Thursday 13th October

The Stones are one of the few bands or Artists known simply by a shortened version of their names.  I have always been ambivalent about them.  When they first burst onto the scene in the early Sixties I was like a sponge, soaking up everything and all musical influences, the Stones didn’t seem that different from the Yardbirds or Spencer Davis, very Bluesey but with an edge.  But as the Sixties progressed and the Media tried to whip up some sort of competition and we were told you either had to love the Beatles or the Stones,  for me there was no choice – it was the Beatles. I still loved the Stones singles; Ruby Tuesday, Satisfaction, Mother’s Little Helper etc:, but their Notoriety often seemed just that, being outrageous for outrageousness sake, and it did help sell the records too.  But over the years I have bought a few Stones albums; Exile on Main Street, Sticky Fingers, Goats Head Soup – and Some Girls, all of which were excellent and a few others which weren’t.

And they keep on going on.  Every few years they have a massive World Tour, much advertised and very expensive.  I went to see them in the early 2000’s and I can truly say it was the worst concert I have ever been to.  Not because of the Stones themselves, even though they were well past their prime I am sure they were pretty good.  But it was at Twickenham Stadium and the acoustics were awful, there was a constant echo coming off the stands.  We were on the pitch and far from the stage – we could barely see the video screens even.  And we were surrounded by a crowd of drunken younger fans who were constantly falling over on us, spilling beer and shouting and standing on their chairs.  Not the Stones fault, except of course that the bigger the stadium the more revenue they rake in.  Anyway.  They make even fewer records either these days, but they are still ‘working’.  They are famous these days for being famous and for being The Rolling Stones.  And looking back nobody can deny the body of work they have recorded over the years, even if most of it was in the Sixties and Seventies.  Every so many years they release a new Greatest Hits Album which goes on to sell millions; I even bought Hot Licks a few years ago.  No-one ever knows if their last tour was indeed their last ever tour, which all adds to the mystery and the demand for tickets and the re-sale of the old albums.

But for my money The Beatles are still way better.  And as they broke up when they were still brilliant we never saw their sad decline (John Lennon will never grow old).  The Rolling Stones are all old and wizened now but in many ways the Stones are the best of the many Rolling Stones Tribute Bands around.