Today: The Rolling Stones released Some Girls in 1978 – 35 years ago

some girls cover

Ain’t I rough enough
Ain’t I tough enough
Ain’t I rich enough
In love enough
Oooo, ooh please.

Stones-1978 1

Some Girls was released in 8 June 1978 and it was their first full album with Ronnie Wood. It’s a great album, up there with the best albums in their catalogue. They mixed in some new wave sounds, added a bit of disco and kept their soul, blues and country tinged rock’n roll. Released on the height of the punk and disco era, The Stones made this masterpiece of an album. Some Girls is very much a product of it’s time, but when Rolling Stones made a record that gave a nod to these “fads,” they did so with such anger and speed that the young people in 1978 must have been struck with envy. They certainly made an album that has stood the test of time and it’s a definitive Stones album.

The Rolling Stones prove time and again that they still have what it takes.

rolling-stones 1978 2

Here are all the songs live:

1. Miss You (1978), the eight and a half minute version, a masterpiece! The guitar work on this song (this version) is simply spectacular. I read somewhere sometimes that this was one of the songs that Prince wished he had written, and we can hear on his music that he has been influenced by this tune in a big way.

2. When the whip comes down (1978) Sleezy and cool and it kind of reminds me of Star  Star.

Yeah, mama and papa told me I was crazy to stay
I was gay in New York, a fag in L.A.
So I saved my money , and I took a plane
Wherever I go they treat me the same
When the whip comes down

3. Just My Imagination (running away with me) a soul number that fits The Stones perfectly. Very different from The Temptation version but equally good.

4. Some Girls (2008) Only The Rolling Stone s could have gotten away with these lyrics, they’re as politically incorrect as they possibly could be:

rolling stone 1978 3

White girls they’re pretty funny, sometimes they drive me mad
Black girls just wanna get fucked all night
I just don’t have that much jam
Chinese girls are so gentle, they’re really such a tease
You never know quite what they’re cookin’
Inside those silky sleeves

On “Some Girls,” Mick Jagger sounds like he’s not only singing like Bob Dylan, but about Bob Dylan: “I’ll give ya a house back in Zuma Beach/And give you half of what I owe.” (Rolling Stone Magazine)

5. Lies (1978, audio only)

6. Far Away Eyes (1978) One part parody/pastiche and one part homage, and very cleverly done. Mick Jagger really “drawl” out the lyrics and their love of country music shines through.

7. Respectable (1978)

8. Before They Make Me Run (2008?) KeithRichard’s ultimate outlaw anthem and a renunciation of his junkie life

9. Beast of Burden (1978) a great semi-ballad and so much better than the Bette Midler version that became a big hit.

10. Shattered (1978) Restless punk/new wave sounds put into a glitzy glam rock setting.

And the album, Some Girls:

some girls 1

Other 9 June:

Jack Leroy “Jackie” Wilson, Jr. (June 9, 1934 – January 21, 1984) was an American singer and performer. Known as “Mr. Excitement“, Wilson was important in the transition of rhythm and blues into soul. He was considered a master showman, one of the most dynamic and influential singers and performers in R&B and rock history.
Johnny Ace (June 9, 1929 – December 25, 1954), born John Marshall Alexander, Jr. in Memphis, Tennessee, was an Americanrhythm and blues singer. He scored a string of hit singles in the mid-1950s before dying of an accidental self-inflicted gunshot wound.
Arthur Alexander (May 10, 1940 – June 9, 1993) was an Americancountrysoul singer. Jason Ankeny, music critic for Allmusic, said Alexander was a “country-soul pioneer” and though largely unknown, “his music is the stuff of genius, a poignant and deeply intimate body of work on par with the best of his contemporaries.”

 Bob Dylan recorded Another Side Of Bob Dylan on this date:

A few cases of Beaujolais, his only 6 hours of real studio time in 1964 and  “Another Side..” was born. This was defiantly Another Side of Bob Dylan, “complicated” love songs and only one “protest song” – Chimes of Freedom”. COF is filled symbolism & surrealism, not like his earlier “topical songs”.

Many “Dylan writers” consider it to be among his 5-10 best albums, I don’t. It’s a very important album, but I would not put it on top 10.

Best Songs:

  • Chimes of Freedom
  • My Back Pages
  • It Ain’t Me Babe
  • Spanish Harlem Incident

From Wikipedia:

Another Side of Bob Dylan is the fourth studio album by American singer-songwriter Bob Dylan. It was released August 8, 1964 by Columbia Records.

The album deviates from the more socially conscious style which Dylan had developed with his previous LP, The Times They Are A-Changin’. The change prompted criticism from some influential figures in the folk community – Sing Out! editor Irwin Silber complained that Dylan had “somehow lost touch with people” and was caught up in “the paraphernalia of fame”.

My Back Pages – Live @ Madison Square Garden, New York City – 1992

Another side of Bob Dylan:

 

– Hallgeir