"they who have ears, let them hear" Matthew 13:43

"there's lots of things in the vault we're working on
that are going to come out" mick jagger sep 2020

"new music on the horizon" keith richards feb 2021


1) I promise this is the last time I push this passion project
of mine. Sadly, your only compensation for being patient with me
is a couple of download links at the end.

2) At the very least, we can agree that the "finished outtakes"
can be divided into "substantially new" and "not".

3) A further breakdown could be "artifacts" versus "fresh tracks".
Primary amongst the "artifacts" is of course the bowie demo of "iorr".
Nobody can argue against its historical importance. But it is
not "fresh" in the sense i'm using the word. It hasn't been
updated or worked on.

4) Other reasons for non-inclusion of various "outtakes"
include "too mick", "too keith","too been-there-done-that",
or simply because the track does not have enough of the
ragged private-stash vibe that characterizes this collection.

5) Generally speaking, the bonus outtakes on the deluxe albums
have mostly been Mick Jagger products, where he's completed the
lyrics and re-done the vocals in an approximation of his vocal
style at the time of the original session. I appreciate his efforts,
but I don't think the results heretofore have been particularly great.
The deluxe bonus tracks generally sound like what they are. Concoctions.
Imitations.

6) So the first thing i noticed after my first few listens of
"fully finished outtakes" was how many tracks sounded not at all
like concoctions. Mostly because of the very different way Jagger's
vocals and lyrics were handled.

7) But neither did these new tracks sound "raw". Not talking just
about the sound quality. Rather it was clear SOMEBODY had recently
put in a LOT of post-production work on the music.

8) Specifically (in my opinion) four SOMEBODIES, working in two
teams: Keith and Don Was, Mick and Matt Clifford, with Don and
Matt handling the negotiations between the teams. A) Keith got
the time to layer and color with his guitars, to his heart's
content. That's the biggest reason these "Love" tracks have
so much classic-Stones depth. B) Another reason is that Don has
augmented the bass and Matt the keyboards on many of the tracks.
C) And Mick has (happily) agreed that his vocals, whether original
or new, be buried somewhat, that is, be used more as an instrument
than as a hook.

9) Another important division that has persisted throughout the
Stones career is "classic blues rock/big hits/in your face numbers"
versus "groove tracks/mood pieces". The "blues rock" and "big hits"
categories are obvious. But don't forget the "in your face" tracks have
also been key to their huge fame. Stuff like "star fucker",
"doom and gloom", "under my thumb", "sister morphine" etc,
songs where the theme captures a great deal of the attention.

However, for a significant fraction of hardcore fans, including me,
the groove tracks and mood pieces are also very important: lyrics
minimal or buried, choruses and bridges minimal. Stuff like "turd
on the run", "heaven", "pretty beat up", "parachute woman",
"just wanna see his face" etc...

8) So that's my contention basically, that out of the 50 tracks
we were gifted, there are about 28 that more or less meet these
"fresh" criteria, and more or less flow into each other as easily
as, for example, the very dissimilar tracks of "sticky fingers" do.
Or perhaps a better parallel would be "Tattoo you" with its various
recording dates (although the average track on these "Love" albums
is far superior to the average track on "Tattoo"). Also: amazingly
these new tracks flow without me at all changing the playing order.
That's because none of the 28 are "in your face" tracks needing to
be placed and spaced carefully.

9) in summary, these two "Love" compilations are strictly a musical
journey for we, the few, the proud, the Stones cognizati.

I hear these two volumes as a validictory statement by the band,
consisting of what they most like about themselves. Not the fame, not
the money, not the controversy, not even the hit songs. But rather
the MUSIC, both spontaneous and crafted. Commerce for once be damned.

And that's why the Stones needed to make these tracks free. Today's market
just would never fucking understand.

(download links good for 7 days)