[SB 241] Diamonds are forever. So are The Rolling Stones.
Hi, I’m Matt, and welcome to Steady Beats: rumination on music, muscle, and motion at midlife.
Diamonds are forever. So are The Rolling Stones.
In 1989, with the The Rolling Stones coming off seven years of turmoil and solo projects, the band cranked up a tour to support its new Steel Wheels album.
Critics called it the “Steel Wheelchairs Tour.”
The Stones were in their 40s, for heaven’s sakes. Everyone knew they were washed. The tour raked in $175 million, or $408 million in today’s inflated dollars.
Washed, indeed.
In 1994, the Stones toured again, (including an incredible live show I saw at Spartan Stadium in East Lansing, Michigan.) That night, Mick scampered up, sprinted across, and strutted through the mammoth stage set, hoisting an aerobically-impressive middle finger at those declaring him past his expiration date.
Source: Michigan State University Archives
The Voodoo Lounge Tour was assumed to be a farewell tour, though it wasn’t billed as such. After all, The Stones had been a band for an unheard-of 32 years at that point. What was left to do?
That was 30 years ago, of course.
Now, Mick and Keith are 80. Ronnie Wood is a spry 76. And they made a new album. What are we doing here, anyway?
Listening to a kick-ass rock album, that’s what we’re doing.
Hackney Diamonds is high-energy, full of variety, and calls back to a half-century plus of classics without sounding stale.
The band is clearly undergoing unfathomable and experimental longevity treatments. Macabre procedures are conducted at a remote underground medical facility, a series of tunnels and bunkers obscured by natural forest floor overgrowth and ancient tree canopies, a place far afield of ethics or government oversight.
Or maybe a deal has been cut with horrific demonic entities.
An arrangement sealed for eternity in rituals involving psychedelics and bloodletting, enabling The Stones to summon 65,000 souls per show, and to conjure up rock albums beyond what should be biblically feasible.
They always did have Sympathy For The Devil.
Whatever the boys are doing, whatever corners have been cut in the name of rock and rejuvenation, they should keep it up.
I want more of this inexplicable run.
The Songs
All the Stones genres are represented:
No-nonsense rock: Angry, Get Close, Bite My Head Off, Whole Wide World, Mess It Up
Keith vocal: Tell Me Straight
Forlorn rock ballad: Depending On You, Driving Me Too Hard
Gospel rock: Sweet Sounds of Heaven
Country rock: Dreamy Skies
Blues rock: Rolling Stones Blues
There are no duds. “Mess It Up,” and “Bite My Head Off,” and “Live By The Sword” come closest to feeling formulaic. But they’re the “least good” entrants in a collection of excellent tracks.
“Sweet Sounds of Heaven” is Hackney Diamonds’ crown jewel. Lady GaGa saunters into this slow-build spiritual song nonchalantly, echoing Mick’s lead vocal, before pulling up alongside him with enough crackling energy to supercharge not just the track, but the whole album.
The “spontaneous” revival near the song’s end—whether spontaneous or not—is a fun sparring session as GaGa challenges Mick and pushes his voice up a few octaves.
Hackney Diamonds closes with “Rolling Stone Blues” the Muddy Waters tune from which the band takes its name. The track would be a fitting one for the band to close its recording history.
But there we go again—trying to shovel dirt on the band that refuses to go away. On “Whole Wide World,” Mick says:
And you think the party’s over,
but it’s only just,
only just begun.
I hope so. Keith has hinted a follow up album could be on the way.
And why not?
The Stones have steamrolled through 40 years of critics declaring the party over. Not only have the lights not been turned out, they still burn brighter than we could have ever imagined.
Extra Beats
A music pod for the MTV generation
If you’re looking for a solid music podcast, check out the Sound Up Pod with Mark Goodman, of original MTV VJ and SiriusXM 80s on 8 fame, and Alan Light from Esquire Magazine.
They cover the week’s news, interview musicians, and talk with music fans, but aim for a more … seasoned audience. Like you and me.
The shoulder pads still don’t make sense
“Stop Making Sense'“ the widely-acclaimed 1984 concert documentary featuring the Talking Heads, is on Max. The performance is impressive musically and as stagecraft, and the doc clocks in at an efficient 89 minutes.
The show is a reminder that giant video screens (or mega LED bubbles) do not a great concert make. The concert featured choreography, props, costume changes, and set swap-outs. The way the band enters the show is purposefully chosen to build anticipation and energy.
And yes, this is where we saw David Byrne’s famed super shoulder suit.
In retrospect, Byrne may regret his sartorial selection:
He told writer Ian Gittins: “That will be the inscription on my tombstone. Here lies the body of David Byrne. Why the big suit?”
His suit, combined with his spasmodic dance, lead to this classic impersonation by Rich Hall on SNL:
We should all dare to do something as memorable as Byrne did in his bar-setting concert documentary.
Thank you for reading.
Let’s keep the Steady Beats going. 💚
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I LOVE this issue Matt. Aside from the musical inspiration, the example of Jagger and the Stones re committing to one's art and demonstrating how the refined fuel source of creativity is the nearest thing we have to a Holy Grail is like a pot of clean caffeine for my human spirit.
I love your riff on the anti-aging test site beneath the natural forest fauna — hilarious. I saw an establishing shot in my head for a movie (maybe the next music-industry biopic).
This gives me a map for how to listen to the album — especially how you categorized the tracks. I know what to expect and which tracks I’ll probably like, and I’m excited to check it out. You’re good at these album reviews. As long as you’re enjoying it, I say, keep them coming.
Also, I like the rebrand with your new cover art and tagline. If “Extra Beats” is going to be a recurring segment, may I suggest “B-Side” as the header?