I think I busted a button on my trousers, I hope they don't fall darn (Mick Jagger)

You find me knee deep in a mini Stones-a-thon. A recent visit to Al Jimi's Carrefour resulted in the purchases of two DVDs - Ladies And Gentlemen, The Rolling Stones and a documentary on the making of Exile On Main Street called Stones In Exile. This is easily my favourite period of the Stones - around the early 1970s.

Unlike my Beatles' collection, my Rolling Stones collection is respectable without being anything like completist.

I only have compilations of the early pre sixty-seven material: Flowers; England's Newest Hitmakers; Big Hits (High Tides and Green Grass); Hot Rocks 1964-71. That sort of stuff.

I don't own any of the studio albums prior to 1968 but from Beggars' Banquet on I have them all except for Black and Blue (The Ron Wood debut). Was put off that one by their videos at the time starring a pimped up Jagger badly lip synching to some boring shite like Hot Stuff. Tell me I'm wrong!



The early albums sound really thin to me without the genius combination of group + brilliant producer (such as George Martin). I love the singles and that's why the compilations. My favourite song of the early period is Get Off Of My Cloud. It sums up the sixties so well.

My top 5 Stones albums are easy to assemble and I suspect they are the same as a lotta people. Needless to say they all come well before the risable Hot Stuff!

What a sequence of records. Can anyone apart from the Beatles beat this five in a row? Beggars' Banquet; Let It Bleed; Get Yer Ya-Ya's Out; Stcky Fingers; Exile On Main Street.

Exile is the business though, isn't it! Dirty, rocking, bluesy, erzatz gospel, faux country, sloppy, all in all a kick ass/ mean it maan collection of songs that was their finest hour.

How will it end?  Can it be anything else but a whimper now? Keef will always be Keef but, by the same token, Jagger will never be pre Hot Stuff ever again.