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2 of 10 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
The best Stones album., 9 Feb 2003
Exile on Main Street is undoubtedly the apex of the Stones' career & one of the classic albums of all time. It sounds so effortless, made by a bunch of tax exiles in France, lost in music & the excesses of the rock& roll lifestyle. This is even better than previous albums Let it Bleed & Sticky Fingers (which was also reissued in a similar CD-sleeve to this edition & was remastered accordingly)- the fusion of blues, rock & roll & Parsons-inflected country continues here. Along with the usual classic Stones line-up (including the undervalued Mick Taylor) there are guests such as Al Perkins (Manassas), Dr John & 'Amyl Nitrate' (who's that then?). All 18-tracks are great- amusing that Pussy Galore would cover this complete album in the 80s & Liz Phair's classic Exile in Guyville would use this as a template for its own feminist take on the world of male rock. There are classic Stones-rockers- All Down the Line, Soul Survivor, Turd on the Run, Rip This Joint. There are country-inflected tracks- Torn & Frayed (big influence on The Charlatans Just When You're Thinkin it Over), Sweet Virginia & Casino Boogie. There's the crude Co*ksucker Blues, aka Ventilator Blues & the odd soundscape of I Just Want to see His Face. Rocks off pre-empts Primal Scream's career & sounds like the Stones meets Sly & the Family Stone. The two fave moments for me are Keith Richard's finest vocal, Happy & the epic Let it Loose. Exile on Main Street is one of the classic double-albums, like Tommy, Warehouse (Songs&Stories), Sign'O'the Times & Songs in the Key of Life. It has to be owned by anyone who claims to have a passing interest in rock music. It would be downhill for The Stones after, the odd great track like Beast of Burden & Start Me Up not compensating for patchy albums like Black or Blue or Dirty Work.
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