Friday, December 02, 2011

Weekend Listomania (Special Some Girls Week Finale Edition)

Well, it's Friday and you know what that means. Yes, my Oriental Taco Belle of the Ball Fah Lo Suee and I are off to beautiful London, England where we'll be participating in the very first protest of the Occupy Joanna Lumley's Knickers! movement. Hopefully, Joanna will be home at the time.

That being the case, and because things are doubtless going to be traditionally quiet around here for a bit, here's a hopefully fun and definitely relevant little project for us all to contemplate:

Best or Worst Rolling Stones Track -- Cover Version or Original Song -- That was NEVER Released as a Single!

No arbitrary rules whatsoever, you're welcome very much.

And my totally top of my head Top Five is/are:

5. She Said Yeah (from December's Children)



An r&b cover (originally recorded by Larry Williams as the b-side of "Dizzy Miss Lizzie") rendered at a breathless 1:40 in length. And with Keith's fabulous speed-of-light guitar solo.

4. New Faces (from Voodoo Lounge)



An embarrassingly self-conscious attempt to invoke a "Lady Jane" vibe, and one of the more cringe-worthy songs from perhaps the Stones most best forgotten album.

3. Downtown Suzie (from Metamorphosis)



Bill Wyman, it should be noted, is the only Rolling Stone who ever had a single ("In Another Land") released under his own name during the band's 60s heyday. In any case, this quasi-music hall charmer -- which first showed up on a mid-70s outtakes collection -- proves he should have written more.

2. Miss Amanda Jones (from Between the Buttons)



Said it before and I'll say it again -- one of their best ever guitar rockers, and still fresh as paint. And twice as infectious.

And the Numero Uno wasn't-ever-a-45-(what's a 45?) of them all simply has to be...

1. Dancing With Mr. D (from Goat's Head Soup)



This one actually makes my best and worst simultaneously. On the one hand, as Lester Bangs famously said at the time, it's about exactly what you hope it isn't about. On the other, that fricking riff is to die for.

Alrighty then -- what would your choices be?

33 comments:

edward said...

The one that come first to mind Google says Mick released as a single (but only in England), but the Stones didn't, so I'm saying it fits the category

Memo From Turner. Mick's single from the soundtrack from Performance is great. The Stones version, not so much.

pete said...

I'm a little afraid to contribute. This is the kind of category of which people know so much more than me. Was "It's Not Easy" pulled from Aftermath? ("Stupid Girl" was a B-side, right?) Or "Flight 505"?

Was "Down the Road Apiece" a single? It's a great showcase for Brian's rhythm-playing. They actually give him a solo.

I've always loved "Can't You Hear Me Knockin'."

Worst? Well, I stopped listening when they stopped being worth listening to, so for all I know there are stacks and stacks of half-assed tracks out there. But while I'm fixated on Aftermath let's nominate "Going Home," the anti-"Midnight Rambler."

Sal Nunziato said...

I don't think "You Got Me Rocking" from Voodoo Lounge was a single, so that is my choice for worst.

And it's all because of Mick.

"I'm just uh bootcha- cutta up mee."

Just the most horrible delivery of some of the most horrible lyrics...

Bad.

Anonymous said...

Love it...
She Said Yeah - Amazing song. It still tickles me to think that the Stones covered a Sonny Bono song.

New Faces - Amen, funk-soul-bruvver. Voodoo Lounge is a very maddening album. There are more than a few "Dancing with Mr. D" moments on it: great sounds from the band, but cringe-worthy lyrics. Listen to "I Go Wild" and "You Got Me Rocking". Great guitar sounds, great drums. Infantile lyrics.

My choice? Hands down - Connection.

Tierra Madre Horse Sanctuary said...

Memo From Turner. Both versions. One of the best ever.

Anonymous said...

Just to be clear...I meant to say that Connection was ny choice for BEST track never released as a single.

you may continue...

RichD

buzzbabyjesus said...

If it's before "Satanic Majesties", and not on "Hot Rocks", then I probably don't know it.
Anything after "Exile On Main Street" that wasn't a hit, I've never heard, except the Stones albums I regret buying:
"Undercover", and "A Bigger Bang".
That said, I'm going to stick with songs I love, instead of my usual poke in the ribs.

Not in any particular order:

"Soul Survivor"
"2,000 Man" (great Kinks imitation)
"Moonlight Mile"
"Dear Doctor"
"Let It Bleed"

Incredibly difficult to pick five.

"Monkey Man"
"Rip This Joint"
"Can't You Hear Me Knockin"
"Jigsaw Puzzle"
"It's All Over Now"

See what I mean?

Wendy said...

"It's All Over Now" was a single.

Dave said...

Two bests that are not only faves but so obviously hits I can't figure out why they weren't released as singles:

"Connection" and "Under My Thumb."
The latter might has well been a single, given all the airplay it received on AM radio in my hometown.

big bad wolf said...

best---loving cup

worst, oh hell, i'm going to cheat and say too much blood, which was released but was so bad it never should have been.

buzzbabyjesus said...

Wendy's absolutely right.
I apologize for my lazy research.

Instead I nominate:

"Monkey Man"
"Rip This Joint"
"Can't You Hear Me Knockin"
"Jigsaw Puzzle"
"Stop Breaking Down"

Maude Lange said...

Best:
Think
Monkey Man
Sway
Parachute Woman
Stray Cat Blues
Mercy Mercy
Citadel

Worst:
Anything released after Exile

Sal Nunziato said...

"Worst:
Anything released after Exile"

Oh come on! Let's not be that person.

Shriner said...

Best: Either "Monkey Man" or "Can't You Hear Me Knocking" or "Rocks Off"

(I'm assuming "Rocks Off" wasn't a single -- it should have been if it wasn't)


Worst -- well, if it was worst, I wouldn't remember it to even nominate it, would I?

steve simels said...

"Think."

Absolutely positively, and insanely fun to play live in a band, as I am fortunate to know from first hand.

Maude Lange said...

I'm afraid I'm that person. Granted, there are some good post-Exile songs - Angie, Start Me Up, She's So Cold, Emotional Rescue, Mixed Emotions, Miss You even - but they were all released as singles.

Okay, maybe Star Star, but that was never gonna be a single.

Sal Nunziato said...

@Maude

"Hand Of Fate"
"Memory Motel"
"Fingerprint File"
"Luxury"
"All About You"
"Silver Train"
"Heartbreaker"
"It's Only Rock n Roll"
"Worried About You"
"Almost Hear You Sigh"
"Slipping Away"
"Thru & Thru."

(not too bad, for starters...)

Maude Lange said...

I'll give you It's Only Rock & Roll, but that was a single. And Silver Train was the b-side of Angie. And I think was originally from a pre-Exile session.

If I were in a charitable mood (I guess I am - after all it's Friday) I'd include Back of My Hand, though it's not really single material.

The others: Matter of personal taste & all that.

buzzbabyjesus said...

I'm that person too, however I'll admit to liking these:
"Silver Train"
"Heartbreaker"
"It's Only Rock n Roll".

"Some Girls" being a slight improvement over "Black And Blue" gave false hope which made everything after that even worse.
Being a Stones fan became almost as painful as liking Lou Reed.

vanwoert said...

I also love "Fingerprint File" as the non-single and although I have a soft spot for Goats Head Soup, judging by the overall feel of the album maybe the "D" Mick was dancing with was in fact Demerol.

steve simels said...

I'm insanely fond of "Luxury," if truth also be told. Including the longer version on the reissue.

buzzbabyjesus said...

I'm going to have to check out some of these songs. I heard "Think" for the first time today.

pete said...

I still think Aftermath is the best album they ever made.

buzzbabyjesus said...

"Aftermath" brings up a subject that came up continually while I was on YouTube checking out unfamiliar territory:
Brian Jones
It appears to be his last fully engaged contribution, and one of the reasons the album is so good.

The Phantom Creep said...

Brian played the amazing Mellotron stuff on "We Love You" and all sorts of cool weirdness on "Satanic Majesties." He also played the slide on "No Expectations" from BEGGARS BANQUET. He was good pretty much till the end, is what I'm saying.

Interestingly, Keith has almost nothing to say about Brian in his autobiography, and almost none of it good. Of course, he also has almost nothing to say about Bill Wyman, which is weird.

buzzbabyjesus said...

He was good pretty much till the end, is what I'm saying.

I guess the perception I expressed was largely due to his increased marginalization by Mick and Keith.

What a pair!

"No Expectations" would have made my list except it was on a single.
It's gorgeous, and one of my all- time favorite songs by anybody.

Libby Spencer said...

Feels like forever since I've been here, and as always late, and a little shy about joining in cause I'm always sure my picks are too lame for this crowd. Also you're way smarter. But as a life long Stones fan, love this list so I'll play.

No idea if any of these were singles but ones I liked and don't think were mentioned:

I'm a King Bee

2120 South Michigan Avenue

The Under Assistant West Coast Promo Man

It's Not Easy

Spider and the Fly

steve simels said...

"Promo Man" was a b-side, if memory serves. I think of "Satisfaction," actually.

Libby Spencer said...

Well, you see that's why I don't play. Questions are too hard for a amateur like me.

Thanks for not mocking my choices anyway... ;)

buzzbabyjesus said...

Only because I have "The Rolling Stones Singles Collection* The London Years" can I tell you that Spider and the Fly was the UK b-side of Satisfaction.

steve simels said...

Ah. I regret the error.

John Fowler said...

OK, I will confess to not being a fully-informed Stones person. But, for best, I'm surprised that "You Got the Silver" hasn't been mentioned. Love Keith's vocals here. Maybe it was a single???

#32 said...

Best:

Let it Loose

We Had It All
(My personal ode to the late-great Dobie Gray. Keith Richards covers this obscure, heart-breaking ballad from Dobie's sinfully overlooked "Drift Away" album. RIP. This is a bootleg recording from some Tattoo You sessions in the late 70's)

Backstreet Girl

Hang Fire

Prodigal Son