Today marks the release of Hackney Diamonds by The Rolling Stones, their first album of original music in my lifetime [18 years] and the first as a trio. To my surprise major music publications were right: it's actually their best work in maybe 40 years… let me explain.
The thing about The Rolling Stones is just how unremarkable their music is. They barely reinvent the wheel and never really try to be more than they are, they are more or less just playing you bluesy bar rock and damn good at that. They have mastered this sort of simplicity that rock music seems to have lost. To say there will never be another band like The Stones isn’t so much about how well they play but about how simple they have been. No one wants to be simple even if the harvest of that crop will pay off to people looking for a good time. When people say The Stones haven’t released a great album in 40, 50, even 60 years they seem to forget that The Rolling Stones have never released a great album. Exile on Main Street is considered their magnum opus and most people can’t even say a nice thing about half of the songs. It’s wildly entertaining to see the slander this band is subjected to without the understanding they have never been good, and that is the appeal. They are an everyman band, not every group needs to be Led Zeppelin.
With that out of the way, saying this is their best album since 1980’s disco infused Emotional Rescue is a claim I will proudly tie my name too [I have a hard time counting 1981’s Tattoo You as a full album, being that it’s mostly outtakes and that lead guitarist Ronnie Wood is absent from nearly every track despite the album being marketed as new music, it’s a glorified compilation album and that’s perfectly okay, so many songs are great but I won’t be counting it as a studio album today]. To be clear as well, I do deeply adore many albums that have come out since 1980: Voodoo Lounge and A Bigger Bang are really good, albeit too long, and each of their albums since 1980 has at least one or two singles that are amazing. [Undercover has Too Much Blood, a long, electronic, very-1980s horror romp, Dirty Work has one of my favorite Stones tracks One Hit (To the Body), Steel Wheels was a great return to form with Keith Richards tracks being particular standouts, and Bridges to Babylon had a few good ones, especially Saint of Me]. The issue the band has run into is making these albums too long, they are all nearly pushing 14 to 15 songs, some of which are such obviously filler. Hackney Diamonds avoids this conflict, clocking in at 12 songs in just under 50 minutes. Nothing really overstays its welcome, returning to earlier days when their albums would almost be *too* short, ones that would leave you wanting more as opposed to making you wish that they had stopped about 20 minutes ago.
The album's opener Angry was also its lead single, as well as being one of the worst songs on the album. It’s by no means bad, just so lackluster compared to some of the more lighting in a bottle tracks that it shares space with. The stand out is the weaving of Wood and Richards, which carries through the rest of the album. Track two, Get Close, is phenomenal. Biased because Elton John is on piano? Maybe. Jokes aside, it's a great ballad from the group. The faux religious imagery through the song works in its favor, some of the better lyrics on the album. I will say that Mick Jagger has lost a bit of the bite in his lyricism that once made him such a stand out in previous decades. He comes across heavy handed and overtly sexual in a way that no longer seems somewhat normal as when you’re 80 you don’t get away with it like you would at 26. Saying that, it becomes obvious when Richards wrote a bulk of the lyrics in some spots. Richards, in 60 years, has barely slipped in his songwriting career, getting stronger as years go on. A line in Get Close has his trademarks written all over it, showcasing just how it is the strongest in the song: I walk this way a million times with a blindfold on my eyes / It’s a nighttime business with an angel in disguise / I bargained with the Devil, I need heaven for one night. A line that would find a home on something like Goats Head Soup or in one of Richards trademark ballads. Depending on You was my favorite from the album. The day the album was announced and Jagger spoke of the song I knew it would be an instant favorite for me. The imagery is reminiscent of that of Till the Next Goodbye from ‘74’s It’s Only Rock ‘n’ Roll, the song feels incredibly fresh whilst being a typical sounding Stones ballad. The lyrics are knifing, something tells me this was another Richards heavy piece: The toughest part is I know you too well / Now I’m just a story you tell / Embroidering the truth with things you never felt. The clunky wording hits how a Richards written ballad usually will [Angie, All About You, The Worst]. Also delighted to see Benmont Tench on organ here. I adore his session work and work with Tom Petty and The Heartbreakers, this was such an obvious choice to include him on. Such a pleasant surprise to see his name on such a song, definitely a nice surprise.
In a complete 180, Bite My Head Off may just be one of the most bitter Stones pieces: You think I’m your bitch / I’m fucking with your brain / Why’d you bite my head off? The urgency of it isn’t dissimilar to something like Brown Sugar or Rough Justice. Also a fuzz bass solo from none other than Paul McCartney… damn they pulled out all the stops. I adored the bass solo, something the band has never really done, unless you count one of the greatest basslines of classic rock aka Richards' snakey line at the beginning of 1969’s Live With Me. Whole Wide World is good. Nothing to really say, it comes across a little gimmicky, but it would be a lie to say The Stones music has never had a gimmicky tune. It's a fun, very Some Girls bonus track meets wannabe Stones band. Do with that description whatever you’d like. Dreamy Skies marks the middle of the album, a sweet little country number that feels very Gram Parsons-esque with some wonderful slide from Wood.
We go a bit down here: Mess It Up is the worst song here. One of the only two songs featuring the late, great Charlie Watts who passed in 2021 at age 80. The song is obviously a Jagger lead piece, reminiscent of those on 80s albums that did not age well but scratched his itch to do something modern. The song feels like a Neon Trees parody song, one that realistically could’ve been passable in maybe 2011 if we’re being nice. Watts kills here. It’s so obvious he’s featured on this track as opposed to Steve Jordan. I love Jordan, I highly encourage seeking out his pieces with other artists, but man nothing will ever beat Watts. Something is so recognizable about his playing. Shame they made such a horrible song around such a good drumbeat. Live by the Sword is a bit better. You need to get past the clunky opening and it’s significantly better. John also features here, and his piano is unmistakable. Original Stones bassist Bill Wyman lays down the bass for the track, the last time we may ever see the original 4 Stones on a track ever again. Wyman, as per usual, is lackluster on bass. Still the worst bass player on the album, and not even in comparison to McCartney. Personally, I think Wood gives the best bassline on the entire album on the next track, Driving Me Too Hard. The bass is the standout of the song, elevating the piece. The song also features great harmony vocals from Richards, who is absent from that role on most of the album. The next song is Richards-lead, his gorgeous ballad Tell Me Straight. I’m completely biased, Richards is my favorite Stone by miles and I could spend days speaking on his importance to everything about what makes the band the band. His voice is better than it has been in nearly a decade, something he credits to quitting smoking back in 2020. His piece is one of his commonplace ballads, one so good you almost wish he had more than one. I love his songs on every album, biased as that is, and I must say that this is probably his best since his pieces for Voodoo Lounge back in 1994. It doesn’t feel tacked on like the previous albums have, making his pieces seem like they were required as opposed to genuine pieces for the album. We know the man can sing and write a damn good song so it’s nice to see him get that opportunity again without it feeling skippable to those who may not like his work as much as the Jagger ones.
Sweet Sounds of Heaven is honestly one of the best Stones songs of the past 30 years. I adore Lady Gaga and Stevie Wonder so their features here are superb already; Gaga can sing the phonebook and it would sound beautiful. She and Jagger play off of each other perfectly, she has the power in her voice and guts to bury him. It was Watts who said most people crumble when trying to perform with Jagger, his presence and domineering performance threatening to someone who knows they are about to share a stage with someone who basked in the spotlight for longer than their parents have been alive. It’s just so good. Unlike anything they’ve put out before whilst also being reminiscent of a sonic love child of Can’t You Hear Me Knocking in terms of length and Gimme Shelter in terms of dual lead vocal. The album ends with a cover of Muddy Waters’ Rolling Stone Blues, the song behind the band's namesake. It’s a good closer, though coming off of a seven minute long powerhouse, its stripped back nature really shines. It works though, one last curveball and it makes the piece standout against the more modern rock / pop - centric pieces on the album. The interplay of Richards guitar and Jaggers harp truly take the piece over the top, making it incredibly reminiscent of their early days as a blues cover band.
Out of 12 songs, only 2 are truly mediocre to bad, a record from the looks of their past albums. I really do like this album, I’m pleasantly surprised with how well it turned out after the iffy lead single of Angry. I will say the production is some of the worst on any of their records. I think Andrew Watt can produce, but it did not work well with The Stones sound. Jagger sounds borderline robotic; he's been so autotuned on certain tracks, and the drums fall under the same category on more than a few songs. The guitar and bass sound perfectly mixed, the bass being loud enough without an EQ change to increase it, which is really refreshing. The vocals are just jarring, I suppose. They aren’t as bad as on Angry the whole album but there are some parts where it’s just horribly overdone it can be a bit distracting. Having listened a few more times it gets less noticeable, but still not a fan of that. It’s incredibly obvious Jagger and Richards didn’t produce this. I’m so firmly in the camp that you can tell Richards wasn’t behind the boards because there’s no way he would’ve let it become so robotic. I think Jordan did a phenomenal job on drums, and it goes without saying that Watts did. His presence is so apparent on his two tracks it’s insane, the way he is so recognizable so quickly is a testament to his talent and further solidifies him as my all time favorite drummer. No one can do it like Charlie Watts.
I think the features fit well too. It was nice hearing all these different iconic instruments, a little like Beck’s Bolero. John’s piano and McCartney’s bass come across as recognizable as a Jimmy Page lick or Keith Moon solo. Also without mentioning my two favorite musicians are John and McCarntey so it was insanely cool to see them here, as well as Tench on a few tracks. The Heartbreakers are my favorite band, so seeing his name felt nice. I feel Richards was sidelined a bit in this though, there weren't nearly as many moments on this album as their previous 24 where you have a “Oh, that’s Keith!” moment, which was a little sad to me because as discussed he is my favorite. The MVP of this album was Ronnie Wood, by MILES. I love Wood’s work and have always felt The Stones have minimized his talent. To hear any of his solo work, features with other artists, or especially his work with Faces you can’t help but feel he’s been limited by The Stones. He went from doing mind blowing solo’s to I’d Rather Go Blind, being one of the most renowned slide, lap steel and pedal steel guitarists of his generation to basically just playing what Mick Taylor and Brian Jones did before him. Being in The Stones was obviously his best move, but it moved him to the back despite being such a talented and diverse player. I mean you have a man willing to pull out a pedal steel whenever for you and you have him play it maybe twice in half a century? Saying all that, this album he’s all over, and it’s so refreshing. Most of the time he falls into the background but every great instrumental piece of this album was played by Wood, and I personally think it’s great that he finally has the chance to showcase what he’s always been doing. Ronnie MVP, we’ve been waiting, it only took 50 years!!
Overall, Hackney Diamonds is a damn good album for a troupe of 80 year old men. Their best? Far from it. Perfect? Definitely not. That's what makes it good! It’s a true Stones album. A solid 8.5/10. I really enjoyed it, and I was apprehensive for a while. I’ve been hyper fixated on The Rolling Stones for over a year now so I’m quite proud to report it’s up to par with someone who has consumed so much media about them in a year it’s borderline concerning.
Hackney Diamonds is available to stream wherever you stream music!
Comentarios