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GasLightStreet
My ratings per song (1-5 *) as of 11-8-2023 in regard to the album - not their discography:

Angry ***** - their best single since Start Me Up. Better, actually, because Angry is tuneful and fluid (and some smart ass comments from Mick) whereas Start Me Up is blocks, very chunky. Angry is sharp, crisp, moving, much more melodic and, well, fluid. Great vocals from Mick. Where has this Mick been for the past how many years?? Great vocals from Mick as in holy crap, great vocals from Mick. Overall an incredible performance. Keith's fat bass playing is classic Keith on bass, down in the bottom. Mick's best vocal performance is "Don't you spit in my face" and more so "Hear the rain keep beating on my window pane" - something about the nuance of it.

Get Close **** Mick sounds sincere - differently. The bridge brings a throwback to the early 1970s for some reason. Excellent guitar playing, Jordan lays down a stellar groove, and yes, the sax is a nice touch. The ending is fantastic, too.

Depending On You ***** Musically this could easily fit on side 2 of STICKY FINGERS or anywhere on GOATS HEAD SOUP, and, of course, side 2 of TATTOO YOU. Overall this stomps on any of their recent ballads (going back to 1989's Almost Hear You Sigh). It breathes. Ronnie is in excellent form, Keith does just enough when it counts. Mick sounds excellent.

Bite My Head Off **** A great rocker. Mick's sneering vocal is fantastic. Perhaps the biggest drawback is it's the Stones doing an updated Eazy Sleazy, which is still pretty damn good. And holy crap does Jordan sound like Charlie. This tune could easily fit in on SOME GIRLS.

Whole Wide World **** Mick has found home with his vocal like he hasn't since 1983's UNDERCOVER (ha ha, 40 years ago this week). The 4 floor stomp is classic Stones. Solid guitar work. Not really a stand out song but it kicks.

Dreamy Skies **** Almost like You Got The Silver's recent cousin (Ronnie brings it!). Mainly because they haven't done anything like You Got The Silver since 1969. Love Keith's flim and flam blues licks - it's perfect laid back Keith guitaring. Mick and Keith's vocals are exceptional together.

Mess It Up **** Andrew Watt channels Bill while Charlie lays the kick drum big time. The difference between Jordan and Charlie is clear in this song - Charlie has a shuffle turn around with how he did fills that Jordan hasn't, at least on this album, figured out yet - a time shift within a moment. Mick is all over and is obviously enjoying himself. Great tune.

Live By The Sword *** This sounds like something leftover from the 1977 SOME GIRLS sessions or possibly the 1979 EMOTIONAL RESCUE sessions. Unfortunately Mick's vocals sound like he's recording vocals for the Super Deluxe edition of SOME GIRLS and the song itself could've easily been a B-side for something between 1978-1983 (or an additional song on the 2010 SOME GIRLS deluxe reissue). Obviously they enjoyed it. I like it but...

Driving Me Too Hard ***** Mick's vocal absolutely fits this Keith riffage tune. Mick really gets it across. He nails the emotional aspects of being torn apart. Ronnie has some classic Ronnie fills - the kind of licks on SOME GIRLS, EMOTIONAL RESCUE and UNDERCOVER. The "solo" part is excellent - a cacophony of guitars that blend in a kind of wash and then lay out. Lyrically it could easily be seen as early 1980s Rolling Stones dealing with themselves. And - the one tune Ronnie plays bass on that doesn't sound like Ronnie playing bass: he sticks to the bottom!!! The outro of "Driving" backing vocals, similar to Angry, seems like a Steve Jordan production influence (only in regard to how the backing vocals are on Keith's solo albums).

Tell Me Straight ***** Keith's vocal placement is within the definition of perfection. The very idea that Mick wanted to sing it is disturbing. His backing vocals are an excellent touch, though. The guitar chime, it's huge, Keith's playing is incredible (it's as if he channeled Locked Away, Thru And Thru, Losing My Touch and This Place Is Empty into one song!!!), Ronnie's blending, Keith's little rolls on the piano... Jordan's sweeping stomp... it's a loping monster of a ballad, the loping, chiming and lolling guitars. Mick's backing vocals blend with Keith so sweetly.

It might be the best song on the album.

Sweet Sounds Of Heaven ***** Obviously it's easy to say 'This could've been on Side 2 of STICKY FINGERS' or for that matter, maybe side 4 of EXILE. It has that essence. A strange choice for a single - it works way better in the context of the LP. Although I do like what Lady Gaga did part of me thinks it would be a tad bit better if it was just Mick. The band sounds incredible, though. This simply stomps. And... it reveals that, with all the tinkering between what gave us BLUE AND LONESOME through Living In A Ghost Town, with the snippets that Mick put on IG with him playing harmonica on a fast paced blues ala Midnight Rambler (where the hell is THAT track!!!!???) that they clearly still have it with just playing and being because the latter portion of the song, the "jam" or, probably more appropriately, the coda, absolutely shows The Rolling Stones are still The Rolling Stones - it's just been quite a while since they've done it properly.

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retired_dog

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keefriffhards

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peoplewitheyes
Mick mentioned in one of the recent interviews (or perhaps in was an Andrew Watt one referencing Jags) that he did, indeed, dial down some of his vocal takes - try to make them more lazy or throwaway. I can't remember the exact phrase, but it suggested he was trying to calm some of his over-enunciating / power-singing tendencies.

I wonder what happened on Driving Me Too Hard, Mick sings it like he's suffering from a bad meal that's repeated on him. I really get the impression Mick is having a laugh with this track, almost taking the piss, it's hard to put into words other than he sounds insincere in his vocal and for me it's the best track on the album almost ruined by an over the top expression to the vocal. This track was begging for Keith imho.

Jeeeeez, but what can a poor boy who's sleeping with a Keith inflatable doll do when Mick's getting too much praise for his taste?

Obviously scanning this board every day like a jealous blood hound for every little sign of criticism towards Mick, jump on it, blow it up out of every reasonable proportion, exploit it endlessly in desperate and increasingly weird attempts to defend one's beloved hero Keith - who, by the way, just like Mick, in the cold light of the day and all things considered, did a damn fine job on this album and therefore doesn't need this questionable support from someone who's obviously stuck in his teenage years - and not in a good way.

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keefriffhards

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retired_dog

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keefriffhards

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peoplewitheyes
Mick mentioned in one of the recent interviews (or perhaps in was an Andrew Watt one referencing Jags) that he did, indeed, dial down some of his vocal takes - try to make them more lazy or throwaway. I can't remember the exact phrase, but it suggested he was trying to calm some of his over-enunciating / power-singing tendencies.

I wonder what happened on Driving Me Too Hard, Mick sings it like he's suffering from a bad meal that's repeated on him. I really get the impression Mick is having a laugh with this track, almost taking the piss, it's hard to put into words other than he sounds insincere in his vocal and for me it's the best track on the album almost ruined by an over the top expression to the vocal. This track was begging for Keith imho.

Jeeeeez, but what can a poor boy who's sleeping with a Keith inflatable doll do when Mick's getting too much praise for his taste?

Obviously scanning this board every day like a jealous blood hound for every little sign of criticism towards Mick, jump on it, blow it up out of every reasonable proportion, exploit it endlessly in desperate and increasingly weird attempts to defend one's beloved hero Keith - who, by the way, just like Mick, in the cold light of the day and all things considered, did a damn fine job on this album and therefore doesn't need this questionable support from someone who's obviously stuck in his teenage years - and not in a good way.

You continue to troll/ stalk/ gaslight me, after 10 years it's getting tired dude chill out and keep the conversation on the Stones not personal psychology clap trap.
I'm not the first or the last to find Mick's nasal twang irritating and unessessary.

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Monkeytonkman


I also like Andrew Watts idea of possibly releasing an additional EP of tracks a little further down the line, or could it be that they have a re-release, perhaps to precede the tour with an additional disc of bonus material?

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Doxa

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Monkeytonkman


I also like Andrew Watts idea of possibly releasing an additional EP of tracks a little further down the line, or could it be that they have a re-release, perhaps to precede the tour with an additional disc of bonus material?

Sorry I have missed that Andrew Watt idea of an additional EP: what (and where) he has said about it?

- Doxa

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Doxa
Some random thoughts about the new album. Still digesting it, and loving every minute.

----

Since it is a natural habit of mind to compare anything novel to familiar things, and with a band having such a huge and long history that one simply cannot ignore, I also allow myself to compare HACKNEY DIAMONDS to their previous albums.

There are three albums I feel have something in common with HACKNEY DIAMONDS, and all of them by different means. But for me it is more like having similar over-all impressions, not discovering more detailed similarities in quality or features in songs.

First: AFTERMATH. Probably it is like in the beginning, having played mostly covers, and then finally having a showcase of full originality. BLUE & LONESOME put them back to from where they came from, and now - after the catharsis - they reached out. The sort of freshness and joy, almost innocence in original song-writing, reminds me of AFTERMATH here. Further, the shameless flirting with pop and intentionally developed melodic features, bridges and so, is also common between AFTERMATH and HACKNEY DIAMONDS. A sort of mindset: like they are free of the restraints set by the orthodox blues or blues-based rock, allowing adding there surprising melodic elements and developments.

Second: SOME GIRLS. The sense of urgency. The determination. The focus. The album has a purpose - like them knowing what they want to do - and that's something we haven't really heard since SOME GÌRLS. HACKNEY DIAMONDS offers a similar statement as SOME GIRLS did at the time, the band having been more or less out of focus, not really knowing their direction or purpose since the Big Four. This probably is the most striking feature in the new album.

Third: STEEL WHEELS. The band wants not reinvent the wheel, but to sound contemporary, and that's what STEEL WHEELS and HACKNEY DIAMONDS have in common. True that UNDERCOVER and DIRTY WORK had tried to flirt with contemporary sounds and production, sometimes succeeding, mostly not, but in STEEL WHEELS they nailed it by proceeding a pure late-80's sounding record, sounding exactly like the stuff played in the radio at the time. They sounded different than ever before, but that sounded natural. The contrast to the past was a huge one, as HACKNEY sonically DIAMONDS presents now. STEEL WHEELS might sound slick and clean, even shallow now, but it worked 100% at the time. Time will tell if HACKNEY DIAMONDS some day will sound as dated as STEEL WHEELS sounds now.

- Doxa

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GasLightStreet
... Great vocals from Mick. Where has this Mick been for the past how many years?? ...

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LeonidP

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GasLightStreet
... Great vocals from Mick. Where has this Mick been for the past how many years?? ...

Mick's vocals have been nothing short of stellar in recent years, check out SuperHeavy, Eazy Sleazey, and even Blue & Lonesome.

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LeonidP

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GasLightStreet
... Great vocals from Mick. Where has this Mick been for the past how many years?? ...

Mick's vocals have been nothing short of stellar in recent years, check out SuperHeavy, Eazy Sleazey, and even Blue & Lonesome.

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RisingStone
For me, Hackney Diamonds doesn’t resemble any of their previous releases, even those from the so-called modern era, i.e. Steel Wheels-A Bigger Bang. In my previous post, I described HD as the definitive modern Stones album, but in truth, it has stepped into a new realm, an album belonging to its own. So unique. And that’s the greatness of HD.

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Monkeytonkman
Been slowly processing the album since its release, some really great stuff on there that gets my mind and body moving. I'm kinda glad they kept it to 12 tracks and didn't overload it like some of the preceding LP's.

Having said that, I am starting to develop the hankering to have a copy of the Japanese release, with the extra track. I liked Ghost Town when originally released and think, for me, would be a welcome addition to the track listing

Does anyone have a good link from where to order, preferably with an English translation

I also like Andrew Watts idea of possibly releasing an additional EP of tracks a little further down the line, or could it be that they have a re-release, perhaps to precede the tour with an additional disc of bonus material?

Just spitballing.

Ta

\m/

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Doxa
Some random thoughts about the new album. Still digesting it, and loving every minute.

----

Since it is a natural habit of mind to compare anything novel to familiar things, and with a band having such a huge and long history that one simply cannot ignore, I also allow myself to compare HACKNEY DIAMONDS to their previous albums.

There are three albums I feel have something in common with HACKNEY DIAMONDS, and all of them by different means. But for me it is more like having similar over-all impressions, not discovering more detailed similarities in quality or features in songs.

First: AFTERMATH. Probably it is like in the beginning, having played mostly covers, and then finally having a showcase of full originality. BLUE & LONESOME put them back to from where they came from, and now - after the catharsis - they reached out. The sort of freshness and joy, almost innocence in original song-writing, reminds me of AFTERMATH here. Further, the shameless flirting with pop and intentionally developed melodic features, bridges and so, is also common between AFTERMATH and HACKNEY DIAMONDS. A sort of mindset: like they are free of the restraints set by the orthodox blues or blues-based rock, allowing adding there surprising melodic elements and developments.

Second: SOME GIRLS. The sense of urgency. The determination. The focus. The album has a purpose - like them knowing what they want to do - and that's something we haven't really heard since SOME GÌRLS. HACKNEY DIAMONDS offers a similar statement as SOME GIRLS did at the time, the band having been more or less out of focus, not really knowing their direction or purpose since the Big Four. This probably is the most striking feature in the new album.

Third: STEEL WHEELS. The band wants not reinvent the wheel, but to sound contemporary, and that's what STEEL WHEELS and HACKNEY DIAMONDS have in common. True that UNDERCOVER and DIRTY WORK had tried to flirt with contemporary sounds and production, sometimes succeeding, mostly not, but in STEEL WHEELS they nailed it by proceeding a pure late-80's sounding record, sounding exactly like the stuff played in the radio at the time. They sounded different than ever before, but that sounded natural. The contrast to the past was a huge one, as HACKNEY sonically DIAMONDS presents now. STEEL WHEELS might sound slick and clean, even shallow now, but it worked 100% at the time. Time will tell if HACKNEY DIAMONDS some day will sound as dated as STEEL WHEELS sounds now.

- Doxa

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Silver Dagger

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Doxa
Some random thoughts about the new album. Still digesting it, and loving every minute.

----

Since it is a natural habit of mind to compare anything novel to familiar things, and with a band having such a huge and long history that one simply cannot ignore, I also allow myself to compare HACKNEY DIAMONDS to their previous albums.

There are three albums I feel have something in common with HACKNEY DIAMONDS, and all of them by different means. But for me it is more like having similar over-all impressions, not discovering more detailed similarities in quality or features in songs.

First: AFTERMATH. Probably it is like in the beginning, having played mostly covers, and then finally having a showcase of full originality. BLUE & LONESOME put them back to from where they came from, and now - after the catharsis - they reached out. The sort of freshness and joy, almost innocence in original song-writing, reminds me of AFTERMATH here. Further, the shameless flirting with pop and intentionally developed melodic features, bridges and so, is also common between AFTERMATH and HACKNEY DIAMONDS. A sort of mindset: like they are free of the restraints set by the orthodox blues or blues-based rock, allowing adding there surprising melodic elements and developments.

Second: SOME GIRLS. The sense of urgency. The determination. The focus. The album has a purpose - like them knowing what they want to do - and that's something we haven't really heard since SOME GÌRLS. HACKNEY DIAMONDS offers a similar statement as SOME GIRLS did at the time, the band having been more or less out of focus, not really knowing their direction or purpose since the Big Four. This probably is the most striking feature in the new album.

Third: STEEL WHEELS. The band wants not reinvent the wheel, but to sound contemporary, and that's what STEEL WHEELS and HACKNEY DIAMONDS have in common. True that UNDERCOVER and DIRTY WORK had tried to flirt with contemporary sounds and production, sometimes succeeding, mostly not, but in STEEL WHEELS they nailed it by proceeding a pure late-80's sounding record, sounding exactly like the stuff played in the radio at the time. They sounded different than ever before, but that sounded natural. The contrast to the past was a huge one, as HACKNEY sonically DIAMONDS presents now. STEEL WHEELS might sound slick and clean, even shallow now, but it worked 100% at the time. Time will tell if HACKNEY DIAMONDS some day will sound as dated as STEEL WHEELS sounds now.

- Doxa

Nice post Doxa. Your point about Some Girls is great. Punk had given them a deserved kick up the arse but here there is something far more terrifying and a real threat to their livelihood and that is their own mortality. Punk may have been a scary and valid reminder that time waits for no one - not even the greatest rock'n'roll band in the world - but death sure is the great leveller than ensures complete and utter focus on the present and future.

They knew that this could quite easily be their final statement and as such, was so sobering - in both senses of the word - that they played out of their skins to produce their greatest album in more than 40 years. They finally woke up to the fact that their relevance as a recording act had dipped considerably. How incredible then, at their age that they could still muster up something as great as Hackney Diamonds.

I get a bit of a Between The Buttons feel about HD but only from a geographic viewpoint, not musically. This is their most London album since Between The Buttons and I'm not just talking about the album title. You can hear it in Mick's singing and intonation. It's like they have come home to where it all began.

And I am also reminded of Sticky Fingers - the in your face rocker to kick off the album, those fantastic overloaded guitars on both Get Close and Sway as the second track, and a beautiful ballad in Depending On You and Wild Horses as third song. I wonder if this is what they were thinking when they formatted the album into its running order? There's also a traditional blues - You Gotta Move and Rolling Stone Blues; a jam like song where they stretch out - Can't You Hear Me Knocking and Sweet Sounds Of Heaven; and a song about a bitch - Bitch and Bite My Head Off.

It just keeps getting better and better.

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Idorh
When I read already heavy-handed articles about past albums that have been written about on this forum for years, and compared to an album made by 80-year-olds in 2023. I advise the Stones to just not make another album.

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ProfessorWolf
i just got done reading thru about 10 pages of this thread so forgive me for bring this up here

but as it relates to keith playing solos on this record i'm pretty sure he plays at least a few of the fast one (not that i've decided which ones yet mind you) and he is under the right circumstances still very capable of playing fast





bitch brussels 2022 2:12 - 2:38





gimme shelter berlin 2:28 - 3:02

if he's able to play like that onstage then in the studio with the ability to try as many times as he likes for as long as he wants (as long as he's done before valentine's day) i'm sure he could play as well or likely better

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keefriffhards

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ProfessorWolf
i just got done reading thru about 10 pages of this thread so forgive me for bring this up here

but as it relates to keith playing solos on this record i'm pretty sure he plays at least a few of the fast one (not that i've decided which ones yet mind you) and he is under the right circumstances still very capable of playing fast





bitch brussels 2022 2:12 - 2:38





gimme shelter berlin 2:28 - 3:02

if he's able to play like that onstage then in the studio with the ability to try as many times as he likes for as long as he wants (as long as he's done before valentine's day) i'm sure he could play as well or likely better

My sentiments exactly, Keith receives a very negative biased rap on this board, they try to rewrite history and now it goes so far as surmise that Ronnie plays the best/ fast guitar parts on the new album without it being a fact.
Last year Keith really shined on tour and Ronnie to be honest struggled, i get the impression a lot of regular posters, you know the resident trolls, discredit Keith where possible and it's continued through these past 10 pages of this thread.
I find it confusing as Stones fans to constantly take credit away from Keith while pouring praise towards Mick and Ronnie. It's fascinating to be honest, thanks for the clips, when you are actually at the shows the power of Keith still hits you hard when he's in the right mood, he's still inspirational even with those arthritic fingers and I'm sure he Kicked ass on the new album. although the way it's produced sound wise it's difficult to tell who plays what.

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ProfessorWolf

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keefriffhards

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ProfessorWolf
i just got done reading thru about 10 pages of this thread so forgive me for bring this up here

but as it relates to keith playing solos on this record i'm pretty sure he plays at least a few of the fast one (not that i've decided which ones yet mind you) and he is under the right circumstances still very capable of playing fast





bitch brussels 2022 2:12 - 2:38





gimme shelter berlin 2:28 - 3:02

if he's able to play like that onstage then in the studio with the ability to try as many times as he likes for as long as he wants (as long as he's done before valentine's day) i'm sure he could play as well or likely better

My sentiments exactly, Keith receives a very negative biased rap on this board, they try to rewrite history and now it goes so far as surmise that Ronnie plays the best/ fast guitar parts on the new album without it being a fact.
Last year Keith really shined on tour and Ronnie to be honest struggled, i get the impression a lot of regular posters, you know the resident trolls, discredit Keith where possible and it's continued through these past 10 pages of this thread.
I find it confusing as Stones fans to constantly take credit away from Keith while pouring praise towards Mick and Ronnie. It's fascinating to be honest, thanks for the clips, when you are actually at the shows the power of Keith still hits you hard when he's in the right mood, he's still inspirational even with those arthritic fingers and I'm sure he Kicked ass on the new album. although the way it's produced sound wise it's difficult to tell who plays what.

ronnie was fine in 22 better then 2021 and from what i've seen from his many solo appearances this year and his playing on the album and at the racket he's in very fine form and playing great

clearly that second bout with cancer had a significant effect on him but he seems to have recovered well from that and regained his strength

i'd also like to be clear that ronnie is really, really playing well on this album and does seems to play most of the solos on it

but a couple solos don't quit sound like ronnie and i think are keith just giving it his all remember mick said keith worked really hard on this album

your right though the production does make it difficult to distinguish between keith and ronnie but also because there's a lot of good weaving between them too

and please do stop with the keith fans vs. mick fans narrative we're all stones fans here

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keefriffhards

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ProfessorWolf

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keefriffhards

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ProfessorWolf
i just got done reading thru about 10 pages of this thread so forgive me for bring this up here

but as it relates to keith playing solos on this record i'm pretty sure he plays at least a few of the fast one (not that i've decided which ones yet mind you) and he is under the right circumstances still very capable of playing fast





bitch brussels 2022 2:12 - 2:38





gimme shelter berlin 2:28 - 3:02

if he's able to play like that onstage then in the studio with the ability to try as many times as he likes for as long as he wants (as long as he's done before valentine's day) i'm sure he could play as well or likely better

My sentiments exactly, Keith receives a very negative biased rap on this board, they try to rewrite history and now it goes so far as surmise that Ronnie plays the best/ fast guitar parts on the new album without it being a fact.
Last year Keith really shined on tour and Ronnie to be honest struggled, i get the impression a lot of regular posters, you know the resident trolls, discredit Keith where possible and it's continued through these past 10 pages of this thread.
I find it confusing as Stones fans to constantly take credit away from Keith while pouring praise towards Mick and Ronnie. It's fascinating to be honest, thanks for the clips, when you are actually at the shows the power of Keith still hits you hard when he's in the right mood, he's still inspirational even with those arthritic fingers and I'm sure he Kicked ass on the new album. although the way it's produced sound wise it's difficult to tell who plays what.

ronnie was fine in 22 better then 2021 and from what i've seen from his many solo appearances this year and his playing on the album and at the racket he's in very fine form and playing great

clearly that second bout with cancer had a significant effect on him but he seems to have recovered well from that and regained his strength

i'd also like to be clear that ronnie is really, really playing well on this album and does seems to play most of the solos on it

but a couple solos don't quit sound like ronnie and i think are keith just giving it his all remember mick said keith worked really hard on this album

your right though the production does make it difficult to distinguish between keith and ronnie but also because there's a lot of good weaving between them too

and please do stop with the keith fans vs. mick fans narrative we're all stones fans here

Agreed Ronnie definitely had problems due to his treatments second time round, not sure he is the player he was a few years ago, from various footage of Ronnie recently at charity and benefit gigs this year he is irratic and sloppy but that's part of his charm i guess, he was good with the Stones the other day playing new tracks, Keith was a bit of a let down to be honest, could hardly hear him.

It's not about Mick vs Keith, it's that it's so acceptable to bash Keith on iorr but nothing negative is ever tolerated about Mick or Ronnie.

I don't know, maybe it's one sided on here because most posters that are more academic and articulate tend to be Mick fans, it's just an observation I've found, they are also more Liberal in their word view, fascinating stuff, Keith seems to attract the oddballs like me, you see them in mass at a Winos gig haha.