DIRTY WORK



Pre-production:

January 11-19, 1985: Pathé Marconi Studios, Paris, France
January 23-February 28, 1985: Pathé Marconi Studios, Paris, France

Recorded:

April 5-June 17, 1985: Pathé Marconi Studios, Paris, France
July 16-August 17, 1985: RPM Studios, New York City

Overdubbed & mixed:

September 10-October 15, 1985: RPM Studios, New York City
November 20-December 5, 1985: Right Track Studios, New York City

Producers: Steve Lillywhite & The Glimmer Twins
Chief engineer: Dave Jerden
Released: March 1986
Original label: Rolling Stones Records (on CBS)

Contributing musicians:

Mick Jagger, Keith Richards, Charlie Watts, Bill Wyman, Ron Wood, Chuck Leavell, Bobby Womack, Ian Stewart, Don Covay, Ivan Neville, Anton Fig, Steve Jordan, Jimmy Page, Alan Rogan, Charley Drayton, Philippe Saisse, Dan Collette, John Regan, Tom Waits, Jimmy Cliff, Patti Scialfa, Kirsty MacColl, Janice Pendarvis, Dollette McDonald.

One Hit (to the Body)
Fight
Harlem Shuffle
Hold Back
Too Rude
Winning Ugly
Back to Zero
Dirty Work
Had It with You
Sleep Tonight
Key To The Highway (hidden track)

What are your thoughts on this album?

Tracks titles say it all ?

Quote
kowalski
Tracks titles say it all ?

They do actually tell a story! I never thought of it that way, LOL!

Lyrically this is the closest to the concept album the Rolling Stones have ever got.

Harlem Shuffle is a nice cover....Whats more to say except for that Sleep tonight and Stu's hidden blues track is also Worth listening to...

I would lie if I say rest of the songs is good in any way here...

2 1 2 0

Quote
Come On
Harlem Shuffle is a nice cover....Whats more to say except for that Sleep tonight and Stu's hidden blues track is also Worth listening to...

I would lie if I say rest of the songs is good in any way here...

Spot on- I've come to appreciate Harlem Shuffle more as time passes.

Come on, guys, Harlem Shuffle has always been a great track!

I remember running to the record store buying it. I loved it from the first listen. It's B-side as well.

A much better album than it's given credit for; while it's nowhere near the Stones' best of course, and includes some awful 80s touches, when you look at the songs now there's actually half a damn good album there.

One Hit, Sleep Tonight, Harlem Shuffle, Dirty Work, Too Rude - all fine tracks I think really, the guitar interplay in the middle of the title track especially good. That's half the album!

Had it With You is also good; the bootleg 'Cut the Mustard' was even better methinks.

Quite a lot of good material was there, the 'Crushed Peals' boot has some fine, unreleased tracks. The album sessions did hold a lot of promise, and as it is, with half the album or more good, I hoenstly think it's reputation as an awful record is just not accurate.

It's brought down by 3 tracks that everyone seems to hate; 'Hold Back', which is just a tuneless mess with arguably Mick's worst vocal performance. 'Back To Zero'; very divisive, it's not bad, but it's not the Stones either. 'Winning Ugly' has some very nice guitars, but again, just not the Stones. It's Mick solo, not a great song, but not awful either. Forgettable perhaps.

'Fight' - it's okay, too 80s, a good tune there waiting to come out but not entirely coaxed out.

Overall, much better than it's dire reputation, and with the bootlegs, there is quite a bit of good Stones music to enjoy.

The Fight version on Crushed Pearl, starting with the chorus (which is different) is way better than the album version, imo.

Quote
DandelionPowderman
The Fight version on Crushed Pearl, starting with the chorus (which is different) is way better than the album version, imo.

I'd forgotten that; you're right, it's better. This Album-Talk has me wishing to hear that great bootleg again

[www.youtube.com]

Quote
DandelionPowderman
[www.youtube.com]

Wow, yeah! Much better!

One Hit (to the Body)-----great, greater than great
Fight---very good, almost great
Harlem Shuffle----great, really great
Hold Back---very good
Too Rude-----very good
Winning Ugly----great
Back to Zero---good
Dirty Work----great
Had It with You----great
Sleep Tonight---great

This is the last great album The Stones released. All following albums are incoherent and loaded with fillers. Not this time, unfortunately for the last time! The Stones delivered a hard rocking and ass kicking masterpiece, their best album since Black And Blue, very enjoyable from start to finsish. Steve Lillywhite´s production is marvelous, Dirty Work is not only one of their best albums, it is also one of their best sounding albums, maybe the best sounding Stones-album ever. The bass and the drums are thundering, the guitars are crystal-clear, the voices are brilliant.

The songs are mostly hard guitar-driven rockers, this time the Stones took no prisoners, it is indeed one hit to the body, absolutely amazing how they could manage to put together such an outstanding album with all their personal problems they had at the time this masterpiece was recorded. It seems that the tensions between Jagger/Richards brought out the best of them. To me it sounds less 80s than Undercover or Steel Wheels. It is rocking straight forward with only Back To Zero and Winning Ugly sounding "modern". Back To Zero is the only song on the album one could call weaker, but then again it has an irresistable bridge. Keith has his shining hour with a highly enjoyable reggae tune and a wonderful heartfelt ballad, what more could you ask of him? The cover-version of Harlem Shuffle is a real gem, a smash, by far better than the original. The mean and dirty little rockers Had It With You & Dirty Work are pure pleasure, if you dont like them both, I guess you must have a problem with the Stones in general. What a wonderful return to great form after Mick Jagger´s very disappointing first solo album! I love this album, it was love at first sight (hearing) and it lasts for almost 30 years now. And it´s even still growing.

<The bass and the drums are thundering>

They are in places, yes, I agree.

Some of the problem is (imo) that there are session players playing those instruments (Steve Jordan, Anton Fig, Charley Drayton etc.). That may have lead to a thunderous sound, but for many Stones fans that sound is a sound they are estranged with on a Stones record. Not necessarily bad (well, the drum sound on Hold Back IS bad), but different.

I totally agree about tracks like Dirty Work and Fight. Those tracks rocks and features great, great playing by the Stones. Ronnie plays the bass on Fight, though.

Horrible product, but it's not as bad as most people say. Still my favourite album of 1986, it's much better than Undercover, at least it rocked!

Quote
HMS
One Hit (to the Body)-----great, greater than great
Fight---very good, almost great
Harlem Shuffle----great, really great
Hold Back---very good
Too Rude-----very good
Winning Ugly----great
Back to Zero---good
Dirty Work----great
Had It with You----great
Sleep Tonight---great

This is the last great album The Stones released. All following albums are incoherent and loaded with fillers. Not this time, unfortunately for the last time! The Stones delivered a hard rocking and ass kicking masterpiece, their best album since Black And Blue, very enjoyable from start to finsish. Steve Lillywhite´s production is marvelous, Dirty Work is not only one of their best albums, it is also one of their best sounding albums, maybe the best sounding Stones-album ever. The bass and the drums are thundering, the guitars are crystal-clear, the voices are brilliant.

The songs are mostly hard guitar-driven rockers, this time the Stones took no prisoners, it is indeed one hit to the body, absolutely amazing how they could manage to put together such an outstanding album with all their personal problems they had at the time this masterpiece was recorded. It seems that the tensions between Jagger/Richards brought out the best of them. To me it sounds less 80s than Undercover or Steel Wheels. It is rocking straight forward with only Back To Zero and Winning Ugly sounding "modern". Back To Zero is the only song on the album one could call weaker, but then again it has an irresistable bridge. Keith has his shining hour with a highly enjoyable reggae tune and a wonderful heartfelt ballad, what more could you ask of him? The cover-version of Harlem Shuffle is a real gem, a smash, by far better than the original. The mean and dirty little rockers Had It With You & Dirty Work are pure pleasure, if you dont like them both, I guess you must have a problem with the Stones in general. What a wonderful return to great form after Mick Jagger´s very disappointing first solo album! I love this album, it was love at first sight (hearing) and it lasts for almost 30 years now. And it´s even still growing.

One can appreciate your enthusiasm. But the best recorded album sound wise is Tatoo You. This album does not meet the expectations on the level of Let it Bleed or even EOMS.

Then again, we all reserve the right to enjoy one album over another. We have all different opinions and I appreciate the post. Maybe I should revisit this album with a clean slate and approach. Even Ronnie Wood has stated in many interviews that this is one of his favorite works.

Again thanks for the nice post-

The best recorded album sound-wise is Black And Blue, with TY and ER close after, imo.

Quote
Chris Fountain

Quote
HMS
One Hit (to the Body)-----great, greater than great
Fight---very good, almost great
Harlem Shuffle----great, really great
Hold Back---very good
Too Rude-----very good
Winning Ugly----great
Back to Zero---good
Dirty Work----great
Had It with You----great
Sleep Tonight---great

This is the last great album The Stones released. All following albums are incoherent and loaded with fillers. Not this time, unfortunately for the last time! The Stones delivered a hard rocking and ass kicking masterpiece, their best album since Black And Blue, very enjoyable from start to finsish. Steve Lillywhite´s production is marvelous, Dirty Work is not only one of their best albums, it is also one of their best sounding albums, maybe the best sounding Stones-album ever. The bass and the drums are thundering, the guitars are crystal-clear, the voices are brilliant.

The songs are mostly hard guitar-driven rockers, this time the Stones took no prisoners, it is indeed one hit to the body, absolutely amazing how they could manage to put together such an outstanding album with all their personal problems they had at the time this masterpiece was recorded. It seems that the tensions between Jagger/Richards brought out the best of them. To me it sounds less 80s than Undercover or Steel Wheels. It is rocking straight forward with only Back To Zero and Winning Ugly sounding "modern". Back To Zero is the only song on the album one could call weaker, but then again it has an irresistable bridge. Keith has his shining hour with a highly enjoyable reggae tune and a wonderful heartfelt ballad, what more could you ask of him? The cover-version of Harlem Shuffle is a real gem, a smash, by far better than the original. The mean and dirty little rockers Had It With You & Dirty Work are pure pleasure, if you dont like them both, I guess you must have a problem with the Stones in general. What a wonderful return to great form after Mick Jagger´s very disappointing first solo album! I love this album, it was love at first sight (hearing) and it lasts for almost 30 years now. And it´s even still growing.

One can appreciate your enthusiasm. But the best recorded album sound wise is Tatoo You. This album does not meet the expectations on the level of Let it Bleed or even EOMS.

Then again, we all reserve the right to enjoy one album over another. We have all different opinions and I appreciate the post. Maybe I should revisit this album with a clean slate and approach. Even Ronnie Wood has stated in many interviews that this is one of his favorite works.

Again thanks for the nice post-

Chris, I didn't know Ronnie regarded 'Dirty Work' as one of his favourite works. I know of course he had a huge role in it; with Jagger missing in action for a lot of the initial writing, it must have been great for Ronnie and Keith to put the band and team (with some wonderful guest musicians) together, and to work up all of those guitar-heavy tracks. There is some great playing on the album, I don't think anyone would deny that.

Quote
IrelandCalling4

Quote
Chris Fountain

Quote
HMS
One Hit (to the Body)-----great, greater than great
Fight---very good, almost great
Harlem Shuffle----great, really great
Hold Back---very good
Too Rude-----very good
Winning Ugly----great
Back to Zero---good
Dirty Work----great
Had It with You----great
Sleep Tonight---great

This is the last great album The Stones released. All following albums are incoherent and loaded with fillers. Not this time, unfortunately for the last time! The Stones delivered a hard rocking and ass kicking masterpiece, their best album since Black And Blue, very enjoyable from start to finsish. Steve Lillywhite´s production is marvelous, Dirty Work is not only one of their best albums, it is also one of their best sounding albums, maybe the best sounding Stones-album ever. The bass and the drums are thundering, the guitars are crystal-clear, the voices are brilliant.

The songs are mostly hard guitar-driven rockers, this time the Stones took no prisoners, it is indeed one hit to the body, absolutely amazing how they could manage to put together such an outstanding album with all their personal problems they had at the time this masterpiece was recorded. It seems that the tensions between Jagger/Richards brought out the best of them. To me it sounds less 80s than Undercover or Steel Wheels. It is rocking straight forward with only Back To Zero and Winning Ugly sounding "modern". Back To Zero is the only song on the album one could call weaker, but then again it has an irresistable bridge. Keith has his shining hour with a highly enjoyable reggae tune and a wonderful heartfelt ballad, what more could you ask of him? The cover-version of Harlem Shuffle is a real gem, a smash, by far better than the original. The mean and dirty little rockers Had It With You & Dirty Work are pure pleasure, if you dont like them both, I guess you must have a problem with the Stones in general. What a wonderful return to great form after Mick Jagger´s very disappointing first solo album! I love this album, it was love at first sight (hearing) and it lasts for almost 30 years now. And it´s even still growing.

One can appreciate your enthusiasm. But the best recorded album sound wise is Tatoo You. This album does not meet the expectations on the level of Let it Bleed or even EOMS.

Then again, we all reserve the right to enjoy one album over another. We have all different opinions and I appreciate the post. Maybe I should revisit this album with a clean slate and approach. Even Ronnie Wood has stated in many interviews that this is one of his favorite works.

Again thanks for the nice post-

Chris, I didn't know Ronnie regarded 'Dirty Work' as one of his favourite works. I know of course he had a huge role in it; with Jagger missing in action for a lot of the initial writing, it must have been great for Ronnie and Keith to put the band and team (with some wonderful guest musicians) together, and to work up all of those guitar-heavy tracks. There is some great playing on the album, I don't think anyone would deny that.

That's the rumour, yeah. But what's interesting on the Crushed Pearl-bootleg is that we hear a well-prepared Mick who indeed had worked out stuff. The last song on the boot even features a song Mick and Keith just had written together which they try out and discuss while playing it – in total harmony on all counts!

Here's that track: Broken Hearts For Me And You

[www.youtube.com]







Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2015-09-25 13:32 by DandelionPowderman.

Quote
IrelandCalling4

Quote
Chris Fountain

Quote
HMS
One Hit (to the Body)-----great, greater than great
Fight---very good, almost great
Harlem Shuffle----great, really great
Hold Back---very good
Too Rude-----very good
Winning Ugly----great
Back to Zero---good
Dirty Work----great
Had It with You----great
Sleep Tonight---great

This is the last great album The Stones released. All following albums are incoherent and loaded with fillers. Not this time, unfortunately for the last time! The Stones delivered a hard rocking and ass kicking masterpiece, their best album since Black And Blue, very enjoyable from start to finsish. Steve Lillywhite´s production is marvelous, Dirty Work is not only one of their best albums, it is also one of their best sounding albums, maybe the best sounding Stones-album ever. The bass and the drums are thundering, the guitars are crystal-clear, the voices are brilliant.

The songs are mostly hard guitar-driven rockers, this time the Stones took no prisoners, it is indeed one hit to the body, absolutely amazing how they could manage to put together such an outstanding album with all their personal problems they had at the time this masterpiece was recorded. It seems that the tensions between Jagger/Richards brought out the best of them. To me it sounds less 80s than Undercover or Steel Wheels. It is rocking straight forward with only Back To Zero and Winning Ugly sounding "modern". Back To Zero is the only song on the album one could call weaker, but then again it has an irresistable bridge. Keith has his shining hour with a highly enjoyable reggae tune and a wonderful heartfelt ballad, what more could you ask of him? The cover-version of Harlem Shuffle is a real gem, a smash, by far better than the original. The mean and dirty little rockers Had It With You & Dirty Work are pure pleasure, if you dont like them both, I guess you must have a problem with the Stones in general. What a wonderful return to great form after Mick Jagger´s very disappointing first solo album! I love this album, it was love at first sight (hearing) and it lasts for almost 30 years now. And it´s even still growing.

One can appreciate your enthusiasm. But the best recorded album sound wise is Tatoo You. This album does not meet the expectations on the level of Let it Bleed or even EOMS.

Then again, we all reserve the right to enjoy one album over another. We have all different opinions and I appreciate the post. Maybe I should revisit this album with a clean slate and approach. Even Ronnie Wood has stated in many interviews that this is one of his favorite works.

Again thanks for the nice post-

Chris, I didn't know Ronnie regarded 'Dirty Work' as one of his favourite works. I know of course he had a huge role in it; with Jagger missing in action for a lot of the initial writing, it must have been great for Ronnie and Keith to put the band and team (with some wonderful guest musicians) together, and to work up all of those guitar-heavy tracks. There is some great playing on the album, I don't think anyone would deny that.

I wish I could find the source where Ronnie made the comments. But he did. Actually, Rockman posted the article. It may be a post from approximately 3 years ago. It's true and if memory serves correct, it was a casual interview from a "Guitar" type magazine where the topic of Dirty Work just happened to emerge through conversation.

LOL! A classic story from mixing Dirty Work!

«When we were mixing in New York, Steve Lillywhite changed the speed in one song, sped it up a little bit, and it was hardly anything. Keith walked in and he just went ballistic. He goes Nobody, @#$%& nobody, @#$%& with the Rolling Stones! That tempo was cut at that speed and it stays at that speed»!

– Dave Jerden, engineer

Quote
HMS
One Hit (to the Body)-----great, greater than great
Fight---very good, almost great
Harlem Shuffle----great, really great
Hold Back---very good
Too Rude-----very good
Winning Ugly----great
Back to Zero---good
Dirty Work----great
Had It with You----great
Sleep Tonight---great

The worst stonesrelated record ever. No... Primitive Cool is even worse.

Not as bad as the consensus gentium means. It is a loud, rude and aggressive album with a hue of punk due to Keith's influence I think (Fight, Hold Back). Dirty Work is a classic Stones Rocker, Had It With You reminds me of the Brian years - convincing. Sleep Tonight is a nice, not boring Keith ballad, Too Rude one of the few successful Keith Reggaes. The album holds the third rank in the eighties behind Tattoo You and Steel Wheels ... and guitars, guitars, guitars ...

<Too Rude one of the few successful Keith Reggaes>

Few?

The Harder They Come
Too Rude
Words Of Wonder
You Don't Have To Mean It
Love Overdue

Which one was not successful?

Quote
DandelionPowderman
<Too Rude one of the few successful Keith Reggaes>

Few?

The Harder They Come
Too Rude
Words Of Wonder
You Don't Have To Mean It
Love Overdue

Which one was not successful?

Love Overdue is okay, too, but I don't like Stones going Reggae at all ...

Positively dreadful. By far and away the poorest effort in their history. From the amazingly bad cover to the "music". At this point I almost gave up. Thankfully, Keith came out with Talk is Cheap a bit later to bring me back from the dark side.

An embarassesment for the Stones

Worst Stones album. Junk

I don't even want to talk about how bad it is.

They did a great job with Harlem shuffle.
Sleep tonight is nice too
Key to the highway is the next best track on the album
That is all I have to say.