Product Description

After years of building off their rhythm and blues credentials, the title IT'S ONLY ROCK & ROLL insinuates a lowbrow rock aesthetic, but on this album the Rolling Stones mixed rock's aggression with an unparalleled appreciation for soul music. From their joyous cover of the Temptations' "Ain't Too Proud To Beg" to "Time Waits For No One", Mick Jagger boldlyduplicates the feel of James Brown's early singles. But theband gives their sources a twist, with the heavily funk-based "Fingerprint File" sounding more like Isaac Hayes's "Shaft" than "Satisfaction", and "Dance Little Sister" coming across like a high school R&B band hopped up on adrenaline.
This 1974 album also finds the Stones in a state of flux. Unsatisfied by his low place on the totem pole, Mick Taylor's participation is minimal, and the album relies more on Keith's guitar than previous albums. Ronnie Wood's increasing involvement with the band is obvious--the song "It's Only Rock & Roll" started as a demo for Wood's then-in-progress solo album, but became his first contribution to the band. But while IT'S ONLY ROCK & ROLL is a portrait of a band in transition, it still rocks in classic Stones style, and stands with SOME GIRLS as one of the band's best post-EXILE efforts.

Track Listing

1. If You Can't Rock Me
2. Ain't Too Proud To Beg
3. It's Only Rock 'n' Roll
4. Till The Next Goodbye
5. Luxury
6. Time Waits For No One
7. Dance Little Sister
8. If You Really Want To
9. Short And Curlies
10. Fingerprint File

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #21542 in Music
• Released on: 1994-08-15
• Number of discs: 1

Customer Reviews

Just a little hint of funk creeping in....
After the muddy murk of "Goats Head Soup" had failed to reproduce the ad hoc glory of "Exile On Main Street", The Stones went ever so slightly leftfield (and I mean only slightly) as they hung out increasingly in New York, surrounded by the embryonic sounds of disco and ghetto funk. Four years prior to their delve into disco with "Some Girls", here we see tiny hints of The Stones' experiment with Blaxploitation-style funk. The "Theme From Shaft" was still hugely popular in credible circles and listen carefully and you can hear that wah-wah guitar on "If You Can't Rock Me". Although much of the album was recorded in Germany, this urban soul/funk feel is completely New York.

The presence of Billy Preston on keyboards once more is vital, nowhere is this more apparent than one the album's funk rock extended closer, "Fingerprint File", a precursor to "Dance Pt 1" from "Emotional Rescue" (which was probably conceived around this time!). Mick Taylor's contribution is smaller as Preston's became bigger. The Stones' every-increasing nods to the Caribbean continue in the good-time, calypso-ish "Luxury". There is a storming cover of The Temptations' "Ain't Too Proud To Beg" and the title track is, of course, the rocking Stones at their leery yet anthemic best. "Dance Little Sister" continues the dancefloor groove to this album and beneath what have often been labelled as tired old rock cliches that would be so despised by the punks in two years' time we have half of an experimental album here. It is not all "Stones by numbers" for sure. However, this album was never really given much credit, and its follow-up saw The Stones influenced by reggae in "Black And Blue" and then full-on disco in "Some Girls". These were albums of obvious change, yet I believe the early signs of a slight shift can be seen here.

Down Hill From Here
The last great album from the stones (68 - 74) before the decline through the punk and disco years. They turned from a group into a band when Mick Taylor quit. Although I like Ronnie Wood from here on in there would be no great guitair solos or depth to their sound just the rough riffs of Keith.

The opening and ending tracks are great with the best track in my opion being Time Waits for No One.

A must for those who enjoy 70's rock.

Seems to be a hidden gem in the Stones repertoire
If this had come after Exile On Main Street instead of Goats Head Soup then it would have been far better received. People were still smarting about how the run of 4 great albums prior to that had been ruined when It's Only Rock 'n' Roll came along. This is a much warmer, melodic offering than the Stones had ever released and contains some fine lead guitar work from Mick Taylor. Keith took a bit of a back seat on this album due to his addictions and as a result the overall sound is less Stonesy, perhaps this different vibe is what puts some fans off? The songs are very strong and the production much more appealing than Goats Head Soup which was a bit of a shocker in my opinion. This is definitely one of my favourite Stones albums.