Sad Sad Sad

Just don't like it. Too generic, played too fast, and it doesn't swing at all. Turd and Joint are faster, but are good songs and they swing.

Mixed Emotions

Should have been the album opener. Had I been the producer, I would have asked Charlie to spice things up a little. Released mix is too "testosteroned".

Terrifying

This is one I truly like. Unreleased version has some great guitar work that did not make the final version.

Hold On to Your Hat

See sad sad sad.

Hearts for Sale

Another great one. My only complaint is with the tone of the guitar that plays the main riff. Esp on the released version. Slightly better on the Training Wheels version.


Blinded by Love

Sweethearts Together pt. 1. Not a compliment.


Rock and a Hard Place

I know the general consensus here is that this is shi@, but I truly love it. Bill's bass line alone is worth the song-


Can't Be Seen

Strip all the synth shi@, and you have a great song-


Almost Hear You Sigh

Probably it could have been a great Wino song, but there is something about jagger's interpretation that is not in line with the subtle beauty of the song.
Would have loved a "Giving it Up" treatment.


Continental Drift

Unreleased version is great. Synths spoils a little the released version.

Break the Spell

Love this. Jagger's vocals too prominent in the released version. Training Wheels version is just perfect. Huge guitar work and harp.


Slipping Away

Masterpiece. No further words needed.

* * *

C

Haha.. that was a great read, thanks Swayed1967! Agreeing or not (most of it I do) but always a pleasure to read such well-written reviews.

I have written so much about STEEL WHEELS or any Stones album here in the past that I don't really have anything to add anymore (damn boring to repeat oneself).

Just one little remark I dont recall saying earlier (or maybe I have, but forgotten...): in regards to the 80's albums I sometimes hear the claim that 'over-producing' or the day's production values 'destroyed' the albums. Had they produced better - what is that? To approximate the sounds of their 70's albums or something or staying more loyal to their classic era music (song selections, etc.)? - we might have much better, if not even great Stones albums.

I disagree here. True that some 80's over-producing ideals - the slickness, the massive drums sounds, all the 'flavor of the month' things, hard-rocking tendencies, the synths - might sound too dated today and even 'hurt' more sensitive ears (to make the music unlistenable altogether). Anyway, my take is more like all there is about to remember in those albums - say, from UNDECOVER to STEEL WHEELS - is how they reflect the times when they've been released (or in some cases trying to follow even musically the trends of teh day). LIke a little time capsule to those times. That's about the only difference those albums make in the long run. If we take 'the 80's' out of them, and see them 'raw and naked', what there actually is left? Yeah, sonically resembling more 'good old Stones' (the late 60's/early 70's plus the Pathe Marconi era), but with the difference that the over-all quality of music is weaker in compared to their previous, even groundbreaking in some cases, doings. The impression of 'Stones-by-numbers' would have started much earlier (as it was finally manifested in VOODOO LOUNGE). It is true that, for example, the raw mixes of STEEL WHEELS tracks that has been circulating now for some years, sound more 'easy-listenable' to trained Rolling Stones fan ears, but no, you can not make a claim for a great lost album based on those. The difference in actual quality is marginal.

I don't think there is any Rolling Stones album 'destroyed' due to 'production'. The greatness and strenght of their music, something they have creatively struggled more and less since their real absolute hey-day (after EXILE ON MAIN STREET), comes from something else.

- Doxa



Edited 4 time(s). Last edit at 2017-07-31 15:32 by Doxa.

Interesting, the notion that they have trashed their legacy, and yet they just had a number one album (not that it matters much these days), made a bundle of cash for two shows in October (was a great festival), sell merch by the truck load, released two dvds (Havana Moon & Ole, Ole Ole...with another one coming out in the Fall (Fonda), are embarking on a Europeans concert tour (for which they command outrageous ticket prices) and are recording new material.


Yeah, their legacy is for shit alright.

the shoot 'em dead, brainbell jangler!

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ryanpow

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GasLightStreet
Following The River
Streets Of Love
Sweet Neo Con
Back To Zero
Might As Well Get Juiced
Gunface
Sparks Will Fly

Followed by a second group that's not AS BAD somehow:
New Faces
Rock And A Hard Place
Hold Back
Already Over Me
Fight
Hold On To Your Hat
Can't Be Seen
Sweethearts Together
Always Suffering

That is a long list of songs, some of which I think are good. IMO the Stones are the type of band that hardly ever puts out anything that I would call "bad". It only happens on the rarest of occasions. Like on the song I mentioned. Another one is the 12" remix version of Mixed Emotions.

It's an accurate list of their bad songs and those aren't "hardly".

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HMS
Almost Hear You Sigh is very overrated and on top of everything I don´t like Mick´s way of singing it. Very annoying. Continental Drift is 20% Stones, 80% guest musicians, Slippping Away is just boring.

The raw energy of DW beats lame SW at any moment. If DW was Keith´s/Ron´s baby, SW clearly is Mick´s baby. More than half of SW sounds like a polished Jagger-solo-album.

@ryanpow: There aren´t any bad songs on DW. Compared to the new Jagger-solo-songs even Back To Zero shines.

This has been established as wrong yet you continue to deny facts. You excel at living in the lame.

Back To Zero at least is a song. Wish I could say the same of Get A Grip.

Following The River
Streets Of Love
Sweet Neo Con****
Back To Zero
Might As Well Get Juiced****
Gunface****
Sparks Will Fly****

Followed by a second group that's not AS BAD somehow:
New Faces****
Rock And A Hard Place
Hold Back****
Already Over Me
Fight****
Hold On To Your Hat****
Can't Be Seen
Sweethearts Together
Always Suffering

*** = these aren´t BAD songs. You are right about the rest of the songs.

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HMS
Back To Zero at least is a song. Wish I could say the same of Get A Grip.

Following The River
Streets Of Love
Sweet Neo Con****
Back To Zero
Might As Well Get Juiced****
Gunface****
Sparks Will Fly****

Followed by a second group that's not AS BAD somehow:
New Faces****
Rock And A Hard Place
Hold Back****
Already Over Me
Fight****
Hold On To Your Hat****
Can't Be Seen
Sweethearts Together
Always Suffering

*** = these aren´t BAD songs. You are right about the rest of the songs.

So the ****-songs are also bad?

...seems that one star has collapsed

I happen to like both Gunface and Might As Well Get Juiced a lot.

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keefriff99
I happen to like both Gunface and Might As Well Get Juiced a lot.

I like the live version of Juiced.

...that was a great read, thanks Swayed1967! Agreeing or not (most of it I do) but always a pleasure to read such well-written reviews...


lmao...

GasLightStreet
Following The River

Streets Of Love
Sweet Neo Con
Back To Zero
Might As Well Get Juiced
Gunface
Sparks Will Fly

Followed by a second group that's not AS BAD somehow:
New Faces
Rock And A Hard Place
Hold Back
Already Over Me
Fight
Hold On To Your Hat
Can't Be Seen
Sweethearts Together
Always Suffering

That is a long list of songs, some of which I think are good. IMO the Stones are the type of band that hardly ever puts out anything that I would call "bad". It only happens on the rarest of occasions. Like on the song I mentioned. Another one is the 12" remix version of Mixed Emotions.

It's an accurate list of their bad songs and those aren't "hardly".



Is it a list of Hardly Strictly Bad Songs? This is giving me an idea for a music festival...

My Dirty Work Track Skip List: 2, 4, 5, 6, 7

My Steel Wheels Track Skip List: 4, 5, 10

I don't "hate" either album; I just listen to the songs I like.

If other people like/dislike different songs, whatever. There's no point debating an opinion.

Great songs on Undercover, Voodoo, Bridges, and Bigger Bang too!

It's great being a Stones fan; the boys are still going strong and making good music

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rattler2004
Interesting, the notion that they have trashed their legacy, and yet they just had a number one album (not that it matters much these days), made a bundle of cash for two shows in October (was a great festival), sell merch by the truck load, released two dvds (Havana Moon & Ole, Ole Ole...with another one coming out in the Fall (Fonda), are embarking on a Europeans concert tour (for which they command outrageous ticket prices) and are recording new material.


Yeah, their legacy is for shit alright.

Please try to stay on point. I’m not denying the fact that they’re a money-making machine...I’m lamenting it.

No, scratch that. I don’t begrudge them their wealth – for their glorious output from 68-72 they deserve endless sacks of gold, the finest waterbeds and good-time women between the sheets. Unfortunately, since the early 80s they have released a string of mediocre records, Steel Wheels being but one of them, that will have future generations wondering how a band that once rivaled the Beatles eventually ended up with more bad songs than good. (A primer on how to understand the previous sentence: 1. Listen to their output from 1967-1982. 2. Choose any song from 83 onward and compare it to the 67-82 period. 3. When you inevitably reach the gutless conclusion that while the newer material may not reach the majestic heights of the classic period it’s still pretty good, smack yourself in the face. It is not pretty good – it is a descent into mediocrity that is unworthy of rock deities.)

Obviously I expect you and people such as the Dandelion - who with 39,000+ posts of Stones worshiping is too heavily invested to face reality - to reject such a notion. It’s a hard pill even for me to swallow.

<Obviously I expect you and people such as the Dandelion - who with 39,000+ posts of Stones worshiping is too heavily invested to face reality - to reject such a notion. It’s a hard pill even for me to swallow>

LOL! Didn't I just get a possee after me for saying that SFM on Ya Yas was weaker than the other tracks?

Be fair, do not write bullshit.

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Swayed1967

^loser

DPM You are the man, that piece of crap troll is not worth a thought.

That loser has been here a very short time and will probably be gone soon, just like many trolls before him. They only come to bash on The Stones and ruffle feathers and then slime away.

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Swayed1967
Obviously I expect you and people such as the Dandelion - who with 39,000+ posts of Stones worshiping is too heavily invested to face reality - to reject such a notion. It’s a hard pill even for me to swallow.

Exactly 39133 posts up to this minute to be accurate.
We have our standards.

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ironbelly
I believe the best part of this album (from esthetic point of view) is a set of 3" CD singles. Absolutely beautiful collectors creatures .

As is the wonderful...

Another Side Of Steel Wheels:

1 Mixed Emotions (Re-Mix)

Edited By – Chris Kimsey


2 Rock And A Hard Place (Dance Mix)

Remix – Don Was, Michael H. Brauer

3 Rock And A Hard Place (Oh-Oh Hard Dub Mix)

Edited By – Omar SantanaRemix – Don Was, Michael H. Brauer

4 Rock And A Hard Place (Michael Brauer Mix)

Remix – Michael H. Brauer


5 Rock And A Hard Place (Bonus Beats Mix)

Remix – David McMurray, Don Was

6 Fancy Man Blues 4:56
7 Cook Cook Blues 4:12

Quote
HMS
Back To Zero at least is a song. Wish I could say the same of Get A Grip.

Following The River
Streets Of Love
Sweet Neo Con****
Back To Zero
Might As Well Get Juiced****
Gunface****
Sparks Will Fly****

Followed by a second group that's not AS BAD somehow:
New Faces****
Rock And A Hard Place
Hold Back****
Already Over Me
Fight****
Hold On To Your Hat****
Can't Be Seen
Sweethearts Together
Always Suffering

*** = these aren´t BAD songs. You are right about the rest of the songs.

Yer right - they're HORRIBLE songs.

Quote
Swayed1967
I don’t begrudge them their wealth

You mentioned their 1968-72 output but it's really less than that in terms of them being burned by Allen Klein. There must've been some kind of invisible lightning bolt going through them to make as much money as they could once they got a grip figured out how it worked, which seemed to start in 1978 and then exploded.

Quote
Swayed1967

Quote
rattler2004
Interesting, the notion that they have trashed their legacy, and yet they just had a number one album (not that it matters much these days), made a bundle of cash for two shows in October (was a great festival), sell merch by the truck load, released two dvds (Havana Moon & Ole, Ole Ole...with another one coming out in the Fall (Fonda), are embarking on a Europeans concert tour (for which they command outrageous ticket prices) and are recording new material.


Yeah, their legacy is for shit alright.

Please try to stay on point. I’m not denying the fact that they’re a money-making machine...I’m lamenting it.

No, scratch that. I don’t begrudge them their wealth – for their glorious output from 68-72 they deserve endless sacks of gold, the finest waterbeds and good-time women between the sheets. Unfortunately, since the early 80s they have released a string of mediocre records, Steel Wheels being but one of them, that will have future generations wondering how a band that once rivaled the Beatles eventually ended up with more bad songs than good. (A primer on how to understand the previous sentence: 1. Listen to their output from 1967-1982. 2. Choose any song from 83 onward and compare it to the 67-82 period. 3. When you inevitably reach the gutless conclusion that while the newer material may not reach the majestic heights of the classic period it’s still pretty good, smack yourself in the face. It is not pretty good – it is a descent into mediocrity that is unworthy of rock deities.)

Obviously I expect you and people such as the Dandelion - who with 39,000+ posts of Stones worshiping is too heavily invested to face reality - to reject such a notion. It’s a hard pill even for me to swallow.

Wow, thanks for condescending to reply, please jump off that high horse and land on your head...again

the shoot 'em dead, brainbell jangler!

Quote
Swayed1967
Unfortunately, since the early 80s they have released a string of mediocre records, Steel Wheels being but one of them, that will have future generations wondering how a band that once rivaled the Beatles eventually ended up with more bad songs than good. (A primer on how to understand the previous sentence: 1. Listen to their output from 1967-1982. 2. Choose any song from 83 onward and compare it to the 67-82 period. 3. When you inevitably reach the gutless conclusion that while the newer material may not reach the majestic heights of the classic period it’s still pretty good, smack yourself in the face. It is not pretty good – it is a descent into mediocrity that is unworthy of rock deities.)

Obviously I expect you and people such as the Dandelion - who with 39,000+ posts of Stones worshiping is too heavily invested to face reality - to reject such a notion. It’s a hard pill even for me to swallow.

I'll reject it just a tad - I wouldn't include UNDERCOVER, partially because you listed 1982 when there wasn't an album in 1982 and U is the true follow up to EMOTIONAL RESCUE and polishes off that era quite well, with REWIND being the icing of that 1978-1983 cake.

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GasLightStreet

Quote
Swayed1967
Unfortunately, since the early 80s they have released a string of mediocre records, Steel Wheels being but one of them, that will have future generations wondering how a band that once rivaled the Beatles eventually ended up with more bad songs than good. (A primer on how to understand the previous sentence: 1. Listen to their output from 1967-1982. 2. Choose any song from 83 onward and compare it to the 67-82 period. 3. When you inevitably reach the gutless conclusion that while the newer material may not reach the majestic heights of the classic period it’s still pretty good, smack yourself in the face. It is not pretty good – it is a descent into mediocrity that is unworthy of rock deities.)

Obviously I expect you and people such as the Dandelion - who with 39,000+ posts of Stones worshiping is too heavily invested to face reality - to reject such a notion. It’s a hard pill even for me to swallow.

I'll reject it just a tad - I wouldn't include UNDERCOVER, partially because you listed 1982 when there wasn't an album in 1982 and U is the true follow up to EMOTIONAL RESCUE and polishes off that era quite well, with REWIND being the icing of that 1978-1983 cake.

I remember buying Rewind on vinyl when it was released, then quickly wondered why as I had everything on it already. It was truly useless and redundant.

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

Quote
Hairball

Quote
GasLightStreet

Quote
Swayed1967
Unfortunately, since the early 80s they have released a string of mediocre records, Steel Wheels being but one of them, that will have future generations wondering how a band that once rivaled the Beatles eventually ended up with more bad songs than good. (A primer on how to understand the previous sentence: 1. Listen to their output from 1967-1982. 2. Choose any song from 83 onward and compare it to the 67-82 period. 3. When you inevitably reach the gutless conclusion that while the newer material may not reach the majestic heights of the classic period it’s still pretty good, smack yourself in the face. It is not pretty good – it is a descent into mediocrity that is unworthy of rock deities.)

Obviously I expect you and people such as the Dandelion - who with 39,000+ posts of Stones worshiping is too heavily invested to face reality - to reject such a notion. It’s a hard pill even for me to swallow.

I'll reject it just a tad - I wouldn't include UNDERCOVER, partially because you listed 1982 when there wasn't an album in 1982 and U is the true follow up to EMOTIONAL RESCUE and polishes off that era quite well, with REWIND being the icing of that 1978-1983 cake.

I remember buying Rewind on vinyl when it was released, then quickly wondered why as I had everything on it already. It was truly useless and redundant.

Yeah but not on one album! I thought it was brilliant.

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GasLightStreet

Quote
Hairball

Quote
GasLightStreet

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Swayed1967
Unfortunately, since the early 80s they have released a string of mediocre records, Steel Wheels being but one of them, that will have future generations wondering how a band that once rivaled the Beatles eventually ended up with more bad songs than good. (A primer on how to understand the previous sentence: 1. Listen to their output from 1967-1982. 2. Choose any song from 83 onward and compare it to the 67-82 period. 3. When you inevitably reach the gutless conclusion that while the newer material may not reach the majestic heights of the classic period it’s still pretty good, smack yourself in the face. It is not pretty good – it is a descent into mediocrity that is unworthy of rock deities.)

Obviously I expect you and people such as the Dandelion - who with 39,000+ posts of Stones worshiping is too heavily invested to face reality - to reject such a notion. It’s a hard pill even for me to swallow.

I'll reject it just a tad - I wouldn't include UNDERCOVER, partially because you listed 1982 when there wasn't an album in 1982 and U is the true follow up to EMOTIONAL RESCUE and polishes off that era quite well, with REWIND being the icing of that 1978-1983 cake.

I remember buying Rewind on vinyl when it was released, then quickly wondered why as I had everything on it already. It was truly useless and redundant.

Yeah but not on one album! I thought it was brilliant.

I suppose it could be seen as brilliant, the same way I still consider Hot Rocks brilliant - and that's a double whammy!
Made in the Shade, the first Stones album I ever bought in '75, could also fit in the Rewind category, but it served it's purpose at the time as I didn't have all those tracks yet.

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

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ryanpow
I think songs like One Hit, Too Rude, Sleep Tonight are more authentic , more "organic" if you will than anything on SW. On the other hand a song like Winning Ugly is perhaps the worst thing they've ever recorded.

there's always Hold Back (DOn't Hold Back) or whatever the hell it's called...that has to be worse...and let's not forget the aptly titled Back to Zero. That has to be their absolute trough. Chuck can be proud to be co-author, his only writing credit with the stones, for that heap of garbage.

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DandelionPowderman


LOL! Didn't I just get a possee after me for saying that SFM on Ya Yas was weaker than the other tracks?

Yeah I know – I’m the one who reported you to Sheriff Hank. There is a picture of you being circulated with a caption that claims you’re a ‘piece of crap loser.’ I advise you to lie low for the time being and eschew any form of critical thinking. Please remember that we only visit this forum to give each other massages until it’s time to go to the concert.

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HankM
DPM You are the man, that piece of crap troll is not worth a thought.

That loser has been here a very short time and will probably be gone soon, just like many trolls before him. They only come to bash on The Stones and ruffle feathers and then slime away.

Hank, your posts about me are even more tedious than the record you’re supposed to be discussing. Care to share your thoughts on Steel Wheels or are you content to keep smacking yourself in the face?

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GasLightStreet

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Swayed1967
Unfortunately, since the early 80s they have released a string of mediocre records, Steel Wheels being but one of them, that will have future generations wondering how a band that once rivaled the Beatles eventually ended up with more bad songs than good. (A primer on how to understand the previous sentence: 1. Listen to their output from 1967-1982. 2. Choose any song from 83 onward and compare it to the 67-82 period. 3. When you inevitably reach the gutless conclusion that while the newer material may not reach the majestic heights of the classic period it’s still pretty good, smack yourself in the face. It is not pretty good – it is a descent into mediocrity that is unworthy of rock deities.)

Obviously I expect you and people such as the Dandelion - who with 39,000+ posts of Stones worshiping is too heavily invested to face reality - to reject such a notion. It’s a hard pill even for me to swallow.

I'll reject it just a tad - I wouldn't include UNDERCOVER, partially because you listed 1982 when there wasn't an album in 1982 and U is the true follow up to EMOTIONAL RESCUE and polishes off that era quite well, with REWIND being the icing of that 1978-1983 cake.

If you’re saying that UNDERCOVER is the last good Stones album I suppose I agree but for me ‘Going To A Go-Go’ (released in 1982) is the last truly great Stones song (even though it’s a cover) as I think I mentioned earlier in this thread. But yeah the cake went stale and the cooks quit mixing the batter together after that...