“All the ambivalence, recriminations, attempted rapprochement and psychological one-upmanship evident on Steel Wheels testify that the Stones are right in the element that has historically spawned their best music – a murky, dangerously charged environment in which nothing is merely what it seems. Against all odds, and at this late date, the Stones have once again generated an album that will have the world dancing to deeply troubling, unresolved emotions.”
~Anthony DeCurtis (Rolling Stone Magazine)

“The Stones sound good, and Mick and Keith both get off a killer ballad apiece with “Almost Hear You Sigh” and “Slipping Away,” respectively. It doesn’t make for a great Stones album, but it’s not bad, and it feels like a comeback – which it was supposed to, after all.”
~Stephen Thomas Erlewine (allmusic.com)

All rancor and bad vibes, Dirty Work was the Stones; all impartiality and bad boys grown up, the reunion is an amazing simulation. Charlie’s groove enlivens–and IDs–the mature sentiments while gibes at “conscience” and “reason” hint obliquely at self-awareness. But for Mick, self-awareness means above all accepting one’s status as a pop star. Maybe he thinks “So get off the fence/It’s creasing your butt” saves “Mixed Emotions” from its own conventionality. Probably he thinks giving Keith two vocals is democracy and roots. Certainly he thinks he needs the money. Wrong, wrong, and wrong again. B-
~Robert Christgau (robertchristgau.com)

Critical reception was mostly good. The “glossy” sound troubled some people, but there are some really good songs here.

Here is one of the highlights

Blinded By Love

Continue reading August 29: The Rolling Stones released “Steel Wheels” in 1989 →