The Cavern
Rock & Words
THE ROLLING STONES NOW! (The Rolling Stones, 1965)
Artist: The Rolling Stones (A)
Recor Dates: Jun-Nov 1964
Release Date: Feb 13, 1965. UK
Record Label: Decca / London Records
Producer: Andrew Loog Oldham
Rating: 8
Era: Rock & Roll II, Early Sixties (1960-1966)
Subgenre: British Invasion
Best Song: Heart of Stone or Down Home GirlTracklist
: 1) Everybody Needs Somebody To Love; 2) Down Home Girl; 3) You Can't Catch Me; 4) Heart Of Stone; 5) What A Shame; 6) Mona (I Need You Baby); 7) Down The Road Apiece; 8) Off The Hook; 9) Pain In My Heart; 10) Oh Baby (We Got A Good Thing Goin'); 11) Little Red Rooster; 12) Surprise Surprise.
The problem with the Stones' early albums is that the record labels made a real mess of the English and British versions, obviously with the aim of making more money, releasing editions with tracks that weren't on the versions across the Atlantic. In this case, it's an American "bastard" roughly equivalent to the English Rolling Stones #2, since it was released around the same time and contains seven tracks from its British sibling. Furthermore, Now! includes a song from the British debut that didn't appear in the US (Mona), adds a single that had just been a huge hit in the capital of the empire (Little Red Rooster/Off The Hook), a song that would only appear in the US (Surprise, Surprise), and finally two tracks that would later appear on the next British LP, Out Of Our Heads (Heart Of Stone and Oh Baby). Argh, an aspirin, please! So, the Stones' official discography is full of repeated songs due to shady dealings, which confuses us, their valued fans, who have no choice but to collect all their albums because we're missing one or two tracks that don't appear on any other record. In short, record label shady practices aren't new, as you can see. And then they say record labels don't commit corporate suicide!
In short, this album contains very disparate tracks that were never really intended to be a cohesive whole. The curious thing is that it's not very noticeable. In fact, the album is a slight improvement over 12 x 5, as they return to the aggression, audacity, and darkness of their debut and abandon the commercial and complacent sound of their second album. Now!, then, shows a considerable improvement in its selection of covers, with a good reinterpretation of Chuck Berry, Keith's eternal idol, and some soul and blues tracks (Little Red Rooster is one of the best covers in their discography!).
They also show good progress in composition, since although there are only four original tracks, the Jagger/Richards duo sounds increasingly confident, taking greater risks with their arrangements. They gradually move away from sounding like clones of other Rhythm & Blues works and also include their first timeless classic, the great "Heart of Stone." Although they still lack the maturity to start making entirely original albums with truly great songs, at this point, I think it was already clear that the band's future rested on this pair. And while they are far from the peak they would reach in the second half of the 60s, starting with Aftermath, it must be acknowledged that they are just beginning to explore and lay the foundations of this formula. In these original tracks, Jagger's misogynistic and aggressive side is already starting to emerge, although he still seems like a timid altar boy compared to the lyrics of Beggars Banquet or Let It Bleed, and Richards' inventive side, enjoying playing with harmonies, is also evident.
The album opens with “Everybody Needs Somebody”, a song that gives Jagger the opportunity to deliver a monologue that's more spoken than sung, and when I say spoken, I mean more in the tenor of a preacher, which doesn't suit him at all. Furthermore, this is the first song that attempts to capture the raw energy of the Stones live. It's not one of the best covers in Rolling Stones history, but this almost five-minute jam is a good attempt and partly reflects the fame they had built on stage, with improvised music and vocals recorded in the studio as if it were live. The length is another novelty. It's true that the Animals had already broken the seven-minute barrier with “Talking 'Bout You” a few months earlier, so it's nothing revolutionary, but this is the first Stones song to break the four-minute taboo that prevailed in those days, and from what we hear, they could easily have stretched it to half an hour if they'd wanted. There's a great bass riff that drives the whole song, although it gets a bit repetitive after a while. Charlie raises and lowers the intensity with his cymbals, but it's really Keith's improvisations and Mick's charisma that make this song entertaining despite the limited variations. On the original release of Now!, this version was accidentally replaced with an inferior and shorter one, which was actually a demo, though the CD version thankfully corrected this error.
Next up is “Down Home Girl”, a song with a super cool bassline and an elastic effect courtesy of Bill Wayman. The mini-intro is great, and somehow it reminds me of what they would do five years later with the riff of the majestic “Gimme Shelter.” Don’t they sound alike? Richards has an amazing ability to self-replicate and improve his own arrangements for various songs. But after those first few seconds, it shifts to a funky, mid-tempo rhythm, with a chunky, chunky groove from Keith while the ever-imaginative Brian (my favorite Stone) plays those sharp descending scales after each verse. At 1:50, Brian himself plays a fairly simple solo that serves more as background for the harmonica. The song is a cover, very well done, completely making it his own, and in which Mick takes the opportunity to embrace the Mr. Misogynist label. True, the lyrics aren't his, but singing them that way you could swear that someone just beat him to the idea and that he feels every phrase with which he crushes the girl he's singing to.
Next up is “You Can't Catch Me”, one of Chuck Berry's best songs, which Keith Richards didn't bother to copy and rewrite for his own track. Instead, they added a strange, echo-laden effect, making it sound like they're all playing in a cavern. The guitars are frantically playing in the background, somewhat overshadowed by Mick's powerful vocals, which are soaring he barely pauses to breathe. At 1:40, Watts launches into a drum roll that sets the stage for the guitars to go wild in the instrumental bridge, featuring a devilishly sharp solo, and there's even a false ending with a brief but perfect return. Pure rock and roll, a well-crafted, entertaining track that flies by and is absolutely worth listening to.
The fourth song is “Heart of Stone”, the best of the original tracks on this album and of those leading up to the release of Now! It's a kind of ballad, with an almost religious, soulful feel—I don't know if it's the backing vocals—but with a profound darkness throughout its atmosphere. This time, Mick does flaunt his misogyny in his own lyrics, delivering a venomous attack on women and a display of macho-Jagger strength. The song is incredibly catchy and charming; there's no way not to fall in love with that hook in the chorus: “'Cause you'll never-brake, never-brake, neeeeeeeeeeever brake…”. After all, it seems some of the Motown covers on the previous albums weren't in vain. Richards' guitar riff, answering Mick's verses, seems to further accentuate the contempt in the words, and the solo is actually quite good for being original. The backing vocals are also majestic, making it one of the first songs where Brian and Keith truly come together to create those beautiful harmonies, so rare in the Rolling Stones' discography. It's undoubtedly a huge leap forward in the songwriting style of this dynamic duo, at least showing they could be a great partnership in the future, truly working as a team, unlike the Lennon/McCartney partnership where they shared the rights but rarely wrote together. Oh, I almost forgot. I think the song raised an important question within the group at the time: What are we? A blues band or a pop band? Jones was horrified by songs like this.
Next up is “What a Shame”, another original from the quintet, with a dark and chilling atmosphere, exuding pure blues from every note. From Ian Stewart's piano, subtly present in the background, to the excellent harmonica solo that spans more than a third of the song, the bass line that leaps and bounds through those blues scales, and Brian's guitar, which clearly loves this kind of music, is this time laden with echo and shimmer. It's a good song, not a masterpiece, and it's typical of the R&B that bands like the Yardbirds were producing at the time. But even though it remains a generic blues track, it has to be acknowledged that it's well done.
Next up is “Mona (I Need You Baby)”, an original Bo Diddley song that highlights the guitar with its full-throttle tremolo, as well as that frenetic “Bom Pom-Bom Bom-Bom Pom-Bom” drumming. Mick, for his part, does an impeccable job singing parts with a raspy, angry voice. The song isn't bad, but the drumming can get tiring at times. The mix, on the other hand, is terrible (actually, the whole album, but this track is worse). It seems the sound engineer couldn't prevent Charlie's bass drum from reverberating and creating a snow effect on the microphone, which they try to cover up with maracas. But it's also worth considering that at the time there were only two or three channels, and that this track was recorded for their first album, more than a year earlier.
“Down The Road Apiece” is another rock cover, written by Don Raye, but Keith showcases his love for his idol, playing in that laid-back Chuck Berry style, with his signature raspy guitar, even EQing it to the sound of mid-50s Gibsons, and with Ian Stewart creating a delightful wall of sound in the background. It's a well-executed rock 'n' roll tribute, done purely for fun, but somehow it lacks the same menacing edge as the tracks on their debut album.
Next up is “Off the Hook”, another original track. It’s a fresh song that flirts equally with rhythm and blues and pop. The chorus (which gives the song its title) is catchy, but very repetitive, and can even get annoying. Musically, it’s not dazzling, nor does it showcase Keith’s best work in either song structure or performance. Even the guitar solo is quite simple, but while it’s not memorable, it’s not a terrible song either.
“Pain In My Heart” is the weakest track on this third album. A soul ballad with a forgettable melody, it's truly something to sit and cry about, not because the lyrics are moving, but because it's just filler that adds nothing. I don't know what Mick's obsession is with these kinds of songs. By now, we know Mick goes for the Motown sound, Keith for rock and roll, and Brian for the blues. The only noteworthy thing is the fuzz-drenched bass, almost a year before the Beatles tried it.
The tenth song is “Oh Baby (We Got A Good Thing Going)” which is also filler without many things to highlight, although at least it is not a bore and Jagger's scream in the chorus somewhat rescues the song.
The album's lackluster ending is surprisingly lifted by an excellent Delta Blues track. Willie Dixon's "Little Red Rooster" is masterfully performed in a raw style, featuring Brian's delightful slide guitar and creating a swampy atmosphere reminiscent of the Blues Heroes of the '40s and '50s, complete with a harmonica wailing at the end, conversing with the guitar. The song was first released as a single in England and, to their own surprise, was a massive hit, so the London executives didn't hesitate to add it to the little bastard album Now! This time we forgive their ambition, as the Rolling Stones prove that when they want to, they can be absolute masters of the Blues.
“Surprise, Surprise” is the last cover on this album and the one that closes it out. It's a rock & roll song in Berry's average style, but complex in its structure, considering the era, with a fast tempo, guitars constantly creating arrangements with that fifties-style EQ, and some catchy vocal harmonies. Nothing impressive, but not offensive either. A decent closing track.
A good album, returning to the Stones' dark and menacing character, without as much pop influence as "12 x 5" and without as much blues as "England's Newest Hitmakers," leaning more towards rock & roll, but somehow balanced considering their diverse origins. The production isn't the best, but musically, the Stones show slight progress. Their original songs are becoming more solid, they're selecting covers more carefully, they're discovering who's mastering different styles, and they're cementing their image as the bad boys their debut album revealed. It's not the Rolling Stones' best album, but it's a crucial record in their early period, and I'd definitely choose this one a thousand times over any of their 80s albums.
By Corvan
Jun/15/2009
