Re: Stones' musical influences?
Date: February 4, 2006 11:26
Jagger often said he was greatly influenced by Don Covay, especially for his falsetto. Their voices are in fact very similar, and there is even a track which is a great blind test for a stones fan, called "Hot Blood". I tricked a good number of fans saying that Jagger sung on that (great) track.
Stupid, I should have done the test and sent it! But I don't have it with me.
He also said, when criticized for the abundance of falsetto singing, that "Prince did three albums that way and nobody criticized him". I wouldn't be surprised if he actually dug Prince.
The Otis Redding influence is obvious in the early years, with all the covers and all the "gotta gotta" on Got Life If You Want It.
Jagger's moves: main influence is Brown in the sixties and seventies (he's ridiculously bad at it in the seventies) and... yes... Michael Jackson in 89-90. Just watch Tokyo 1990 or At the Max, his attempts at moving staccato like in break dance. He is horrible actually. Mick embarasses me when he applies these things which require actual proper dancing skills. But today he is his own self (as sorted out by his dance teacher) and he is great!
For Charlie, would be worth citing a drummer: and that would be Kenny Clarke, I guess. I don't think Charlie was influenced by any rock drummers, although of course he influenced so many.
In Bill's bass playing, in its use of syncopaes and in the way it does not stick to one line, I hear a great deal of Motown. In the documentary "Standing in the shadow of Motown, -who was the Motown bass player's name again?- the analysis on his style could be transferred piece by piece to Bill's.