Re: I'm looking for more of the real "bluesy" Stones songs.....
Date: October 3, 2005 00:23
If you haven't already done so, you might get the classic early albums (I'm in the US, so my titles reflect that) - "!2 x 5" (6 killer Chess recordings in real stereo, including "Confessin' the Blues' w/ dueling guitars from Keith & Brian & Chicago style from Stu, Bill, Charlie, the early manifesto "Empty Heart", the now-longer "2120 S. Michigan Blvd" w/ Keith's solo restored, 'Around & Around' on which they outdo Chuck, & the glorious 'Its All Over Now') AND monster 'Suzie Q'..."Now" does an Exile-type trip thru the deep south, from the N'Orleans funk of 'Down Home Girl', Howlin Wolf ('Little Red Rooster'), Solomon Burke ('Everybody Needs Somebody to Love'), the 40s boogie classic 'Down the Road Apiece' pure juke joint rave-up, Bo Diddley's "Mona" that adds something fresh to the original, Otis' early classic 'Pain In My Heart', & some original blues ('What a Shame'), the dark & subtle 'Heart of Stone', & amazingly astute relationship songs by J/R ('Surprise Surprise,' 'Off the Hook'& the great cover 'Oh Baby We Got a Good Thing Goin'') &, of course, another Chuck roadster raveup that equals the original ('You Cant Catch Me'). All in all I think "Now" is their most accomplished, flawless early album (yes I know it's the 'wrong' ENSTL - but I grew up loving those tambourines & Mick's vocal, & the long one's now on Mor Hot Rocks) - sorry if you have all this, but if not it's essential. And then you get the later classics, & boots like 'Still a Fool', now revisited by Keith w/ Hubert Sumlin (Wolf's guitarist) on the fine recent "About Them Shoes"...Not Finally, the great late period Howlin Wolf classic (recently expanded to 2 glorious cds) is a virtual collaboration w/ the Stones: "London Howlin Wolf Sessions"('71) has Charlie, Bill, Stu (Mick present but not performing), plus Clapton at his post-Layla peak, Hubert, and if Wolf isn't as feral as on his early Memphis & Chicago classics he & the band sure know how to Do the Do...