The Rolling Stones song Mick Jagger called “lousy”

When you’ve been in the music industry for as long as The Rolling Stones, not everything you’ve laid down will be perfect. Although Mick Jagger and Keith Richards may have been the soundtrack of the golden age of rock and roll for many, there are seldom few people who are going to say that albums like Dirty Work have the exact same impact that Sticky Fingers had years before. While Jagger has been known to be diplomatic about most of The Stones’ catalogue, he admitted that Exile on Main St could have used a bit of work.

As the band entered the 1970s, there was a good chance that nothing would slow them down. Even though they had to move on from the tragic death of longtime guitarist Brian Jones, their ability to carry on across albums like Beggars Banquet saw them solidifying themselves as rock legends.

For all of that time living in the shadow of The Beatles, the band had finally found their voice as the rock and roll answer to hardened bluesmen, all while making heartbreaking ballads like ‘Wild Horses’ and ‘Sway’. Although the production of Sticky Fingers saw the band playing to every one of their strengths, things began to go haywire when they became tax exiles.

Moving out of England to complete their next record, Exile on Main St practically documents those years spent running from their tax problems. Working in different parts of the world, the band spent almost every day coming up with yet another classic for their double album, either putting their own spin on Robert Johnson’s ‘Stop Breaking Down’ or making their own bluesy romps like ‘Shine a Light’ and ‘Sweet Virginia’.

When running from the law and trying your best to hold everything together, not everything will come out as tidy as you want. Despite being one of the crowned jewels in the band’s repertoire, Jagger always thought that the final mixes of the album were half of what they could have been.

Discussing the album years later, Jagger said that some pieces of the album were far too messy, saying, “When I listen to Exile, it has some of the worst mixes I’ve ever heard. I’d love to remix the record, not just because of the vocals, but because generally, I think it sounds lousy…it’s really not good, and there’s no concerted effort or intention”.

Even though Jagger may not have liked the muddy sounds of the mix, that raw sound gives a lot of the songs their power. Keith Richards even thought that the raw mix had given the album its longevity, calling it one of the first grunge records ever made years before the Seattle scene began.

Is this the kind of Rolling Stones album with the most pristine production? No. Does it have the most technically sophisticated performances? No. What it does have, though, is a unique groove throughout every song, and that groove is one of the most timeless sounds in all of rock and roll.

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