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In the second half of the 1970s, the group that had epitomised youthful rebellion for more than a decade discovered, somewhat to their surprise, that they were no more immune than anyone else to generational change.
When the Sex Pistols et al began deriding The Rolling Stones as Establishment and old, they, stung, responded by going back into the studio and knuckling down to an album that they knew had to be better than their recent underwhelming output. Or perhaps they were more motivated by the fact that this could be the last time they could record together, because they faced the prospect of disintegration over Keith Richards’ infamous 1977 Canadian bust, the theoretical maximum sentence for which was life.
Whatever the truth, Some Girls – released in June 1978 and their first full album with Ronnie Wood – was the best Stones album in yonks. The raised energy levels of tracks like When the Whip Comes Down, Lies and Respectable forcefully make the point that this ensemble were practising breakneck tempos when the punks were in short trousers. However, the Stones also demonstrate a musical palette absolutely beyond their three-chord detractors. Far Away Eyes is a fond mickey-take of country, Shattered a funky dissection of the irritants of big city life and the smash Miss You skilfully co-opts the slick grooves of disco.
Elsewhere, Keith’s vocal showcase Before They Make Me Run – a renunciation of his junkie life – evinces a reflectiveness and regret beyond the emotional vocabulary of musicians in their 20s. In fact – though Mick Jagger can’t resist stirring up some outrage with the lecherous, bluesy title-track – there is an overall sensitivity and vulnerability that had never before been part of the Stones’ make-up, whether it be the machismo-spurning of Miss You, the achingly sweet cover of Just My Imagination or the exquisitely lovelorn Beast of Burden. All this made for a staggeringly good ‘comeback’ that left many veteran Stones fans rather emotional.
The 12 outtakes on this 2011 reissue amount to a whole extra album. They're a mixture of blues that vary from generic to good, competent-to-classy cover versions and a few originals almost up to the quality of the weakest Some Girls tracks. Though the additions don't enhance the original album’s legend, nor do they diminish it any more than the fact that the band sagged once again into artistic complacency after its release.
Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
70 of 76 people found the following review helpful
Format:Audio CD
This is one of my favourite Stones albums but the record company seems determined to neutralise my continued enjoyment. The 2009 remasters of the post-Decca/London studio albums (from 1971's Sticky Fingers to date) have come in for some stick in some quarters & rightly so; the one-EQ-setting-suits-all-tracks approach to 'remastering' was a creative mistake which simply did not suit some titles, with Some Girls suffering the most. The original release didn't sound like it was recorded in a tin can but the 2009 version did with the contents compressed to a degrading degree, stripping the original of its dynamic range. What used to sound nice & sleazy was transformed into something shrill & dense. I was hoping that this 'deluxe' issue might feature a decent second attempt at the job but, alas, no: this package contains exactly the same 2009 remastered version with no discernible attempt to improve the faulty sound. This is disappointing, to say the least. Some Girls deserves so much better than this. What is truly frustrating, however, is that the same does not apply to the bonus disc of out-takes. The sound here is excellent from start to finish- I'm not about to complain on that score because the 12 extra tracks are well worth hearing if you're interested in a collection of would-be B-sides in fine quality sound. But is it not ABSURD that the out-takes sound so much better than the album proper? This is not quite how it's supposed to be, is it? If you think I'm being a tad tetchy here, compare this version of Some Girls to the 1990s remaster & you'll hear what I mean. The difference in tonal range is striking. Hell, under normal circumstances I'd be giving Some Girls a five-star rating but this version succeeds only in making it sound like a 3-star album & that just can't be right. In fact, it's a bit of a crime in my book. Are we not entitled to expect it to sound better instead of worse? Has concern for musical quality been finally thrown out of the window? Worth buying for the out-take disc, though, which really does sound pretty good.
27 of 30 people found the following review helpful
Format:Audio CD|Amazon Verified Purchase
The Stones really hit the mark with this one, great playing, great production and great songs-even if they are a bit below the belt. It has everything that I like about the Stones in bucketloads. Keith and Ronnie make the ancient art of weaving sound as effortless as breathing. They really work as one on this one. Ronnies slide, Faraway Eyes, and lead guitar work really stands out. The Stones, for me, peaked with this one, followed closely by Tattoo You. Everyone is giving it 110%, playing Lies would exhaust a lot of modern "rock" bands.
This album features a load of styles from the sly funky disco opener Miss You, through the smooth cover of Imagination, the rawk bluesy anthropological and educational(well not in the school sense) trawl through the wiles and ways of the worlds female population Some Girls, the punky and rocky Lies, the country hued sarcastic take on "gospel" radio Far Away Eyes, via others ending with the evocative description of the darker side of dwelling in New Yawk. Its all here! Magnificent degenerate rock music.
The remaster is once again a touch up in the detail on previous releases, better drums, better vocal separation, better guitar separation, better guitar crunch and better bass definition. Not as immediately apparent a difference as the Sticky Fingers and Its Only Rock and Roll remastering, but an improvement none the less.
Is it worth buying? If you are new to the Stones, definitely! If you have this on the Virgin release, yes if you want to hear every detail, no if you are just going to blast it on a portable.
There are folk out there who like to feed the music through a wave editor to find out what is going on, this review is based on listening to the music on a couple of different cd players.
This album features a load of styles from the sly funky disco opener Miss You, through the smooth cover of Imagination, the rawk bluesy anthropological and educational(well not in the school sense) trawl through the wiles and ways of the worlds female population Some Girls, the punky and rocky Lies, the country hued sarcastic take on "gospel" radio Far Away Eyes, via others ending with the evocative description of the darker side of dwelling in New Yawk. Its all here! Magnificent degenerate rock music.
The remaster is once again a touch up in the detail on previous releases, better drums, better vocal separation, better guitar separation, better guitar crunch and better bass definition. Not as immediately apparent a difference as the Sticky Fingers and Its Only Rock and Roll remastering, but an improvement none the less.
Is it worth buying? If you are new to the Stones, definitely! If you have this on the Virgin release, yes if you want to hear every detail, no if you are just going to blast it on a portable.
There are folk out there who like to feed the music through a wave editor to find out what is going on, this review is based on listening to the music on a couple of different cd players.
50 of 57 people found the following review helpful
Format:Audio CD|Amazon Verified Purchase
I've personally been waiting a long time for this remaster,one because this is my favourite stones album,two because i couldn't find the virgin reissue and also because i was excited about this because i had been wanting a nice sounding copy as i have the original cbs cd but wanted something a little clearer and more powerful.
So is it clearer?
Well yes it is definitely clearer but whilst its not a complete disaster unfortunately this is yet another member of the loudness war.
Not to the extent of anything thats distorted but there is hardly any bass here at all and the whole album is very "toppy" meaning the treble range is over-emphasised,so it sounds rather washed-out without any warmth at all.
It's also been redone too loud,which means it's great for using in the car etc but for quality listening at home or through good quality headphones this doesn't sound great,in fact the original is better,which sort of defeats the purpose really.
A friend of mine has the virgin remaster of this (which i cannot find lol) and i will be continuing to look for a copy of that for myself,it sounds clear,isn't too loud,has a nice dynamic range and is a step up from the original,which is exactly what a remaster should be.
Unlike this one which just doesn't cut it.
I shall be getting rid of this one as soon as possible which is a great shame but at least i have my original to listen to while i look for the other one.
I don't know if all the 2009 stones remasters are going to sound like this but if they are i'll stay away.
So as to a rating,well 5 stars for the music,maybe 2 for the remaster.
A great shame,but it doesn't surprise me as sound quality on cds these days seems to be getting very poor.
So is it clearer?
Well yes it is definitely clearer but whilst its not a complete disaster unfortunately this is yet another member of the loudness war.
Not to the extent of anything thats distorted but there is hardly any bass here at all and the whole album is very "toppy" meaning the treble range is over-emphasised,so it sounds rather washed-out without any warmth at all.
It's also been redone too loud,which means it's great for using in the car etc but for quality listening at home or through good quality headphones this doesn't sound great,in fact the original is better,which sort of defeats the purpose really.
A friend of mine has the virgin remaster of this (which i cannot find lol) and i will be continuing to look for a copy of that for myself,it sounds clear,isn't too loud,has a nice dynamic range and is a step up from the original,which is exactly what a remaster should be.
Unlike this one which just doesn't cut it.
I shall be getting rid of this one as soon as possible which is a great shame but at least i have my original to listen to while i look for the other one.
I don't know if all the 2009 stones remasters are going to sound like this but if they are i'll stay away.
So as to a rating,well 5 stars for the music,maybe 2 for the remaster.
A great shame,but it doesn't surprise me as sound quality on cds these days seems to be getting very poor.
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4.3 out of 5 stars
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars
SOME GIRLS
Love the 'Stones'. Well remastered album. Personally I think the second CD with previously unrecorded songs is better than the first.
Published 17 hours ago by Mr. D. J. Long
5.0 out of 5 stars
rock and roll
hubby is a old rock and roll bought as we dont have a deck anymore and he was missing his music
Published 4 months ago by P. bridgens
4.0 out of 5 stars
A genuine classic!
It is not as good as Let it Bleed, but it still is a remarkable dirty Rolling stones work. Keith plays in 5 chord tuning and Mick is in great raw energy.
Published 4 months ago by Nikolaos Orfanos
4.0 out of 5 stars
Get It For The Bonus Tracks
For me the first disc sounds no different to the original remaster so stick with what you have if you only want a 'crisper' sound on the tracks you know- coz you wont find that... Read more
Published 8 months ago by John Daniels
5.0 out of 5 stars
remasrerd miss you is vivid and exiting
Contrary to some reviewers who thought that the remastered version sounded poorer than the original production, on my hi fi it sounds wow...like youre hearing it all again..... Read more
Published 11 months ago by Mr. Ac Smart
5.0 out of 5 stars
some girls, rolling stones.
well the rolling stones have ben my idols all my life so im going to rate them a five star being the greatest rock band in the world. Read more
Published 13 months ago by terry
4.0 out of 5 stars
Theres good news and theres bad news.
This is my favoutite stones album of all time so this may help you to put into perspective my opinion of this remastered cd with bonus tracks. Read more
Published 15 months ago by Neil sayce
5.0 out of 5 stars
Best Stones album since Some Girls LP
I think most people need no introduction to the original album which is the last great Stones album so i will review the bonus disc which is great. Read more
Published 15 months ago by Michael Boyle
3.0 out of 5 stars
2nd cd not so great
Worth a listen. Good quality recording but if you're buying it just for the previously unreleased bonus tracks it's not worth it.
Published 16 months ago by Jackie
5.0 out of 5 stars
Some Girls CD
Really good CD...Great Feel-Good factor...Like most of the tracks too...Plenty of information in it too.Good to have it. Read more
Published 16 months ago by Songbird
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