Rolling Stones and Friends

There's a Rolling Stones farewell tour of sorts that's been going on for some two years now. It's huge, and there are differences between this and the typical large-scale tours they've mounted in the past. After decades of eschewing festivals, they even played Glastonbury for the first time ever in 2013 as they criss-crossed the Atlantic, seemingly ad infinitum. And Australia's been included on the itinerary for the 2014 leg of the tour.

Ordinarily this kind of news wouldn't excite me all that much. I can't really justify the expense of going along to either of their upcoming shows at the acoustically abysmal Melbourne Tennis Centre or the outdoor concert scheduled for Hanging Rock. Maybe it's because I saw the Stones at the MCG in 1995 when they were enjoying something of a peak in live performance quality. But one of the aspects of this world tour that has generated a lot of interest is the quantity and range of guest artists making cameos with the Stones.

Because the Stones don't have a huge history of that sort of thing, being more inclined to want the stage all to themselves. Certainly, the 2006 Shine A Light performances looked to be turning that around with guest appearances by Jack White, Buddy Guy, and Christina Aguilera. But for this tour, they've had former members Bill Wyman and Mick Taylor join them onstage and reinforced that with a host of contemporary artists and legendary performers to sit in with them.

I think it's very generous of the Stones to include Wyman and Taylor like that. Both have their own very appreciative fan subsets, particularly Taylor, so it's a warm and inclusive thing to do. The hooking up with contemporary artists could be viewed cynically I suppose, but from my point of view the potential to add something interesting to the Rolling Stones canon overrides any such concerns.

All that said, I wondered if putting several of those disparate elements together would make an engaging bootleg and went off to youtube and then that handy mp3 conversion website to see if I could come up with something.

This is how things turned out. Song title links are to the youtube clips.


Alright, I cheated a bit here. This is actually from the Shine A Light performances. I thought Aguilera was the best of the guests on that package. Live With Me suits her sassy style and of all the shouty female singers on this collection, Aguilera is the pick of the bunch.



Beck is very good as you might expect, but may have focused a little too much on being the quintessential Jeff Beck and come up a little short in the doing justice to the material category. It's also a shame that they didn't feature Jeff Beck on a well-known Stones number. What might he have done with Paint It Black?
    


3. Loving Cup - Jack White
Another one from Shine A Light and I have to admit, the guy fits in with the house band, particularly his vocal stylings. I didn't know Jack White from a bar of soap apart from some enthusiastic commentary he did on the Stones in Exile DVD, so at least there could be no doubt about his feelings for the material.



 
    4. Sway - Mick Taylor 
This performance was picked up by an audience-member handi-cam but turned out okay just the same. The energetic slide solo is by Ron Wood (Taylor did the slide on the original) but the outro solo is all Taylor's.
  
5. Midnight Rambler - Mick Taylor 
A very good performance with a great feel, if a little overlong. On the video, watch Taylor move more during this one song than he did in five whole years as a Rolling Stone!


This should be a no-brainer. Hell, the original even features a
female vocal of similar style to what Gaga produces here. But I
have to give kudos to Gaga for making her considerable
presence felt in such a tasteful way. Her performance serves as
something of a tribute to Merry Clayton, who sang on the
original studio version.

  


An old Muddy Waters number, this one. Not great sound quality but the band and their guest are in good form.

8. Little Red Rooster - Eric Clapton
Another ring-in, this dates from a 1988 Central Park concert guest appearance  by Eric Clapton. It's a slowed-down version of an already slow blues. Clapton does fill-ins over Ron Wood's slide riff.


This is probably the worst of all the songs, performance-wise, but I wouldn't be too quick to blame Katy Perry. Mick sings out of tune as well, unusually for him, so I'd be thinking there was insufficient fold-back on the vocals for this Las Vegas concert.








10. Respectable - Keith Urban
This is surprisingly good in terms of sound quality and even though I'd initially questioned the choice of song for Urban, he carries it off with considerable charm. Just a little bias-alert for you: Respectable is one of my least-favourite Stones' songs. Far Away Eyes or any of the Stones' country-influenced material might also have suited Urban.





Crow had sung backing vocals for the Stones on tour before her
solo career took off in the mid 90s. A regular onstage guest,
here she looks like she's pretty keen to let everyone know she's all grown up now with a performance brimming with confidence and full-on delivery.






    I'd never heard of Brad Paisley but I immediately thought that if he's a country artist, then he could do a lot worse than to join the Stones for Dead Flowers. I wondered whether Paisley may have felt a bit intimidated by the Stones but it all goes down quite well as his voice blends effortlessly with Jagger's.


 




Taylor Swift gives one of the better performances - where the
guest artist is true to themselves and to the material, without
exaggerating anything. While As Tears Go By isn't the most
stimulating of the Stones' catalog, Swift enhances the song by
giving it a little country yearning without overshadowing what is
essentially a diffident English ballad. Wild Horses might have
been another song worth bringing her in on.




 This is quite a good rendition of Tumbling
 Dice. I have to admit I never know quite where to place
 Springsteen. I respect the guy a lot and agree with pretty much
 everything his public persona stands for. His music, not so
 much. But he gives it everything and the only criticism I could
 make is that his delivery may have overstated his Springsteen-
 ness to near Louis Armstrong impression levels.

   




As I've mentioned in a couple of the track notes above, some of the song choices don't quite gel, but it's one of those situations where you could always make better suggestions. And yes, the sound quality varies quite a bit. Plus some of the performers seem to be trying too hard, particularly the female singers.

But overall, this is quite a good collection and the guest artists provide a significant point of difference from other Rolling Stones live albums, so I'd rate this as a Stones' live album that delivers something new for Stones fans. Back in 1995, Stripped was a real eye-opener due to the inclusion of songs that would be considered little-performed Stones' curiosities and enhanced arrangements for their more standard live fare. This collection provides a not dissimilarly varied snapshot of an important stage in the evolution of Rolling Stones' concert performances.













  • Digg
  • Del.icio.us
  • StumbleUpon
  • Reddit
  • RSS

Through A Glass, Darkly I





I was stuck at home for the whole of November. It was down to a mild heart attack suffered while playing cricket, and yes, I held the catch I was diving backwards for when it happened. A trip to the Royal Melbourne Hospital in an ambulance, a stent inserted into a non-major artery, a few days in bed there and I'm fine now, thanks for asking. Just a couple of minor tweaks to the lifestyle as it stood (smokes, diet) and I'll probably be better off.



Anyway, that isn't the point of this series of three or maybe four posts. Heaven knows I toyed with the idea of making it all about the epiphany I'd experienced and how I was going to live each day as if it were my last with new, exciting goals I was going to set for myself now that I'd had a serious wake-up call. How important family was, etc etc. And then I thought, naaahhh, I'd much rather tell you about some TV shows I watched.

Because that was how the vast majority of my recovery time was to be spent. And I decided to use this enforced viewing time to answer one of life's big questions: how might some of the TV shows I either loved or was intrigued by as a child stand up when viewed today? I'd rather not spend the hours required to answer that question on YouTube in front of a computer. So because we have a Playstation 3 hooked up to our flat screen TV, I was able to do it all in relative comfort, albeit after a little technical tuition from one of our young lads.

So I researched. Makes a nice change for this pissy blog. And I'm confident the next three posts will answer some intriguing questions.


The Adventures of Superman was a ubiquitous part of many childhoods. So much so that it was still being repeated on Australian television right up into the mid-1970s. I thought I remembered pretty much everything about the series but was surprised to find that there was little that looked familiar when the many full episodes available on YouTube appeared at the end of my search.




Scripts for the series did not borrow terribly heavily from the comic book stories, despite featuring the main ensemble characters Lois Lane, Perry White and Jimmy Olsen. There was no Lex Luthor nor any of the DC Comic's Superman's more flamboyant villains. Instead, narratives tended to revolved around gangsters and conmen, with some quite interesting plotlines for the Man of Steel to resolve once he'd ducked into the Daily Planet's storeroom and jumped onto his take-off trampoline just below camera range.

However, Superman's origin was shown pretty much as we've come to understand it.
I recalled seeing this Series 1 Episode 1 origin episode Superman On Earth only once before in c.1968 and was as keen as mustard to catch up with it again. The sequences on Krypton follow the comic depiction of Kal-El's early life fairly closely. I also have to admit to some chuckling during the Kryptonian sequence where Superman's scientist father Jor-El is dismissed as a quack by the self-interested ruling elite for predicting Krypton's imminent destruction. Global warming anyone?


Series 6 Episode 9 Superman's Wife starred 50s pin-up Joi Lansing as an undercover detective who poses as Superman's wife in order to draw some crooks out into the open. Needless to say, Noel Neill's flame-haired Lois Lane is upset about the Man of Steel's new status.

It is all a bit jeepers-Mr-Kent but stood up a lot better than I thought it would, with some quite dark storylines and great cinematography. Some of the episodes were even quite a bit, well, spooky. To explore that further, you might want to have a look at The Haunted Lighthouse and Lady in Black. 

Just as an aside, the life story of star George Reeves was featured in the excellent biopic Hollywoodland (2006), with Ben Affleck in the title role.

Bat Masterson 
I had only the vaguest recollection of this western series as a childhood favourite of mine, screened on US network TV between 1958 and 1961, in which Gene Barry played the derby-clad, dandyish title role.

In an era where each TV western hero had to have his own iconic, highly individualized weaponry, Bat's signature gimmick involved some very deft moves with his ever-present cane. As appealing as it may have been, Bat Masterson wasn't repeated on Australian television after the very early 60s.

I watched S1 Ep5 The Fighter and I'd have to say that it wasn't a bad show at all. Bat put a stop to a rigged brutal bare-knuckle fight contest in the town where he was sheriff. And how else could he do that except by stepping into the ring himself? Marie Windsor played the feisty saloon-keeper who had her eye on Bat but he moved on at the end of the episode, as he would have done even if she could have been trusted, which she couldn't.


Beany and Cecil 
This is another US TV show from the early 60s that was  being screened on Australian TV right up until the late 70s. And there's a lot to like about it. Beany is the totally adorable cute kid sporting the propeller-topped cap and Cecil is his wonderful big, dumb good-natured sea-serpent friend and protector. Providing the villainy is Dishonest John, with his "Nyah-ah ahhh!" catch-cry making him one of the most memorable of cartoon evil-doers.


Each episode is filled with witty sight gags: my favourite is in the episode where they sail up a canal in Venice and Cecil bumps his head on the Low-Low-Bridgida. Geddit? Another cack-fest revolved around a Pacific voyage that ended at the radioactive No Bikini Atoll.

In So What and the Seven Whatnots the crew visit a gambling city, Lost Wages - where Bob New-heartburn is headlining at the Quick-Sands. Dishonest John is trying to entice punters away from So What's hot jazz combo So What and the Seven What Nots.

Wildman of Wildsville is about a beatnik living on a desert island, and he's like, crazy, man. I love beatniks, at least I love the way they are always depicted in the TV shows of the 60s: "I'm so hip, I wouldn't even eat a square meal, daddy-o."

This is a great cartoon series and I can't for the life of me figure out why Beany and Cecil wasn't repeated beyond the early 70s on Australian TV. I'd watch it now, and I think a whole lot of kids would like it too.


Burke's Law
The main character in this 1963-64 series is an extension of the character that star Gene Barry played in Bat Masterson and even earlier in a small part in Our Miss Brooks - a suave ladies man with expensive tastes.

Amos Burke is a wealthy LAPD detective lieutenant who travels to crime scenes in his chauffer-driven Rolls-Royce. There is at least one absolute babe (sometimes a bevy of them!) in each episode, including Elizabeth Montgomery, Barbara Eden, Francine York, Tina Louise and Juliet Prowse, among others.

In the episode I watched, Who Killed Cassandra Cass?, there was even a sequence involving bored housewives taking hallucinogens! However, I found Barry's particular brand of smart-aleckery trying to pass itself off as urbane wit pretty lame and somewhat annoying. And then the end credits explained why. Burke's Law was produced by Aaron Spelling, FFS! Everything with Spelling's name on it is always, inevitably, inexorably, complete shite. The guy has a perfect strike rate, so much so he even leaves Irwin Allen for dead. Burke's Law rises above this, but only slightly.

When the series returned for 1965, it was a whole 'nother TV show, a ham-fisted attempt to belatedly cash in on the spy-craze: Amos Burke: Secret Agent!


Dennis The Menace
I was expecting Dennis the Menace to wear very thin very quickly. Especially Jay North's fingernails-down-a-blackboard portrayal of Hank Ketchum's likeable comic book mischief-maker. But somehow, it all hung together very nicely and I found myself chuckling at the many ways Dennis' good intentions spelt trouble for the hapless Mr Wilson.

In S1 Ep 18 Dennis and the Duck Dennis' pet duck is playing havoc in Mr Wilson's garden. There's a very funny sequence where Mr Wilson goes for a sixer on Dennis' roller skate twice and a later scene where Dennis turns Mr Wilson's darkroom light on while he's developing some photos - to help him see better, of course. Even after all that, Denis gets to keep the duck.


That was all a bit of a hodge podge, wasn't it? Never mind, in upcoming posts in this series, we can discuss some of the brilliant, timeless TV shows that I discovered and rediscovered, and others that might make you feel a bit less nostalgic.

  • Digg
  • Del.icio.us
  • StumbleUpon
  • Reddit
  • RSS

Rolling Stones Live at the BBC 1963-1964-1965

Oh dear. I seem to have become something of a bootlegger. I didn't mean for things to turn out this way.

You might recall a recent post of mine about using YouTube to track down clips of little-known Rolling Stones songs and unreleased live performances. These were then converted into MP3 audio files to enable the compilation of what I called The Rolling Stones Anthology.

The last song I added to the collection was a great live version of Satisfaction, filmed during a 1965 appearance on the US TV show Shindig! This clip really showcased the Stones at their very best and even featured Brian Jones blowing some harp during the last verse.

However, a couple of then-contentious lines from the song were edited out: "I can't get no-oh, girl re-AC-tion", and "tryin' to make some girl". Considering the quality of this particular Stones live performance, it's quite a tragedy.

Undaunted, I wondered if there might be an uncensored version of that clip floating around somewhere else out on YouTube so I typed Rolling Stones Satisfaction 1965 into the search box and hoped for the best. Alas, there was no other version of that Shindig! clip. But I did stumble across another live rendition of Satisfaction of similar performance quality that would enable a very nice spin-off of the anthology project.

This particular sound clip was from a BBC Saturday Club radio program. You could have knocked me over with a feather. I had spent years believing that The Rolling Stones never appeared live on the BBC like so many of their contemporaries (The Beatles; The Kinks; The Who; The Small Faces; Cream; The Jimi Hendrix Experience; and Led Zeppelin) because they'd failed their audition! And that's why there wasn't an album release of the Stones live at the BBC.

I do love it when urban myths are blown away. Encouraged to press on, a further search produced another 16 songs, broadcast during several BBC Saturday Club and Top Gear appearances.

Overall, the sound quality is on a par with other BBC Sessions recordings that I've heard. Meaning it varies a bit, but is a lot better than the bootlegs I used to purchase unwarily back in the 1970s. And really, this variability is more than compensated for by the performance quality put out by the Stones. They really did turn it on for the Beeb.

The other major revelation concerns the set-list: 6 songs that I had no idea the Rolling Stones had ever performed or recorded (Memphis Tennessee; Roll Over Beethoven; Crackin' Up; Cops and Robbers; Beautiful Delilah; and Fannie Mae), and three that I didn't know had ever formed part of their live act (Come On; 2120 South Michigan Avenue; and Walking The Dog).

So why isn't this stuff available? Well, it's difficult to even speculate but one reason could be that the Stones have somehow acquired the rights and are sitting on the material for a future blockbuster release. As they did with Rock and Roll Circus and Ladies and Gentlemen the Rolling Stones and as they're currently doing with 25 x 5 and the film version of Stripped, neither of which have ever been released on DVD. Or if the BBC still has sole rights, they might be waiting for a significant anniversary, although most of the Rolling Stones' significant beginnings have recently celebrated 50 years. Staying with the rights issue for the moment, the BBC might have joint custody, as it were, and are unable to successfully negotiate release arrangements. It all ends with a Spanish-style shrug - quien sabe?

I could amaze you with the stuff I don't know, truly. But here is the track listing for the latest personal-use-only CD to join my collection, Rolling Stones Live at the BBC.

         1963 
         1. Come On  (Berry) 
         2. Memphis Tennessee (Berry)
         3. Roll Over Beethoven (Berry) 
         4. Crackin' Up (McDaniel)
5. Cops and Robbers (McDaniel)

1964 
6. Route 66 (Troup)
7. You Better Move On (Alexander)
8. 2120 South Michigan Avenue (Nanker-Phelge)
9. Walking the Dog (Thomas)
10. Beautiful Delilah (Berry)
11. Mona (McDaniel)

1965 
12. Mercy Mercy (Covay-Miller)
13. Everybody Needs Somebody To Love (Berns-Burke-Wexler)
14. Cry To Me (Russell)
15. Fanny Mae (Brown)
16. The Last Time (Jagger-Richard)
17. Satisfaction (Jagger-Richard)

  • Digg
  • Del.icio.us
  • StumbleUpon
  • Reddit
  • RSS

Rolling Stones Anthology

You might want to sit down, fanboys. Lad Litter has been busy with a little exercise in wish fulfillment. The result? Well, I like to call it The Rolling Stones Anthology. Not Lad Litter Presents! The Rolling Stones Anthology, mind you. It isn't about me. I'd only get in the way.


Alright, maybe it is about me a little bit. I'd reserved the TV and imposed a complete ban on ambient sound for the 1995 worldwide debut of the television documentary series The Beatles Anthology. We had just the two boys back then: a toddler and a newborn who, bless their little hearts, agreed to go off to bed early over the three nights of the Beatles Anthology's screening so as not to cause any distractions. Panadol may have been administered, but only under the strictest supervision.
It was a great documentary on the Fab Four, exhaustively put together, including song clips in their entirety. And the DVD-box set which I now own contains even more material, so it's as comprehensive a history as you can get.

However, the 3 x 2CD simultaneous release sets that make up the Beatles Anthology's audio component take a slightly different path: they're pitched more as an alternative history of the Beatles' recordings. Maybe it does make me a trainspotting kind of enthusiast, but I think there are some terrific inclusions across those three sets, Anthology 1; Anthology 2; and Anthology 3. 
All together, the Anthologies contain delightful demo recordings of early live standards like That'll Be The Day, Three Cool Cats and Besame Mucho. And interspersed throughout are prototypical versions of songs that sound intriguingly different from their final releases, such as I'll Be Back in 3/4 time, an up-tempo O Bla Di O Bla Da and an acoustic While My Guitar Gently Weeps, to name just a few. There are also several sparkling live performances, including The Beatles' appearance at the Royal Command Variety Performance of 1964.

You do have to be something of a devotee to be into the Beatles Anthology but it is very illuminating and good listening. Which set me wondering.

Would it be possible to compile an equivalent collection for The Rolling Stones during the same period as that covered by The Beatles Anthology? Maybe it would. Certainly, there are numerous compilations and US versions of Stones albums that offer B-sides or unreleased recordings from the Decca years between 1963 and 1969. And if I could find some live recordings and then throw in a few unheralded album tracks as well, it might just fit together nicely.
But where to source them all from? I have quite a few CD releases for the Stones and could make up the differences from LP conversions. Live recordings might get a bit tricky. The only contemporaneous live material released during that 1963-69 period was the execrable US LP Got Live If You Want It! (1966) and three live tracks filling out the studio albums Out of Our Heads (1965) and December's Children (1965). And the 1996 release of Rock and Roll Circus, a TV special they produced in 1968. Luckily for me, our good friends at YouTube were able to do more than just help out.

As it happens, pretty much everything the Stones ever released in one form or another is up on YouTube. And there are more than a few live TV and concert performances uploaded as well. That's all very well, you say, but how could I convert those clips into sound files to make The Rolling Stones Anthology? Fortunately, the newborn who was bundled off to bed so hurriedly before the screening of The Beatles Anthology in 1995 is now 18 and told me of a website where you can paste the URL from a YouTube clip and convert it into a downloadable MP3 file.
Okay, technical problems solved. But do the Stones have enough sidelined material sufficiently available to make a Rolling Stones Anthology any good? I've got to be honest with you - I had my doubts. But that qualitative question wasn't going to be answered until the whole thing was put together and could be listened to as a complete collection.

And I experienced quite a few revelations as I worked my way through what became a huge number of songs. So I had to set some ground rules. With many more songs than I'd anticipated, there was no need for album tracks at all. So no songs previously on Australian-released studio albums would feature. I had to assume that the target audience for this collection would already be on top of all of that material.

It's easy to forget these days that The Stones' intention in the beginning was to play blues and RandB to please themselves and a select few devotees. They were almost evangelical about it. So the early recordings are dominated by blues and RandB songs. Or songs that they've injected a bluesy feel into.
And then the early live performances turned out to be of a surprisingly good standard. Most of you would be aware that the Stones' live reputation is patchy at best, particularly pre-Mick Taylor, so this was a bonus.

You'll probably also appreciate the chance to hear Bill Wyman's bass playing achieve a rare prominence on quite a few of the early tracks, and many of the songs from that 1963-64 period feature Brian Jones on backing vocals instead of Keith Richard.

The split-up between the sources for the collection is as follows:
1) B-sides and compilations of unreleased songs;
2) Live performances;
3) Studio outtakes;
4) Early demo versions.

Genuinely unreleased material is limited as, let's face it, the Stones previous managements did their best to exploit any stuff that had been left lying around. And I should stress, this is by no means exhaustive. Plenty of tunes didn't make the cut.

Anyway, here is the track listing, with a link to the YouTube clip in a few instances and some brief notes on each song. Let me know what you think.

The Rolling Stones Anthology

1.            I Want To Be Loved (Dixon) 1963
A playful Willy Dixon original and the B-side of the Stones first single Come On.
2.            Baby, What's Wrong? (Reed) 1963
All of the Stones and Keith in particular were Jimmy Reed admirers.
3.            I Can't Be Satisfied (Morganfield) 1963
This Muddy Waters cover features excellent slide guitar and harmonica.Unreleased prior to its appearance on More Hot Rocks (Big Hits and Fazed Cookies).
4.           High Heel Sneakers (Tucker) 1963
Not surprised that the Stones covered this one at some stage. Everyone else did!
5.            Stoned (Nanker-Phelge) Nov 1963
The moody instrumental B-Side of I Wanna Be Your Man.
6.            Fortune Teller (Neville) 1963
Originally released on Got Live If You Want It! with screams overdubbed. This is the scream-free version from More Hot Rocks (Big Hits and Fazed Cookies)
7.            I Wanna Be Your Man (Lennon-McCartney) Live UK TV Feb 1964 
Their second single release, suggested by Lennon and McCartney. Brian Jones plays slide guitar, its first ever appearance on an English record. This was the Stones' first TV appearance.
8.            You Better Move On (Alexander) Live UK TV Feb 1964
Another song from their first TV appearance, on the Arthur Askey Show.
9.            Look What You’ve Done (Morganfield) Feb 1964
From the 1965 US-only LP release December's Children (and Everybody's)
10.          Confessin’ The Blues (Jacobs) Feb 1964
A Little Walter cover from the EP Five By Five.
11.          Rice Krispies Radio Jingle (Jones) 1964
An extraordinarily bluesy radio jingle for a breakfast cereal and Brian Jones' only individual songwriting credit.
12.          Poison Ivy (Version 1) (Leiber-Stoller) 1964
Intended as their second single release but withdrawn in favour of I Wanna Be Your Man. Unreleased until More Hot Rocks (Big Hits and Fazed Cookies).
13.          Poison Ivy (Version 2) (Leiber-Stoller) 1964
An alternate take included on their self-titled EP.
14.          Money (Gordy-Bradford) 1964
Probably the standout track of the whole collection. Showcases the early Stones style at its best.
15.          2120 South Michigan Ave (Nanker-Phelge) Aug 1964
An instrumental from the EP Five By Five.
16.          Bye Bye Johnny (Berry) Sep 1964
Included on their self-titled EP. 
17.          Carol (Berry) Live US TV 1964Live US TV Oct 1964
From an appearance on The Mike Douglas Show.
18.          Not Fade Away (Petty-Holly)Live US TV Oct 1964
The Hollywood Palace appearance that contained energetic performances and so much disparaging commentary from host Dean Martin. 
19.          I Just Wanna Make Love To You (Dixon) US TV Oct 1964
From the same Hollywood Palace appearance. 
20.          Around and Around (Berry)Live US TAMI Show Oct 64
A vibrant performance of early live staples at this seminal Santa Monica gig where they would appear on the same bill as numerous RnB giants such as James Brown and the Supremes.
21.          Off The HookLive US TAMI Show Oct 64
From the same TAMI show gig.
22.          Time Is On My Side (Meade)Live US TAMI Show Oct 64
From the same TAMI show gig.
23.          It’s All Over Now (Womack)Live US TAMI Show Oct 64
From the same TAMI show gig.
24.          It’s Alright (Nanker-Phelge) Live US TAMI Show Oct 64
From the same TAMI show gig.
25.          Little Red Rooster (Dixon) Live US TV Oct 64
Not the Ed Sullivan Show appearance from 1965, this unknown TV appearance places the song amid a Halloween theme.
26.          Empty Heart (Nanker-Phelge) Nov 1964
Although short, this album track from 12 x 5 (oh, alright smartarse, there's ONE track from a studio LP) plays like a good-time jam.
27.          I'm Moving On (Snow) Live Camden Concert Mar 1965
From the 1965 US-only LP release December's Children (and Everybody's), a solid live performance with standout slide guitar.
28.          Route 66 (Troup) Live Camden Concert Mar 1965
From the 1965 US-only LP release December's Children (and Everybody's).
29.          The Last Time Live US TV 1965
From an Ed Sullivan Show appearance.
30.          Interview Canadian TV 1965
Brian Jones does most of the talking here.
31.          Satisfaction Live US TV 1965
Without doubt their best ever live performance of this song - and a great film-clip too. Brian Jones plays harmonica over the last verse and fade-out. The lines "I can't get no, girl re-ACtion", and "tryin' ta make some girl" have unfortunately been edited out by the Shindig producers.
32.          The Singer Not The Song Sep 1965
A ballad-y album track from the 1965 US-only LP release December's Children (and Everybody's)
33.          Talkin’ Bout You (Berry) Sep 1965
From the 1965 US-only LP release December's Children (and Everybody's)
34.          Looking Tired Outtake Sep 1965
Studio outtake.
35.          Announcer IntroLive Melbourne Concert Feb 66
A great find this. The Stones really rocked Melbourne's Palais Theatre on their second Australian tour in two years. 
36.          Mercy Mercy (Covay-Miller)Live Melbourne Concert Feb 66
37.          Play With Fire (Nanker-Phelge)Live Melbourne Concert Feb 66
38.          Get Off Of My Cloud Live Melbourne Concert Feb 66
39.          Sad Day Feb 66
The B-Side of the 19th Nervous Breakdown single.
40.          Long, Long While May 1966
The UK B-side of Paint It Black.
41.          The Last Time – The Andrew Loog Oldham Orchestra Jul 66
Later sampled by the Verve for their Bittersweet Symphony - and promptly sued by the Stones for sampling too much!
42.          Mother’s Little HelperLive Honolulu Concert Jul 1966
Performance quality varies a bit but the between songs patter is very typical of their shows on tour during 1965-66.
43.          Lady JaneLive Honolulu Concert Jul 1966
44.          Paint It Black Live Honolulu Concert Jul 1966
45.          Who's Driving Your Plane? Sep 1966
The bluesy B-side of Have You Seen Your Mother, Baby? 
46.          Dandelion Demo 1966
Keith sings on this delightful demo, aka Sometimes Happy, Sometimes Blue
47.          Under My Thumb Live Paris Concert Feb 1967
No marimbas but a reasonable performance.
48.          Ruby Tuesday Live Paris Concert 1967
This European Tour would be their last stint on the road until their US tour in 1969.
49.           Let's Spend Some Time Together Live US TV Feb 67
The infamous Ed Sullivan Show appearance where they changed the lyrics so as not to offend. Only the vocals are live.
50.           Interview Brian Jones Monterey Jun 1967
Brian discusses future directions for the Stones while holding court at the Monterey Pop Festival.
51.          The Last Time – The Who Jul 1967
Not a Stone in sight here. The Who would rush-release this and Under My Thumb as a gesture of solidarity for the Stones during their 1967 drug bust cause celebre. 
52.          We Love You Instrumental Demo Aug 1967
An early version of the single designed to be a thank you to loyal fans during the drug bust cause celebre.
53.          Citadel Instrumental Demo Aug 1967
Early demo of the underrated album track from Their Satanic Majesties' Request.
54.          Interview Brian Jones London Jan 1968
Brian opens up about Their Satanic Majesties Request.
55.          Jumping Jack Flash Live In Studio 1968
Great performance of their new hit. The only time the original studio intro was played on a live rendition.
56.          Child of the Moon 1968
Atmospheric B-side of Jumping Jack Flash. 
57.          Family Outtake1968
A Dylanesque outtake from the Beggars' Banquet sessions.
58.          Blood Red Wine Outtake 1968 
Meandering ballad outtake from the Beggars' Banquet sessions.
59.          Stuck Out All Alone Outtake 1968
Outtake from the Beggars' Banquet sessions.
60.          Sympathy for the Devil Live in Studio 1968
Tracking the evolution of the song's development - from Jean Luc Godard's documentary film One Plus One. 
61.          Jumping Jack Flash Live UK TV Dec 1968
From The Rolling Stones' Rock n Roll Circus TV Special. Their last gig with Brian Jones. This creditable performance of Jumpin' Jack Flash has a more laid back vibe than any other live version I've heard.
62.          Parachute Woman Live UK TV Dec 1968
Also from The Rolling Stones' Rock n Roll Circus TV Special. More guitar-oriented than the studio version. 
63.          No Expectations Live UK TV Dec 1968
Another from The Rolling Stones' Rock n Roll Circus TV Special. Jones plays slide guitar and Jagger sings a varied melody from the studio version.
64.          Memo From Turner - Mick Jagger solo single 1970
Ry Cooder plays the coolest slide guitar on this 1968 recording for the film Performance, later released as a 1970 Jagger solo single.
65.          Sister Morphine (Jagger-Richard-Faithfull) Demo 1968
Early demo of this haunting collaboration with Marianne Faithfull that would not appear until Sticky Fingers (1971).
66.          It Hurts Me Too (James-London) Jamming With Edward 1969
Jagger, Wyman and Watts jam with Ry Cooder while Keith is otherwise occupied during the Let It Bleed sessions. 
67.          Blow With Ry Jamming With Edward 1969
Jagger, Wyman and Watts jam with Ry Cooder while Keith is otherwise occupied during the Let It Bleed sessions. 
68.          The Boudoir Stomp Jamming With Edward 1969
Jagger, Wyman and Watts jam with Ry Cooder while Keith is otherwise occupied during the Let It Bleed sessions.
69.          I Don't Know Why Outtake Jul 1969
This is what was being recorded when the Stones were notified of Brian Jones' death.
70.          Brian Jones Tribute Speech Live Hyde Park Concert Jul 1969
Mick reads Shelley's Adonais to the hushed Hyde Park crowd of 200000. 
71.          I’m Yours and She’s Mine (Winter) Live Hyde Park Concert Jul 1969
None of the songs from the Hyde Park setlist had ever been played live before and this one wouldn't be again.
72.          I’m Free Live Hyde Park Concert Jul 1969
This album track from the 1965 US-only release December's Children was a counter-intuitive choice for their first live set in nearly three years.
73.          Midnight Rambler Live Hyde Park Concert Jul 1969
Just a fragment really, from the quiet middle bit onwards, but Mick Taylor was obviously very keen to make a good impression at his first gig as a Rolling Stone - loads of slide guitar.
74.          Love In Vain (Payne) Live Hyde Park Concert Jul 1969
Mick Taylor really cuts loose on this one. Provides an interesting counterpoint to the Get Yer Ya-Yas Out live version.
75.           Jiving Sister Fanny Outtake Aug 1969
An outtake from the Let It Bleed sessions.
76.           I'm Going Down Outtake Sep 1969 
Another Let It Bleed Outtake - this one sounds a bit like a demo for Soul Survivor, the closing track on Exile on Main Street.
77.            Loving Cup - Outtake 1969
Much slower than the version that would appear on Exile On Main Street three years later, this outtake showcases Mick Taylor.
78.            Brown Sugar - Outtake 1970
With Keith on bass, Eric Clapton on guitar and Mick Taylor on slide guitar, this outtake has a great groove to it.

That's enough material to make The Rolling Stones Anthology a 4-CD set. Now, what to do about the packaging?

  • Digg
  • Del.icio.us
  • StumbleUpon
  • Reddit
  • RSS