1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die - #70. The Rolling Stones - Aftermath (1966)

The Rolling Stones - Aftermath (1966)

Label – Decca
Producer – Andrew Loog Oldham
Art Direction – Sandy Beach
Nationality - UK
Running Time –53:58

Track Listing (standout tracks listed in bold)

1. Mother’s Little Helper
2. Stupid Girl
3. Lady Jane
4. Under My Thumb
5. Doncha Bother Me
6. Goin’ Home
7. Flight 505
8. High And Dry
9. Out Of Time
10. It’s Not Easy
11. I Am Waiting
12. Take It Or Leave It
13. Think
14. What To Do

This is the first record by The Rolling Stones that featured all-original material and no coves. It was also the turning point and defining moment which defined them as the bad boys of rock & roll.
Classics included the jazzy "Under My Thumb," where Brian Jones added exotic accents with his playing of the vibes. There is the delicate Elizabethan style ballad "Lady Jane," where a dulcimer can be heard. True – not all of the material is this good (“Stupid Girl” stands out with some downright bad lyrics – but there is a great tune underneath) but Mick Jagger and Keith Richards were still finding their song writing footing. "Goin' Home," is an epic 11-minute blues jam that really goes nowhere. There is an overlooked Stones classic stuck in the last part of the record. The brooding and meditative "I Am Waiting." Just great stuff.
There has always been that standing argument about the greatness of the Beatles versus the Stones. No one need to look any further than the 1966 releases. The Beatles released ‘Revolver’ and the Stones ‘Aftermath’. While a good record, the Stones record is nowhere as fresh sounding or innovative in any way. Again – not saying it isn’t a good record as it IS – it’s just not GREAT.
One note of interest – the American version of this album has a slightly different set of tracks – most notably it included the hit single “Paint It Black”, but it is the fourteen-track UK version considered by many to be the definitive version. Issued between the non-LP single releases of "19th Nervous Breakdown" and "Paint It, Black", ‘Aftermath’ proved a big smash, spending eight weeks atop the UK charts.
It’s good stuff, It’s the Stones, It’s recommended.


You can purchase the CD here.