start Me Up", but more like a flavor of the month kind of thing. As, say, "Undercover of THe Night" would turn out to be.

And then, what the hell you are talking about that Taylorite crap here?

The paragraph

Mostly, the people who don't like ER are people who miss Taylor, and can't stand the Stones without him – in the bigger picture that's a marginal group of the total amount of fans.

is, to use Mathijs' favourite expression, total bollocks, and, with respect, tells more about yourself and your personal problems with Taylorites/Taylor. Please, get over it, for god sakes! Not EVERYTHING is some sort of Taylor/Wood-battle. You don't need to everytime defend 'Wood-era' and attack people preferring Taylor-era or turn the discussion there.

At the time I get to know EMOTIONAL RESCUE in early 80's (purchased it in January 1982; it was my second or third Stones album I think - easy to get, since there were lots of non-sold copies available, costing next to nothing), I didn't know anything about these era-battles, but it was quite easy to notice, consulting my own taste and the musical press, that it - like BLACK AND BLUE (to get one more Ronnie-involved album) - wasn't such a strong and important album as SOME GIRLS and then the latest TATTOO YOU were. 'Everybody' through the 80's seem to still talk about SOME GIRLS, but EMOTIONAL RESCUE sounded like a forgotten piece. If in your world, then and now, those three (or four) albums were/are equal hailed masterpieces, let it be so. I do/did see there some differences, and I think many others do/did as well. If it says anything of its impact to the collective memory of the musical world, I don't think EMOTIONAL RESCUE is very high in the list of upcoming Deluxe albums (which is a shame).

- Doxa

If I had to chose between Some Girls and Emotional Rescue I´d prefer the latter. Imo, it´s a better album than SG, at least for me it is more enjoyable, more outstanding tracks on it, more variety and better singing.

A few decades from now the collective memory of the musical world will have forgotten both albums anyway.

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Doxa

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DandelionPowderman
Taken from Wiki, which describes the album's reception and sales:

Release and reception:

Released in June with the disco-infused hit title track as the lead single, Emotional Rescue was an immediate smash. The title track hit No. 3 on the Billboard Hot 100. The album gave the Rolling Stones their first UK No. 1 album since 1973's Goats Head Soup and spent seven weeks atop the US charts. The follow-up single "She's So Cold" was a top 30 hit while "Dance Pt. 1" reached No. 9 on Billboard's Dance chart.

Just to put things in perspective, Emotional Rescue was a huge success for the Stones, just like SG and TY were. So, at the time, there weren't really a huge disappointment and any bad reputation.

Mostly, the people who don't like ER are people who miss Taylor, and can't stand the Stones without him – in the bigger picture that's a marginal group of the total amount of fans.

But the group who BOTH miss Taylor AND can appreciate a good Stones record when they hear one is way larger. That's my experience anyway

I wasn't talking about its commercial success; it did sell damn well (as did, and even better, GOATS HEAD SOUP, or STEEL WHEELS and VOODOO LOUNGE if you like, by the way), but about a half what SOME GIRLS did (to put things in perspective). No, I was about talking about the reception (its 'legacy') after its heyday, what impact it had in a longer run, and recalling what the musical press and, yeah, Stones fans, were thinking at the time (from the times I started reflect these kind of things, from 1981/82 on). It was clear at the time that the title track, a hit single yeah, didn't turn out to be any kind of Stones classic to be remembered, a'la "Miss You" or "Start Me Up", but more like a flavor of the month kind of thing. As, say, "Undercover of THe Night" would turn out to be.

And then, what the hell you are talking about that Taylorite crap here?

The paragraph

Mostly, the people who don't like ER are people who miss Taylor, and can't stand the Stones without him – in the bigger picture that's a marginal group of the total amount of fans.

is, to use Mathijs' favourite expression, total bollocks, and, with respect, tells more about yourself and your personal problems with Taylorites/Taylor. Please, get over it, for god sakes! Not EVERYTHING is some sort of Taylor/Wood-battle. You don't need to everytime defend 'Wood-era' and attack people preferring Taylor-era or turn the discussion there.

At the time I get to know EMOTIONAL RESCUE in early 80's (purchased it in January 1982; it was my second or third Stones album I think - easy to get, since there were lots of non-sold copies available, costing next to nothing), I didn't know anything about these era-battles, but it was quite easy to notice, consulting my own taste and the musical press, that it - like BLACK AND BLUE (to get one more Ronnie-involved album) - wasn't such a strong and important album as SOME GIRLS and then the latest TATTOO YOU were. 'Everybody' through the 80's seem to still talk about SOME GIRLS, but EMOTIONAL RESCUE sounded like a forgotten piece. If in your world, then and now, those three (or four) albums were/are equal hailed masterpieces, let it be so. I do/did see there some differences, and I think many others do/did as well. If it says anything of its impact to the collective memory of the musical world, I don't think EMOTIONAL RESCUE is very high in the list of upcoming Deluxe albums (which is a shame).

- Doxa

People who can take Woody tend to love tracks like Dance, Let Me Go, Down In The Hole, ER, She's So Cold and All About You. That's my observation, which is just as valid as your «ER has a bad reputation».

It's perfectly legitimate to bring the Taylor issue up, and it doesn't have anything to do with my personal preferances. What got me thinking was actually Naturalust, when he said something like «by ER the Stones had created a new rock sound, which didn't appeal to me».

The same sound is of course to be found on Some Girls, and many Taylor fans (I should have said «Taylor-era fans only», to be more precise!) tend to also like Black And Blue.

A lot of previous statements here, as well as my logic tell me that the «Pathe Marconi-sound», which is to be found on SG, ER and larger parts of TY, is not the fans that mainly likes the Taylor era's cup of tea. Hardly controversial, is it?

Yeah, the albums you mentioned sold a lot, but apart from GHS they didn't have a monster-hit like ER. Can't remember if SW and VL topped both the UK and US charts, though.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2015-09-23 14:39 by DandelionPowderman.

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HMS


A few decades from now the collective memory of the musical world will have forgotten both albums anyway.

That's true. Besides SOME GIRLS (era) seemingly has gone down for some time now. It didn't leave such a huge impact to 'the collective memory of musical world' than its immediate huge success seemed to hint. My guess is that the time wasn't in their side any longer to make such a huge impact as their earlier peak doings had done, when they personified zeitgeist. 1978 would be remembered of some other things than of The Rolling Stones.

To me its starts to look that the significance of SOME GIRLS was that of making the band kind of relevant at the time, a kind of last hurrah (a real hit song the kids loved, massive album sales) which was needed for them to achieve the immortal status they today enjoy.

- Doxa

I think most of Exile will be forgotten as well. The hits will be all that's left, including Miss You and Start Me Up.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2015-09-23 14:57 by DandelionPowderman.

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DandelionPowderman



People who can take Woody tend to love tracks like Dance, Let Me Go, Down In The Hole, ER, She's So Cold and All About You. That's my observation, which is just as valid as your «ER has a bad reputation».

It's perfectly legitimate to bring the Taylor issue up, and it doesn't have anything to do with my personal preferances. What got me thinking was actually Naturalust, when he said something like «by ER the Stones had created a new rock sound, which didn't appeal to me».

The same sound is of course to be found on Some Girls, and many Taylor fans (I should have said «Taylor-era fans only», to be more precise!) tend to also like Black And Blue.

A lot of previous statements here, as well as my logic tell me that the «Pathe Marconi-sound», which is to be found on SG, ER and larger parts of TY, is not the fans that mainly likes the Taylor era's cup of tea. Hardly controversial, is it?

Yeah, the albums you mentioned sold a lot, but apart from GHS they didn't have a monster-hit like ER. Can't remember if SW and VL topped both the UK and US charts, though.

Believe me there are many Rolling Stones and music fans who do not think their music in terms of who is their second guitarist. Here is one.

But I do get your point about people preferring different eras. But when you say, like you said in your earlier post,

Mostly, the people who don't like ER are people who miss Taylor, and can't stand the Stones without him – in the bigger picture that's a marginal group of the total amount of fans.

that simply is not true. When we are talking about Brian and Taylor eras, the amount of people preferring those two ones, is actually bigger than the one preferring 'Pathe Marconi era'. Not probably among us hardcores here in IORR, but among the people who make and will make Rolling Stones very wealthy men (call them 'casual fans'). Their claim to fame and eternality is founded on those eras. You just go and check the chartings of their three Deluxe albums (EXILE and STICKY FINGERS did clearly better than SOME GIRLS). Or check their setlists. If we wouldn't have "Start Me Up" and "Miss You", it almost looks like the band hadn't done anything since the early/mid-seventies.

Yeah, STEEL WHEELS and VOODOO LOUNGE didn't top both UK and US lists (only VL topped UK one). TATTOO YOU was the last album that did that. But both sold more copies than EMOTIONAL RESCUE. Seemingly their target audience wasn't that hurry any longer to get the albums... But my point was not that of belittlening the success of EMOTIONAL RESCUE - it really was a hit album, staying seven weeks at the top of Billboard. That's their record in USA.

- Doxa



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 2015-09-23 15:45 by Doxa.

LOL! You omitted a rather important line. Without this the meaning of what I said vanishes completely

«But the group who BOTH miss Taylor AND can appreciate a good Stones record when they hear one is way larger».

With that one in place, I stand by my statement.

How often did the Stones have a Billboard top 3 hit round this time, apart from Miss You? Even SMU barely made the top 10. Are you considering SMU a minor hit?

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DandelionPowderman
LOL! You omitted a rather important line. Without this the meaning of what I said vanishes completely

«But the group who BOTH miss Taylor AND can appreciate a good Stones record when they hear one is way larger».

With that one in place, I stand by my statement.

How often did the Stones have a Billboard top 3 hit round this time, apart from Miss You? Even SMU barely made the top 10. Are you considering SMU a minor hit?

So this distinction goes between "stupid Taylorites" and "smart Taylorites" - those having a stubborn taste and those having an ability to listen something else. Fortunately, the latter group is a larger one. I guess that's how the whole Stones' pre-Wood era audience looks like from the point of view of Woodist...

Like I said, most of the people buying their records and going to their concerts since the golden Brian Jones days don't give a shit who their second guitarist is. They are not one of the best selling acts of all-time due to Ronnie Wood or Mick Taylor at least directly (for example, I think Taylor had an indirect and important role making the band credible late 60's/early 70's). This whole Taylor vs. Wood debate is a rather marginal hardcore fan issue, and I think you put way too much weight on it, like in that quote of yours (those qualifications between smart and stupid Taylorites...)

"Start Me Up" was #2 in Billboard. Can't recall any longer what was the monster hit standing its way to the top. And the single remained 24 weeks at charts, which is their record. Plus got some 'best single/song awards' of the year. No, I wouldn't call it a 'minor hit'. Nor "Emotional Rescue". But if we look at old charts, there are hits there that are forgotten a long time ago. To a larger audience, "Emotional Rescue" is probably one of them. For some reason, "Start Me Up" is not.

- Doxa



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 2015-09-23 17:01 by Doxa.

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DandelionPowderman
I think most of Exile will be forgotten as well. The hits will be all that's left, including Miss You and Start Me Up.

How come "most of EXILE" can be forgotten? You know the record or you don't.

But yeah, soon or later everything will be forgotten. Probably "Satisfaction" is the last one.

But let us enjoy while it lasts...

- Doxa

So getting back to the initial topic, Undercover...It is still, unlike Dirty Work, Steel Wheels, Voodoo Lounge, Bridges, and ABB, a collection of well-written songs created and performed with honest emotion. The only valid criticism of this album, in my opinion, is that it includes some of the 80's goofy drum sounds in its post-production. Beyond that, it is just the next Stones album in a sequence of great Ron Wood era Stones albums. And.... Even WITH the 80's post-production it is a far better sound then what we would later get with Mick's solo albums and with the horrid all-around production of Dirty Work. SW and VL were designed for stadiums, and to some degree, the most recent two studio albums were as well. Undercover was just another album, another product from the artist, and I love it to this day.

You can never blame an artist for changing direction, and the Stones did that somewhat with UC, turning from great party/ stadium rock (Miss You, Summer Romance, Start Me Up, Little T+A, etc, etc) to more reflective, less sing-along verse writing and slightly darker themes both sonically and lyrically (Undercover Of The Night, Feel On Baby, Too Much Blood).... It was the very last time the Stones took significant risks in the studio. After that (with a few exceptions, like Anybody Seen My Baby) it was all about trying to recapture the stadium-friendly guaranteed-hit sound.

I think anybody can say they don't like the LP... But to diss it as a weak effort is just not correct. It is a great effort. It fell flat with many fans, but not this one. I put it (along with Emotional Rescue!) in my top 5.

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DandelionPowderman
Why did Emotional Rescue have «a bad reputation»? Never heard that before. It usually is among every Stones fan's top 8-10 albums.

In the U.S. In the 80s and 90s it was considered an awful mistake amongst reviewers and most stones fans I talked to. I don't know if that has changed.

Its good sales were chalked up to demand generated from some girls success.

On the radio ever since you can hear deep cuts from some girls but never emotional rescue.

Tattoo You was considered a "comeback" album.

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DandelionPowderman
Taken from Wiki, which describes the album's reception and sales:

Release and reception:

Released in June with the disco-infused hit title track as the lead single, Emotional Rescue was an immediate smash. The title track hit No. 3 on the Billboard Hot 100. The album gave the Rolling Stones their first UK No. 1 album since 1973's Goats Head Soup and spent seven weeks atop the US charts. The follow-up single "She's So Cold" was a top 30 hit while "Dance Pt. 1" reached No. 9 on Billboard's Dance chart.

Just to put things in perspective, Emotional Rescue was a huge success for the Stones, just like SG and TY were. So, at the time, there weren't really a huge disappointment and any bad reputation.

Mostly, the people who don't like ER are people who miss Taylor, and can't stand the Stones without him – in the bigger picture that's a marginal group of the total amount of fans.

But the group who BOTH miss Taylor AND can appreciate a good Stones record when they hear one is way larger. That's my experience anyway

This is not my experience. I actually don't know any stones fans not on this board who like emotional rescue. And a lot of them are Ronnie fans.

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DandelionPowderman
I think most of Exile will be forgotten as well. The hits will be all that's left, including Miss You and Start Me Up.

Wow. I don't get this. I know plenty of people who listen to exile regularly and couldn't name a song they've released since tattoo you. Some of them are under 30 years old even! I think exile will be listened to decades after start me up has been completely forgotten.

UCOTN - One of my least favorite Stones songs
She Was Hot - Good, dirty fun
Tie You Up - Even dirtier, even gooder!
Wanna Hold You - Decent rocker
Feel On Baby - Love the mood of this one
Too Much Blood - Too 80ish for me
Pretty Beat Up - This was titled Dogshit for a reason
Too Tough - Cool lyrics over the faux JJF riff
All The Way Down - I like this very much
It Must Be Hell - Love the SS riff, hate the lyrics

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Turner68

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DandelionPowderman
I think most of Exile will be forgotten as well. The hits will be all that's left, including Miss You and Start Me Up.

Wow. I don't get this. I know plenty of people who listen to exile regularly and couldn't name a song they've released since tattoo you. Some of them are under 30 years old even! I think exile will be listened to decades after start me up has been completely forgotten.

I'm guessing that was just his shot at a Taylor-era album after the comments about the Wood album being forgettable. Like you said as well, everything I've ever read about the ER, at least here in the US, has been mediocre to negative reviews. Sure it sold well, and had a big single, but every Stones album until VL had a big first single here.

I used to really dislike it, but I've come to like about 2/3 of it. The things I enjoy are different than most, though, as Down in the Hole and All About YOu are two of my least favorites. To bring it around to Undercover, what I like about that late 70s early 80s era in Stonesland is not the punkier, streamlined guitars but the stuff with the dancing basslines, stuff influenced by the club scene at the time. To me, Undercover is a great blend of that and some prominent guitar.

UK/US Chart Postions SG-U

SG
2/1

ER
1/1

TY
2/1

U
3/4

Didn´t understand the cover quite well when it came out.

Felt is was pseudo-modern.

Did´nt liked it like I liked the songs.

Anybody any Idea about the meaning/design of the cover?

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StonesCat

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Turner68

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DandelionPowderman
I think most of Exile will be forgotten as well. The hits will be all that's left, including Miss You and Start Me Up.

Wow. I don't get this. I know plenty of people who listen to exile regularly and couldn't name a song they've released since tattoo you. Some of them are under 30 years old even! I think exile will be listened to decades after start me up has been completely forgotten.

I'm guessing that was just his shot at a Taylor-era album after the comments about the Wood album being forgettable. Like you said as well, everything I've ever read about the ER, at least here in the US, has been mediocre to negative reviews. Sure it sold well, and had a big single, but every Stones album until VL had a big first single here.

I used to really dislike it, but I've come to like about 2/3 of it. The things I enjoy are different than most, though, as Down in the Hole and All About YOu are two of my least favorites. To bring it around to Undercover, what I like about that late 70s early 80s era in Stonesland is not the punkier, streamlined guitars but the stuff with the dancing basslines, stuff influenced by the club scene at the time. To me, Undercover is a great blend of that and some prominent guitar.

No, it wasn't. I firmly believe that the album concept is dying. And Exile don't have any stand out hits.

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GasLightStreet
UK/US Chart Postions SG-U

SG
2/1

ER
1/1

TY
2/1

U
3/4

Probably the tourists bought anything that year, since word on the street was that ER stunk...

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DandelionPowderman

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GasLightStreet
UK/US Chart Postions SG-U

SG
2/1

ER
1/1

TY
2/1

U
3/4

Probably the tourists bought anything that year, since word on the street was that ER stunk...

Cool, now I know how to figure the good albums from the bad ones. The Eagles really are the best rock group of all time.

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DandelionPowderman

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GasLightStreet
UK/US Chart Postions SG-U

SG
2/1

ER
1/1

TY
2/1

U
3/4

Probably the tourists bought anything that year, since word on the street was that ER stunk...

I might be wrong but I think it opened big and dropped fast. That would explain why it sold so much less than SG despite peaking as high. I think it had a big open because people had high hopes after some girls. That logic however would imply that undercover would open big. My recollection is that the undercover single was released before the album and puzzled old stones fans and didn't catch fire with the trendy new fans it targeted.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2015-09-23 19:37 by Turner68.

The Undercover single didn't really profit on the banning on MTV etc. Don't know the figures, but if memory serves it didn't sell that well.

ER, the single, sold great. The other two singles did pretty good as well, and that should indicate the people not necessarily got tired of the album quickly?

We were both pretty young back then, Turner, maybe others can fill in?

You sure you don't know anyone who likes ER here at the board?



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2015-09-23 19:44 by DandelionPowderman.

I said or meant to say I didn't know anyone not on the board who liked it.

Undercover being banned was a publicity ruse in my opinion. I remember seeing that video over and over in the weeks around the albums release. There was a huge push around its debut on MTV - they promoted it heavily leading up to it. She was hot got decent play on MTV too.



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 2015-09-23 19:50 by Turner68.

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DandelionPowderman

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StonesCat

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Turner68

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DandelionPowderman
I think most of Exile will be forgotten as well. The hits will be all that's left, including Miss You and Start Me Up.

Wow. I don't get this. I know plenty of people who listen to exile regularly and couldn't name a song they've released since tattoo you. Some of them are under 30 years old even! I think exile will be listened to decades after start me up has been completely forgotten.

I'm guessing that was just his shot at a Taylor-era album after the comments about the Wood album being forgettable. Like you said as well, everything I've ever read about the ER, at least here in the US, has been mediocre to negative reviews. Sure it sold well, and had a big single, but every Stones album until VL had a big first single here.

I used to really dislike it, but I've come to like about 2/3 of it. The things I enjoy are different than most, though, as Down in the Hole and All About YOu are two of my least favorites. To bring it around to Undercover, what I like about that late 70s early 80s era in Stonesland is not the punkier, streamlined guitars but the stuff with the dancing basslines, stuff influenced by the club scene at the time. To me, Undercover is a great blend of that and some prominent guitar.

No, it wasn't. I firmly believe that the album concept is dying. And Exile don't have any stand out hits.

One doesn't be any kind of believer to observe that. It is happening at the moment in the front of our very eyes (and personally, it hurts, but Ihope that someday I can sing with Dylan "I used to care, but the things have changed..."). But of any Stones albums, EXILE will be the last one to be forgotten; its status is cemented so strongly at the moment, next to things like SGT. PEPPER etc. One of its famous traits is that it doesn't have hits. That's why it is essentially an album-era album; one needs to have an 'album-mood' to really understand its charm, not just pick up hit songs. The chart positions 1 and 2 from 2010 tell quite clearly that the days of its collapse are not quite near... But "it's not dark yet, but it is getting there"...

- Doxa



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2015-09-23 19:58 by Doxa.

I hope I'm wrong of course