Re: Boxing (Albums Edition): VOODOO LOUNGE vs. BRIDGES TO BABYLON
Posted by:
VoodooLounge13
()
Date: January 16, 2020 21:50
I've told this story in the past on here, but here's a short version...
Grew up with the Stones on the Oldies station, without knowing who they were really. My parents only listened to the Oldies station, and my father is a big "pre-drugs" Beatles fan, as well as a fan of most 50's music. I was 13 when SW and Mixed Emotions came out and the video was on MTV relentlessly. That same year, The London Years came out, and it was a Christmas present to me - I couldn't believe how many of the songs on there I knew. I was a rabid Beatles fan growing up, and it wasn't until I saw the Boys live on the B2B tour in Boston that I was fully converted and the obsession began.
Flashpoint, when it came out, I thought was tremendous, and it's still probably my preferred live album - aside only from Stripped, but of the actual live albums, it would be Flashpoint. But then they took a long break, and I was starving for new music from them. So, when Love Is Strong came out, with that wicked guitar riff and it's sweet video, I was instantly hooked!!! I bought the cassette of the album, and that was all I knew for the longest of times. Mean Disposition I didn't even know existed until about 15 years ago, and IMO as the album closer, I think it highly detracts from the album. Thru & Thru is one of my very favorite Keef songs, and it serves as the quintessential closer to this album.
I was 18 when VL came out - a teenage boy throbbing with hormones, and to me, VL just oooooooooooooozes sex. From the raunchy opening riff of Love is Strong to the pure raw energy of Sparks Will Fly, and climaxing in the dirtiness of I Go Wild - the only song I've ever heard (even to this day) that devotes itself entirely to pleasure derived from pleasing a woman orally. Even the afterglow of Brand New Car has a nice, light a cigarette and pass it between partners feel to it. And let's not forget the ferociousness of Suck On The Jugular - another Mick-in-his-prime-on-the-prowl raw primal number. Combine all this with The Worst and Thru & Thru - still 2 of my favorite Keef tunes, and so far it's a winner.
The sound is hard hitting all the way thru, and the drums in the stairwell work to garner that extra thumping of the heart. You Got Me Rocking I used to love much more than I do now - I feel as if it's been worn out live. But Baby Break It Down is one of my all time favorite songs of theirs. The Harpsichord on New Faces gets me every time - a friggin harpsichord!!!!! Who uses that outside of a long-dead classical maestro?!?!?! I still love it!!! And I also am a fan of the lyrics. Moon Is Up is a great follow up, and with its echoing drums and distant sounding vocals from Mick pining for a missing love. Great stuff. The lyrics to Blinded By Rainbows....so poignant and deep. Gives me goosebumps every time. Out of Tears is no Almost Hear You Sigh, but to me, it's worlds better than both ballads on B2B. The agonizing dismissal of Mick conceding that he is played out. And of course Sweethearts Together - a somewhat country-ish sounding little ditty about a new love just starting out, which is what I had back in 1994.
It's a masterpiece so intricately crafted and forever embedded in my very soul as the best they've ever done start to finish.............ruined by the discovery of Mean Disposition, which was seemingly tacked onto the end to ruin the fluidity of the whole damn thing. Those who have the cassette, I invite you to put it on this weekend, pour yourself a tall glass of red wine, strip off your clothes, and listen to it alone in the darkness - feel the sexuality drifting out of the speakers and be lost in everything that has made this band the bad boys of Rock n Roll for so damn long!!!!! Voodoo Lounge is The Rolling Stones at their very baddest some 30 years on.
Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 2020-01-17 17:39 by VoodooLounge13.