..
LP
CD
When Some Girls was first released, in June, 1978, I liked most of it. At the time I thought Shattered and Lies were just filler and not at all necessary, but I've since changed my mind. After all these years, only Lies remains as (IMHO) unnecessary filler. Shattered has become necessary due to sheer force of will, mostly because the Stones keep playing it live and have succeeded in making it at least seem essential. And it is gritty and nasty and rough, and at the time that's what the Rolling Stones were all about.
As a whole, Some Girls is one of the greatest records of the 1970s and it still stands up. It was the bands' 14th UK and 16th US album, and it was released when punk rock was emerging as the dominant genre and disco was being escorted to the door. It was also a time when Keith Richards was in a bit of a legal pickle in Toronto due to a drug bust, but despite these challenges - and maybe even because of them - this record succeeds enormously well. It's pretty punk.
With Keith busy trying to stay out of jail, Mick Jagger more-or-less assumed control. I'm pretty sure that's how Miss You came to be here, since Mick was always hanging out at Studio 54 and was really into the dance-disco scene at the time. It was also the third album to feature Ronnie Wood on lead guitar, so the Stones lineup was once again stable and confident.
A controversy surrounding the album's cover artwork probably contributed to its success. It climbed to the number two spot on the UK charts and number one in the U.S. The cover was designed by Peter Corriston, who would also design the band's next three album covers. The Some Girls cover featured an elaborate die-cut design with the Rolling Stones members' faces - along with the likenesses of Lucille Ball, Farrah Fawcett, Judy Garland, Raquel Welch and Marilyn Monroe - inserted into a copy of an old Valmor Products Corporation advertisement. The featured celebrities threatened to sue for the use of their likenesses without permission, which resulted in a quick cover redo that removed all the celebrities likenesses, even the ones who didn't complain. Valmor Products took legal action and received a monetary award for the use of their design. Personally, I don't know why anyone would complain about being chosen to be on the "cover of the Rolling Stone" album.
The album immediately attracted other controversy, too. Miss You was seen by some to be offensive and some DJs refused to play it because of the line, "black Girls just want to get fucked all night, I just don't have that much jam." Ahmet Ertegun, the chairman of Atlantic Records (who was the US distributor of Rolling Stones Records), later said, "When I first heard the song, I told Mick it was not going to go down well. Mick assured me that it was a parody of the type of people who hold these attitudes. Mick has great respect for blacks. He owes his whole being, his whole musical career, to black people."
When some black-oriented radio stations began to boycott Some Girls, Jagger told Rolling Stone magazine, "Atlantic tried to get us to drop it, but I refused. I've always been opposed to censorship of any kind, especially by conglomerates. I've always said, 'If you can't take a joke, it's too fucking bad.'"
Reverend Jesse Jackson called the title track a racial insult, which eventually resulted in a statement being released by the band stating it never occurred to them that their parody of certain stereotypical attitudes would be taken seriously by anyone.
Now for the sound.
The Mobile Fidelity LP sounds excellent. It is warmer than the CD, which is a 1994 remaster and was issued in a box of four CDs from that period titled 1975 Onwards and came with a signed photo pf Ronnie Wood (I also have the companion box containing the four Mick Taylor CDs, which came with a signed photo of him).
This pressing of the LP is worth a lot of money and the CD is considered to be one of the better reissues, which got me to thinking: maybe I'll sell the LP and keep the CD, which is what led to this showdown.
The CD doesn't sound bad. In fact, without the LP to compare it to it would probably do just fine. But the LP is noticeably better, and the word that best summarizes the differences between the two mediums would have to be "warmer". The LP is much warmer than the CD. It has a fullness that wraps the listener like a blanket, whereas the CD is more two-dimensional and leaves you comparatively cold. You can hear it as soon as the first notes of Miss You kick in after you drop the needle at the beginning of side one. Charlie Watts and Bill Wyman are right there. On the CD they're further away and it's brighter. The lower end is almost translucent and it's not something you have to strain to hear. It's there, and very obviously so.
The Stones' interpretation of The Temptations' Just My Imagination (Running Away With Me) fits this record perfectly. This is a band that enjoys covering songs they grew up with, and the way they treat this one displays the deep respect they have for the original. On the record there is decent spacing between the instruments and the vocals are well placed, too. The harmonies, such as they are, actually sound like separate voices blending together. It also sounds OK on the CD; it's just better on the record. It's not as flat, I guess you could say.
Before They Make Me Run, written by guitarist Keith Richards in response to his arrest, seems to be a reflection on his lifestyle up to that point. Richards is said to have recorded the song, originally titled Rotten Roll, over five consecutive days without sleep in March, 1978, during one of Jagger's absences from the Some Girls sessions. It's both pretty and raw all at the same time.
The other stand out tune here would have to be Far Away Eyes, which I'm certain was influenced by Gram Parsons' friendship with Richards. Parsons had turned Richards on to the American country rock sound he himself was enamoured with (and had recorded with the Flying Burrito Brothers and others) while the Stones were recording Exile On Main Street in the dingy basement of Richards' chalet on the southern coats of France in 1971. Parsons died in 1973 from a heroin overdose, so it's weirdly appropriate that it appears here given the timing of Richards' legal issues.
The rest of the album is more of the same. It's one big heaping helping of spicy Stones, and it will always be considered one of their best. The Mobile Fidelity reissue is a great sounding record so I'm keeping it. I'm also keeping the CD, but only because of the signature that came in the box.
The LP is …
CD
When Some Girls was first released, in June, 1978, I liked most of it. At the time I thought Shattered and Lies were just filler and not at all necessary, but I've since changed my mind. After all these years, only Lies remains as (IMHO) unnecessary filler. Shattered has become necessary due to sheer force of will, mostly because the Stones keep playing it live and have succeeded in making it at least seem essential. And it is gritty and nasty and rough, and at the time that's what the Rolling Stones were all about.
As a whole, Some Girls is one of the greatest records of the 1970s and it still stands up. It was the bands' 14th UK and 16th US album, and it was released when punk rock was emerging as the dominant genre and disco was being escorted to the door. It was also a time when Keith Richards was in a bit of a legal pickle in Toronto due to a drug bust, but despite these challenges - and maybe even because of them - this record succeeds enormously well. It's pretty punk.
With Keith busy trying to stay out of jail, Mick Jagger more-or-less assumed control. I'm pretty sure that's how Miss You came to be here, since Mick was always hanging out at Studio 54 and was really into the dance-disco scene at the time. It was also the third album to feature Ronnie Wood on lead guitar, so the Stones lineup was once again stable and confident.
A controversy surrounding the album's cover artwork probably contributed to its success. It climbed to the number two spot on the UK charts and number one in the U.S. The cover was designed by Peter Corriston, who would also design the band's next three album covers. The Some Girls cover featured an elaborate die-cut design with the Rolling Stones members' faces - along with the likenesses of Lucille Ball, Farrah Fawcett, Judy Garland, Raquel Welch and Marilyn Monroe - inserted into a copy of an old Valmor Products Corporation advertisement. The featured celebrities threatened to sue for the use of their likenesses without permission, which resulted in a quick cover redo that removed all the celebrities likenesses, even the ones who didn't complain. Valmor Products took legal action and received a monetary award for the use of their design. Personally, I don't know why anyone would complain about being chosen to be on the "cover of the Rolling Stone" album.
The album immediately attracted other controversy, too. Miss You was seen by some to be offensive and some DJs refused to play it because of the line, "black Girls just want to get fucked all night, I just don't have that much jam." Ahmet Ertegun, the chairman of Atlantic Records (who was the US distributor of Rolling Stones Records), later said, "When I first heard the song, I told Mick it was not going to go down well. Mick assured me that it was a parody of the type of people who hold these attitudes. Mick has great respect for blacks. He owes his whole being, his whole musical career, to black people."
When some black-oriented radio stations began to boycott Some Girls, Jagger told Rolling Stone magazine, "Atlantic tried to get us to drop it, but I refused. I've always been opposed to censorship of any kind, especially by conglomerates. I've always said, 'If you can't take a joke, it's too fucking bad.'"
Reverend Jesse Jackson called the title track a racial insult, which eventually resulted in a statement being released by the band stating it never occurred to them that their parody of certain stereotypical attitudes would be taken seriously by anyone.
Now for the sound.
The Mobile Fidelity LP sounds excellent. It is warmer than the CD, which is a 1994 remaster and was issued in a box of four CDs from that period titled 1975 Onwards and came with a signed photo pf Ronnie Wood (I also have the companion box containing the four Mick Taylor CDs, which came with a signed photo of him).
This pressing of the LP is worth a lot of money and the CD is considered to be one of the better reissues, which got me to thinking: maybe I'll sell the LP and keep the CD, which is what led to this showdown.
The CD doesn't sound bad. In fact, without the LP to compare it to it would probably do just fine. But the LP is noticeably better, and the word that best summarizes the differences between the two mediums would have to be "warmer". The LP is much warmer than the CD. It has a fullness that wraps the listener like a blanket, whereas the CD is more two-dimensional and leaves you comparatively cold. You can hear it as soon as the first notes of Miss You kick in after you drop the needle at the beginning of side one. Charlie Watts and Bill Wyman are right there. On the CD they're further away and it's brighter. The lower end is almost translucent and it's not something you have to strain to hear. It's there, and very obviously so.
The Stones' interpretation of The Temptations' Just My Imagination (Running Away With Me) fits this record perfectly. This is a band that enjoys covering songs they grew up with, and the way they treat this one displays the deep respect they have for the original. On the record there is decent spacing between the instruments and the vocals are well placed, too. The harmonies, such as they are, actually sound like separate voices blending together. It also sounds OK on the CD; it's just better on the record. It's not as flat, I guess you could say.
Before They Make Me Run, written by guitarist Keith Richards in response to his arrest, seems to be a reflection on his lifestyle up to that point. Richards is said to have recorded the song, originally titled Rotten Roll, over five consecutive days without sleep in March, 1978, during one of Jagger's absences from the Some Girls sessions. It's both pretty and raw all at the same time.
The other stand out tune here would have to be Far Away Eyes, which I'm certain was influenced by Gram Parsons' friendship with Richards. Parsons had turned Richards on to the American country rock sound he himself was enamoured with (and had recorded with the Flying Burrito Brothers and others) while the Stones were recording Exile On Main Street in the dingy basement of Richards' chalet on the southern coats of France in 1971. Parsons died in 1973 from a heroin overdose, so it's weirdly appropriate that it appears here given the timing of Richards' legal issues.
The rest of the album is more of the same. It's one big heaping helping of spicy Stones, and it will always be considered one of their best. The Mobile Fidelity reissue is a great sounding record so I'm keeping it. I'm also keeping the CD, but only because of the signature that came in the box.
The LP is …
LP
CD
When Some Girls was first released, in June, 1978, I liked most of it. At the time I thought Shattered and Lies were just filler and not at all necessary, but I've since changed my mind. After all these years, only Lies remains as (IMHO) unnecessary filler. Shattered has become necessary due to sheer force of will, mostly because the Stones keep playing it live and have succeeded in making it at least seem essential. And it is gritty and nasty and rough, and at the time that's what the Rolling Stones were all about.
As a whole, Some Girls is one of the greatest records of the 1970s and it still stands up. It was the bands' 14th UK and 16th US album, and it was released when punk rock was emerging as the dominant genre and disco was being escorted to the door. It was also a time when Keith Richards was in a bit of a legal pickle in Toronto due to a drug bust, but despite these challenges - and maybe even because of them - this record succeeds enormously well. It's pretty punk.
With Keith busy trying to stay out of jail, Mick Jagger more-or-less assumed control. I'm pretty sure that's how Miss You came to be here, since Mick was always hanging out at Studio 54 and was really into the dance-disco scene at the time. It was also the third album to feature Ronnie Wood on lead guitar, so the Stones lineup was once again stable and confident.
A controversy surrounding the album's cover artwork probably contributed to its success. It climbed to the number two spot on the UK charts and number one in the U.S. The cover was designed by Peter Corriston, who would also design the band's next three album covers. The Some Girls cover featured an elaborate die-cut design with the Rolling Stones members' faces - along with the likenesses of Lucille Ball, Farrah Fawcett, Judy Garland, Raquel Welch and Marilyn Monroe - inserted into a copy of an old Valmor Products Corporation advertisement. The featured celebrities threatened to sue for the use of their likenesses without permission, which resulted in a quick cover redo that removed all the celebrities likenesses, even the ones who didn't complain. Valmor Products took legal action and received a monetary award for the use of their design. Personally, I don't know why anyone would complain about being chosen to be on the "cover of the Rolling Stone" album.
The album immediately attracted other controversy, too. Miss You was seen by some to be offensive and some DJs refused to play it because of the line, "black Girls just want to get fucked all night, I just don't have that much jam." Ahmet Ertegun, the chairman of Atlantic Records (who was the US distributor of Rolling Stones Records), later said, "When I first heard the song, I told Mick it was not going to go down well. Mick assured me that it was a parody of the type of people who hold these attitudes. Mick has great respect for blacks. He owes his whole being, his whole musical career, to black people."
When some black-oriented radio stations began to boycott Some Girls, Jagger told Rolling Stone magazine, "Atlantic tried to get us to drop it, but I refused. I've always been opposed to censorship of any kind, especially by conglomerates. I've always said, 'If you can't take a joke, it's too fucking bad.'"
Reverend Jesse Jackson called the title track a racial insult, which eventually resulted in a statement being released by the band stating it never occurred to them that their parody of certain stereotypical attitudes would be taken seriously by anyone.
Now for the sound.
The Mobile Fidelity LP sounds excellent. It is warmer than the CD, which is a 1994 remaster and was issued in a box of four CDs from that period titled 1975 Onwards and came with a signed photo pf Ronnie Wood (I also have the companion box containing the four Mick Taylor CDs, which came with a signed photo of him).
This pressing of the LP is worth a lot of money and the CD is considered to be one of the better reissues, which got me to thinking: maybe I'll sell the LP and keep the CD, which is what led to this showdown.
The CD doesn't sound bad. In fact, without the LP to compare it to it would probably do just fine. But the LP is noticeably better, and the word that best summarizes the differences between the two mediums would have to be "warmer". The LP is much warmer than the CD. It has a fullness that wraps the listener like a blanket, whereas the CD is more two-dimensional and leaves you comparatively cold. You can hear it as soon as the first notes of Miss You kick in after you drop the needle at the beginning of side one. Charlie Watts and Bill Wyman are right there. On the CD they're further away and it's brighter. The lower end is almost translucent and it's not something you have to strain to hear. It's there, and very obviously so.
The Stones' interpretation of The Temptations' Just My Imagination (Running Away With Me) fits this record perfectly. This is a band that enjoys covering songs they grew up with, and the way they treat this one displays the deep respect they have for the original. On the record there is decent spacing between the instruments and the vocals are well placed, too. The harmonies, such as they are, actually sound like separate voices blending together. It also sounds OK on the CD; it's just better on the record. It's not as flat, I guess you could say.
Before They Make Me Run, written by guitarist Keith Richards in response to his arrest, seems to be a reflection on his lifestyle up to that point. Richards is said to have recorded the song, originally titled Rotten Roll, over five consecutive days without sleep in March, 1978, during one of Jagger's absences from the Some Girls sessions. It's both pretty and raw all at the same time.
The other stand out tune here would have to be Far Away Eyes, which I'm certain was influenced by Gram Parsons' friendship with Richards. Parsons had turned Richards on to the American country rock sound he himself was enamoured with (and had recorded with the Flying Burrito Brothers and others) while the Stones were recording Exile On Main Street in the dingy basement of Richards' chalet on the southern coats of France in 1971. Parsons died in 1973 from a heroin overdose, so it's weirdly appropriate that it appears here given the timing of Richards' legal issues.
The rest of the album is more of the same. It's one big heaping helping of spicy Stones, and it will always be considered one of their best. The Mobile Fidelity reissue is a great sounding record so I'm keeping it. I'm also keeping the CD, but only because of the signature that came in the box.
The LP is …
CD
When Some Girls was first released, in June, 1978, I liked most of it. At the time I thought Shattered and Lies were just filler and not at all necessary, but I've since changed my mind. After all these years, only Lies remains as (IMHO) unnecessary filler. Shattered has become necessary due to sheer force of will, mostly because the Stones keep playing it live and have succeeded in making it at least seem essential. And it is gritty and nasty and rough, and at the time that's what the Rolling Stones were all about.
As a whole, Some Girls is one of the greatest records of the 1970s and it still stands up. It was the bands' 14th UK and 16th US album, and it was released when punk rock was emerging as the dominant genre and disco was being escorted to the door. It was also a time when Keith Richards was in a bit of a legal pickle in Toronto due to a drug bust, but despite these challenges - and maybe even because of them - this record succeeds enormously well. It's pretty punk.
With Keith busy trying to stay out of jail, Mick Jagger more-or-less assumed control. I'm pretty sure that's how Miss You came to be here, since Mick was always hanging out at Studio 54 and was really into the dance-disco scene at the time. It was also the third album to feature Ronnie Wood on lead guitar, so the Stones lineup was once again stable and confident.
A controversy surrounding the album's cover artwork probably contributed to its success. It climbed to the number two spot on the UK charts and number one in the U.S. The cover was designed by Peter Corriston, who would also design the band's next three album covers. The Some Girls cover featured an elaborate die-cut design with the Rolling Stones members' faces - along with the likenesses of Lucille Ball, Farrah Fawcett, Judy Garland, Raquel Welch and Marilyn Monroe - inserted into a copy of an old Valmor Products Corporation advertisement. The featured celebrities threatened to sue for the use of their likenesses without permission, which resulted in a quick cover redo that removed all the celebrities likenesses, even the ones who didn't complain. Valmor Products took legal action and received a monetary award for the use of their design. Personally, I don't know why anyone would complain about being chosen to be on the "cover of the Rolling Stone" album.
The album immediately attracted other controversy, too. Miss You was seen by some to be offensive and some DJs refused to play it because of the line, "black Girls just want to get fucked all night, I just don't have that much jam." Ahmet Ertegun, the chairman of Atlantic Records (who was the US distributor of Rolling Stones Records), later said, "When I first heard the song, I told Mick it was not going to go down well. Mick assured me that it was a parody of the type of people who hold these attitudes. Mick has great respect for blacks. He owes his whole being, his whole musical career, to black people."
When some black-oriented radio stations began to boycott Some Girls, Jagger told Rolling Stone magazine, "Atlantic tried to get us to drop it, but I refused. I've always been opposed to censorship of any kind, especially by conglomerates. I've always said, 'If you can't take a joke, it's too fucking bad.'"
Reverend Jesse Jackson called the title track a racial insult, which eventually resulted in a statement being released by the band stating it never occurred to them that their parody of certain stereotypical attitudes would be taken seriously by anyone.
Now for the sound.
The Mobile Fidelity LP sounds excellent. It is warmer than the CD, which is a 1994 remaster and was issued in a box of four CDs from that period titled 1975 Onwards and came with a signed photo pf Ronnie Wood (I also have the companion box containing the four Mick Taylor CDs, which came with a signed photo of him).
This pressing of the LP is worth a lot of money and the CD is considered to be one of the better reissues, which got me to thinking: maybe I'll sell the LP and keep the CD, which is what led to this showdown.
The CD doesn't sound bad. In fact, without the LP to compare it to it would probably do just fine. But the LP is noticeably better, and the word that best summarizes the differences between the two mediums would have to be "warmer". The LP is much warmer than the CD. It has a fullness that wraps the listener like a blanket, whereas the CD is more two-dimensional and leaves you comparatively cold. You can hear it as soon as the first notes of Miss You kick in after you drop the needle at the beginning of side one. Charlie Watts and Bill Wyman are right there. On the CD they're further away and it's brighter. The lower end is almost translucent and it's not something you have to strain to hear. It's there, and very obviously so.
The Stones' interpretation of The Temptations' Just My Imagination (Running Away With Me) fits this record perfectly. This is a band that enjoys covering songs they grew up with, and the way they treat this one displays the deep respect they have for the original. On the record there is decent spacing between the instruments and the vocals are well placed, too. The harmonies, such as they are, actually sound like separate voices blending together. It also sounds OK on the CD; it's just better on the record. It's not as flat, I guess you could say.
Before They Make Me Run, written by guitarist Keith Richards in response to his arrest, seems to be a reflection on his lifestyle up to that point. Richards is said to have recorded the song, originally titled Rotten Roll, over five consecutive days without sleep in March, 1978, during one of Jagger's absences from the Some Girls sessions. It's both pretty and raw all at the same time.
The other stand out tune here would have to be Far Away Eyes, which I'm certain was influenced by Gram Parsons' friendship with Richards. Parsons had turned Richards on to the American country rock sound he himself was enamoured with (and had recorded with the Flying Burrito Brothers and others) while the Stones were recording Exile On Main Street in the dingy basement of Richards' chalet on the southern coats of France in 1971. Parsons died in 1973 from a heroin overdose, so it's weirdly appropriate that it appears here given the timing of Richards' legal issues.
The rest of the album is more of the same. It's one big heaping helping of spicy Stones, and it will always be considered one of their best. The Mobile Fidelity reissue is a great sounding record so I'm keeping it. I'm also keeping the CD, but only because of the signature that came in the box.
The LP is …
