Posted on 10/13/2002 5:06:31 PM PDT by blam
Jagger says first Stones songs were 'crap'
October 13 2002 at 05:35PM
Mick and Keef: "Nobody has been scumbag rockers like us and lived to tell the tale." Photo: AP
London - The first songs penned by Rolling Stones Mick Jagger and Keith Richard were so sentimental they were ashamed of them, Jagger told BBC Radio in an interview to be broadcast on Sunday.
"We couldn't write rock songs. We just wrote these crap ballads," he told Britain's Radio Five Live, in extracts of an interview that were released before Sunday's broadcast.
The band's first five hits were all cover versions of songs written by other stars, though imbued with the Rolling Stones flavour.
But manager Andrew Loog Oldham wanted them to write their own material - and locked Jagger and Richard in a room until they did.
'We couldn't write rock songs. We just wrote these crap ballads' Jagger said the first song they produced, "As Tears Go By", was far from the heavy-rocker image they were cultivating, so they gave it to pop singer and Jagger girlfriend Marianne Faithfull, who had a hit with it.
"It was pop and we didn't record it because it was crap," he said. "We had a successful crap ballad... I can say now it's a wonderful tune, but we didn't think it was that great at the time."
Jagger said he and Richard "were these two rebellious band members, and we would write nice little tunes, but sentimental stuff".
The dynamic song-writing duo - whose creative skill and tireless drive has kept the band at the top of the notoriously fickle music business for four decades - finally hit their stride in 1965 with "The Last Time".
"Eventually we got to grips with writing rock tunes, but it took a little time," Jagger said.
A string of hits followed, such as "Satisfaction", "Paint It Black" and "Get Off Of My Cloud".
The group, which began as a rebellion band but has long since become absorbed into the establishment, Jagger getting a knighthood earlier this year, has just released 40 years of remastered greatest hits.
Richard said the band had no intention of slowing down after a lifetime in the rock'n'roll fast lane.
"Nobody has been scumbag rockers like us and lived to tell the tale. I wouldn't put it past us to keep on rockin'," he said.
Jagger and Richard, who will both be 60 next year, are currently leading the tireless Stones on another US tour.
LOL. I'll be there next year! Ugh.
The Rolling Stones: Sucking In The Seventies
I haven't even THOUGHT about that record in years. Boy, suck it did!
Absolutely rock bottom...
...and from the same guys who did way cool stuff like "Gimme Shelter".
Should of quit while they were ahead!
From 1964-1971, the Stones produced some of the finest rock ever put on vinyl.
After that, you and I are in full agreement.
For example, Exile On Main Street, one of the best albums ever recorded.
By the way, in an irrelevant sidebar, Charlie Watts is a huge American Civil War buff which makes him my favorite Stone. He was also their best musician.
Hmmm...
The anecdote you cite here doesn't support your thesis.
My argument isn't about the complexity of the music, or the other talents and accomplishments of some percentage of those people who may prefer complex musical scores...
My argument is that what I (or anyone else) say is good music is good music (to me, or to them) and there is no valid objective way for anyone else to effectively dispute my (or their) opinion on the matter.
By your own example, we can see that not all 'geniuses' prefer complicated musical scores. Musical preference is therefor safely within the realm of the subjective.
Hey!...Maybe you'll get yer SS just under the SS bankruptcy!...LOL!
FMCDH
There are some interesting books to look up the history of the Stones, ones by Andrew "Loog" Oldham (coming out with the second volume of his memoirs now,) Bill Wyman (second volume out as we speak,) who was something of an outsider within a group, and perhaps the best of all, Jimmy "Nanker" Phelge's memoirs about the very early days. All this in addition to the usual biographies by the hacks and rock writers, who might or might have not had access to the group, such as the new book by Stephen Davis.
Keef is always a fascinating interview subject, and I recommend his recent Rolling Stone mag interview, which you can read, as I did, standing in line at a supermarket, without buying the issue. Mick's new film The Man From Elysian Fields is an interesting one (he steals the show,) but less of an artistic triumph than I expected laying down six bucks for a matinee ticket just yesterday.
Mick once said that anyone can learn to write songs, which is an interesting statement, in its honesty and humility, considering his accomplishments as a lyric writer.
Finally, I think the Stones biggest success, which for me defines their entire accomplishment, was translating the raw and often primitive rhythm and blues genre into music that was more refined and more palatable to European ears.
This is no different from the work of 19th century classical (but then popular) composers who took primitive peasant folk songs and translated them into symphonic or small ensemble pieces. Unless you are purist, afficionado of the raw stuff or a plain snob, there is nothing wrong with that, is there? Today's "country music" is citified country music, just as Bob Dylan's "folk music" was citified folk music. But I'm venturing into the territory deemed politically incorrect by the entire political range, so I'd better stop.
While some musical tastes can be classified as subjective, that does not mean that all music is subjective.
Lol. When I was about 45, I received a letter, out of the clear blue, that stated that I had already contributed enough to SS to receive the maximum benefit upon coming of age. I've never planned on receiving SS. I quit work at 50 with my own retirement plan.
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