Shane’s Music Challenge: THE ROLLING STONES – 1966 – Aftermath

THE ROLLING STONES – 1966 – Aftermath

We’ll be seeing The Greatest Rock n’ Roll Band In The World TM in two months (not that I’m counting) so it seems a primo opportunity to cherry pick through some of their best, starting with 1966’s Aftermath – one of the most transitional records in the band’s 50 year history.

Their first all-original album, Aftermath also saw the power-base of the group finally tip fully from founder and original driving force Brian Jones to the Jagger-Richards unholy alliance, and their sound make one of the most divisive shifts towards the Rolling Stones we know and love today.

Jones was in an uncontrolled spin, plummeting to ground at an alarming rate by this point, and his inability to conjure any original music from the ether saw his footing slip even further.

They had already shifted from their purist Rock n’ Blues roots, and Aftermath saw them further cement their sound – a commercial blend of pop and rock n’ roll with blues and boogie undertones..

It’s not that great an album nearly 50 years on, but it was crucial to their development as artists and in the context of the times (there’s a phrase regular readers will come to know well), and it’s been a long time since I’ve had a listen!

Key tracks: the fully fledged Stones sound was there on Mother’s Little Helper and Under My Thumb, while Lady Jane and Out Of Time were early secondary hits and Goin’ Home has a minimalist charm 48 years down the track.

Category: Shane's Rock Challenge