Exile On Main Street, Rolling Stones, 1972, :67
★ ★ ★ ★ ☆
I would like to begin by saying that through a lifetime of what to most people would be obsessive and non-stop listening to music, the Rolling Stones are not in my top fifty acts in terms of time listened to. They're actually about number 60, tied more or less with the Band and just under Elf Power. I say this to give you a sense of how I feel about the Stones. England's hitmakers, for sure, but to me they will always be the luckiest lads to take country-blues and add a British strut, not "The World's Greatest Band." So anyway, this album doesn't change my view much. Yes, what a good blues-country-rock record this is. An excellent one, even, made even more impressive by its length. But one of the all-time greatest discs? Not to me. Most of it kind of blends together for me, all the songs sounding vaguely similar and somewhat evocative of the guitar line in "Gimme Shelter." Sorry, Robert. Sorry, world. That said, of course, there are some great songs on this double album, and, admittedly, some departures from their usual sound, like 'Sweet Black Angel." Favorite tracks: "Rocks Off," "Tumbling Dice," "Shine a Light," "Rip This Joint," "Soul Survivor."
