Hackney Diamonds” (Standard Jewelcase CD)

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Track Listings

1	Angry
2	Get Close
3	Depending on You
4	Bite My Head Off
5	Whole Wide World
6	Dreamy Skies
7	Mess It Up
8	Live By the Sword
9	Driving Me Too Hard
10	Tell Me Straight
11	Sweet Sounds of Heaven
12	Rolling Stone Blues (Muddy Waters)

Editorial Reviews

Hackney Diamonds, the hugely anticipated new album by The Rolling Stones, is released on October 20th. Following the release of 2016's Grammy Award winning Blue & Lonesome, which featured brilliant versions of blues tracks that helped shape their sound, Hackney Diamonds marks the band’s first studio album of original material since 2005's A Bigger Bang. Standard CD version includes a 12 page booklet, CD, and jewel case

Product details

Language ‏ : ‎ English
Product Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.71 x 5.08 x 0.43 inches; 3.21 Ounces
Manufacturer ‏ : ‎ Geffen Records
Original Release Date ‏ : ‎ 2023
Date First Available ‏ : ‎ September 6, 2023
Label ‏ : ‎ Geffen Records
ASIN ‏ : ‎ B0CH3PH7DB
Country of Origin ‏ : ‎ USA
Number of discs ‏ : ‎ 1

Best Sellers Rank: #5 in CDs & Vinyl (See Top 100 in CDs & Vinyl)
- #2 in Rock (CDs & Vinyl)

Customer Reviews:
4.7 2,092 ratings

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KarenM

The Rolling Stones come roaring back with the energetic and fun album Hackney Diamonds

Reviewed in the United States on October 21, 2023

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The Rolling Stones come roaring back with the energetic and fun album Hackney Diamonds. As one critic aptly put, they have done it all and have nothing to prove and at the same time, something to prove. After 2 decades of sold out stadium touring with happy fans and rave reviews, could they go back into the studio and come out with a great new album of original music? The answer is a resounding yes! Defying all odds, with an 80 year old singer Mick Jagger and guitarists Keith Richards, soon to be 80, and Ronnie Wood, 76, they have done the impossible and put out a fantastic record, the first with new material in almost 20 years.

Jagger continues to defy time in all aspects. Sure studio effects help, but he has no business sounding this good at age 80. While all his contemporaries lost a lot of their vocal ability long ago, including Robert Plant, Roger Daltry, Paul McCartney, Elton John, etc., Jagger sounds just as good as he did in his 20s with no loss of vocal range either. Furthermore, as evidenced by the 7 song live performance at the Album Release Party in a NYC club the night before the album came out, he was running, dancing, sprinting, jumping, and prancing all over the stage. Indeed, sitting in the front row, Daniel Craig, AKA James Bond, was shaking his head in disbelief by what he was seeing. Decades ago Richards was removed from “The Next Rock Star To Die List,” and we are resigned to the fact that he will outlive all of us.

It is not just Jagger’s singing and lyrics, of which he said in promotional interviews that he wrote about 80% of the lyrics, the guitar playing by the duo of Richards and Woods is phenomenal. Their playing at all speeds and all over the map, and always sounding so good, seems impossible for guys who surely must have significant arthritis in their hands. Neither ever entered “The Best Guitarist” contest, but decades of perfecting and maintaining their craft makes them world class, and it is clearly evident on this record. Of course the song writing ability of Richards is always what has always separated him from other great guitarists. A few years ago, he put it in perspective when talking about former Stones lead guitarist Mick Taylor. “He is a virtuoso guitar player, but when he quit the band, he found out the hard way, that is all he is”.

The lead-up promotion to the album hyped the famous guests appearing on the album. I would say the famous guests neither added nor detracted from this great album and were essentially superfluous. As new drummer Steve Jordan offhandedly quipped, “They were unnecessary” and I agree. Interestingly, the famous guests were all challenged and put in roles completely unfamiliar to them. Rock/Pop legend McCartney appears on a punk rock song and does something he has never done in his career, a bass solo. Crooning balladeer Elton John is playing piano on a heavy, raunchy hard rock song. Pop star Stef Germanotta (“Lady Gaga”) appears on a Gospel ballad. Stevie Wonder who last joined the Stones more than 50 years ago as the warm-up band for their ’72 tour, comes out of retirement to play piano and organ on the Gospel ballad.

So, just how good is this record? Well, I will not fall into the easy and silly trap of, “This is their best record since xyz…” I will just say it is an awesome record, and while not among their masterpieces (think Let It Bleed, Some Girls, Sticky Fingers, etc.), it is better than their weakest efforts (think Satanic Majesties, their early ‘60s pre Satisfaction cover albums, Dirty Work, etc.), and it compares favorably with their great middle efforts (think Tattoo You, It\'s Only Rock ‘N Roll, Voodoo Lounge, Black And Blue, etc.).

Absent completely from this album is long time touring bassist Daryl Jones, who has never been an official member of the band “because he is not English.” Fear not, he was right back on stage playing live with them at the Album Release Party. Instead, bass duties on this album were handled by practically a different guy on each song, including Richards, Wood, McCartney, new producer Andy Watt, and the return of original band member Bill Wyman. Wyman, now 86, appears on one song. Only years later did the truth come out as to why he quit the band. After decades of touring the world, oddly and suddenly at age 55, he became terrified of flying on airplanes and had to quit in the early 1990s. While the rest of the band were really pissed off at him for a few years, Wyman says, “We remain close friends, and exchange cards every birthday and at Christmas.” Due to his fear of flying, he had to take the Chunnel train from his home in France to England to remotely record his bass overdub for the song. He of course declined the invite to the Album Release Party.

Here are the songs:

Angry – The lead single is a great opener with catchy lyrics, great beat and guitars. It is compared to Start Me Up, but not quite that good, but solid. Hip and up and coming producer Andy Watt, a lifelong Stones fan who wore a different Stones concert shirt to every recording session, co-wrote this and the next 2 songs with the Glimmer Twins Jagger and Richards.

Get Close – This is a mid-tempo rock song with a chorus that grabs you. It sort of reminds me of the Ramones ‘70s minor hit “I Want You Around.” All the critics are raving about this song, but I don’t think it is among the best on this record.

Depending On You – A love-lost ballad that sounds great, but not at the level of their greatest ballads, that comes later in this album.

Bite My Head Off – Here is where the album really takes off with 5 classics in a row! This is a Punk rock song with acid lyrics, great riff, and going at full speed. McCartney does a deliberately distorted base solo. It has the punk attitude of the late ‘70s but with musicians who can really play the instruments, making it a classic. Of course, some punks would say that takes away from a song. LOL! Jagger hasn’t “hung out” with Richards since he slinked out of the muggy, decadent basement in the French Riviera in ’72 with the Exile On Main Street master tapes and headed to a Los Angeles studio to finish that album. However, the elder Richards has become buddies with McCarthy who ventures over to Keith’s place for a cold one every day, when both are wintering in the Turks & Caicos Islands. McCartney recommended Andy Watts to the producer of this record.

Whole Wide World – One of the best songs on the album and so good, it was one of the only 3 new songs debuted at the Album Release Party along with the 2 singles. It is a hard rocker about a down and outer, with the whole wide world against him attitude, wandering through the gloomy Post Modern streets of London and through “the smell of sex and gasoline.” Jagger is at his best here with the exaggerated cockney accent. Richards has yet another new awesome intro guitar riff, and he never seems to run out of them.

Dreamy Skies – A soulful country song about escaping the rat race, the Social Media “pictures,” the devices “no connections,” and the cell phones and getting out in nature under dreamy skies. It ranks as one of the best ever Stones country songs along with Far Away Eyes and The Worst.

Mess It Up – This is a rousing upbeat dance number with a Bee Gees like chorus that hooks you in. This and the next song features original drummer Charlie Watts shortly before he died.

Live By The Sword – What would be Rolling Stones record since Beggar’s Banquet’s Prodigal Son, that doesn’t have a Biblical reference, with this one referring to the warning in the Gospel of Matthew? This heavy, hard hitting, dark rock song is one of the best on the album, don’t listen to the critics. Like all heavy songs, it takes a couple of listenings before you really appreciate it. With both Wyman and Watts, you got 4 of the 5 original members on this number. I wonder if Richards and Elton John were in the recording studio at the same time for this after they traded nasty barbs in the British Press a few years back with Richards: “Why are you obsessed with dead English women?” and John: “You look like a monkey (man?).”

Driving Me Too Hard – Another mid-tempo troubled relationship song that works well, but not as good as the previous 5 songs. Again, the critics liked this a lot more than I did.

Tell Me Straight – The obligatory Richards ballad that he has routinely done in the latter part of his career. Like its predecessor Biggest Mistake, it falls well short of his classic ballads such as “You Got The Silver,” “The Worst,” “Slipping Away,” and “Thief In The Night.”

Sweet Sounds of Heaven – The second single is the best song on the album by far. It is unlike anything they have ever done in that it is their first Gospel style ballad. It is a powerful moving song that compares favorably to their greatest ballads such as Tears Go By, Wild Horses, Angie, Beast Of Burden and Waiting On A Friend. It slowly builds to an amazing crescendo. Jagger’s singing, the guitars, and Jordan’s drums are magnificent. Stef Germanotta (“Lady Gaga”) provides the chorus. Some critics foolishly compare it to Gimme Shelter, two completely different types of songs in every possible way, and the only thing they have in common is a female chorus. Of course, both are all time classics in their own right, but in completely different genres. This album version of the song is 2 minutes longer than the single with a false ending and another fantastic final ending.

Rolling Stone Blues – The album ends where it all began 62 years ago at Dartford Train Station in 1961, with childhood friends Jagger and Richards reuniting for the first time and with Jagger carrying this Muddy Waters classic under his arm. Founding member Brian Jones soon named the band after this song. This is stripped down Jagger and Richards alone at their best with Mick’s legendary harmonica and Keith’s famed 5 string guitar singing the original Chicago Blues. Fantastic!

A fitting ending, but as always with the Stones, it never ends. Jagger says this album is only half of the songs they recorded, and with only half of the best ones on it, and the “next album is 75% done,” so we can expect another album in ’24 and yet another sold out stadium tour in ’24, if as Richards says, “We are all still upright by then.”

Overall Grade: A-

Other Stones album ratings

1) Let It Bleed (1969) A+
2) Sticky Fingers (1971) A+
3) Some Girls (1978) A+
4) Exile on Main Street (1972) A+
5) Voodoo Lounge (1994) A
6) Beggar’s Banquet (1968) A
7) Black and Blue (1976) A
8) It’s Only Rock ‘N Roll (1974) A
9) Bridges to Babylon (1997) A-
10) Out of Their Heads (1965) A-
11) Goat’s Head Soup (1973) A-
12) Aftermath (1966) A-
13) Hackney Diamonds B+
14) Tattoo You (1981) B+
15) A Bigger Bang B+ (2005)
16) Between the Buttons (1967) B+
17) Now! (1964) B+
18) Emotional Rescue (1980) B
19) Steel Wheels (1989) B
20) Dirty Work (1986) B-
21) Undercover (1983) B-
22) England’s Newest Hit Makers (1963) B-
23) December’s Children (1965) B-
24) 12 X 5 (1964) B-
25) Their Satanic Majesties Request (1967) C

86 people found this helpful

Helpful

You Won\'t Get "Cool" Points For Hating This Album

Reviewed in the United States on November 2, 2023

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It\'s interesting to note that most of the people who have something negative to say about this album seem to based their complaints upon how old the members of The Rolling Stones are, as if to say, "Don\'t these people know they're old?" It\'s been fascinating to watch, because I think it really says a lot about how good this album is that some people are getting tweaked just because it exists. That\'s revealing. The truth of the matter is, one reviewer summed it up best when he said something to the effect of, "No one expected the Stones do released an album this good at this point in their career" (there's that "old" thing again).

For my part, I couldn\'t care less about the Rolling Stones. They've been a part of the cultural fabric since I was a kid. But I never cared either way. I didn\'t hate the Stones, but I wasn\'t their biggest fan, either. But on the radio, "Honky Tonk Woman", "Satisfaction", "Sympathy for the Devil", and later on "Start Me Up" and "Waiting On A Friend" were just radio staples. You were going to hear the Rolling Stones if you turned on your radio.

My point is, I didn\'t go into Hackney Diamonds with any lofty expectations that could be disappointed. I didn\'t expect it to change my life, but I wasn\'t predisposed to hate it if it didn\'t. I bought this album because I was curios. I'd heard "Angry" and thought it was a cool track. And just before the album came out I heard "Sweet Sounds of Heaven" (the one with Lady Gaga), which I thought was really cool. But otherwise I didn\'t know any tracks and went into the album without any real expectation. But I can say, after a few weeks of listening to Hackney Diamonds on my way to and from work, it\'s a good album, regardless of whether the "Rolling Stones" name is on it or not. I'd like this album no matter who it was. I have no particular reverence (or hatred of) the Stones. One of my favorite songs of recent memory, "Live By The Sword", is on this album, and that song alone is worth the price of admission. Everything else is just gravy. There's really only one song on the album that didn\'t do it for me, and that was the Keith Richards sung "Tell Me Straight" (which isn\'t a bad song, exactly - it\'s just sort of repetitive hearing Richards end every line with "tell me straight" - but it has it\'s moments).

As with every album, there are great songs and just good songs, but there are no real stinkers on Hackney Diamonds; even "Tell Me Straight", which, I think, is clearly the weakest of the set. That\'s a remarkable accomplishment for any band, much less a band with members at or near 80 years old. Which just goes to prove that Rock 'N' Roll isn\'t just for the young, and whatever mojo the Rolling Stones used to have, well, they still got. Is this Exile On Main Street or Sticky Fingers? No. Of course not. How could it be? The Rolling Stones were different people then. That was, after all, 50 years ago. But the thing I like about Hackney Diamonds IS that it doesn\'t sound like Exile On Main Street or Sticky Fingers. It sounds like what it is; the Rolling Stones in 2023. And I mean that in the best possible way.

A lot of folks have been saying Hackney Diamonds is their best album since Tattoo You. Well, I never owned Tattoo You. I never bought it back in 1981 when it was on the charts (yes, I'm that old). You didn\'t have to. Some of the best known songs on that album were playing constantly on radio (and MTV) at the time. You didn\'t need to own it. You heard it whether you wanted to or not. lol. Well, because folks have compared Hackney Diamonds to Tattoo You, I finally bought a copy of Tattoo You, to listen to the album one-on-one for the first time in my life. Which I did. And I have to tell you, I like Hackney Diamonds as an album a lot better than I like Tattoo You. A side-by-side comparison of someone who wasn\'t familiar with either album in its entirety likes Hackney Diamonds better. And while I'm indifferent to "Angry", I think "Live By The Sword" and "Sweet Sounds of Heaven" are right up there with "Start Me Up" and "Hang Fire".

In the end, it\'s all subjective. We like what we like, and we don\'t like what we don\'t like. That\'s just how it works. But if your main objection, as expressed, is the age of the Rolling Stones and you have to load your comments with derision such as calling them "old men" and "white-haired" whatever, maybe your biases are robbing you of a pretty cool experience. If Hackney Diamonds had been made by a bunch of 20-somethings those same people would be throwing breathless declarations of adoration at them. That 20-something band would be hailed as "the new Rolling Stones". lol. If you can\'t enjoy it because there's an 80-something singer in the band, then you have issues which have nothing to do with this album.

This is a good album. That\'s all you need to know. If you like Rock & Roll, especially if you like "Classic Rock" (which is just Rock, really, let\'s face it), you'll like this album. But if you can\'t handle that the Rolling Stones have actually moved on from Exile On Main Street and Sticky Fingers, you can always just go listen to those albums. But don\'t try to pretend Hackney Diamonds isn\'t a good album because it doesn\'t pack the same historic punch of albums which have been in constant rotation on the radio for over 50 years. In my book, I believe 50 years from now Hackney Diamonds will be remember as a classic. Probably by the same 20-somethings who are reflexively showering it with hate today.

If you like the Stones at all, you'll like this album. If you don\'t, well, you won\'t. But you can\'t fault the Rolling Stones for sounding like the Rolling Stones, and you shouldn\'t dismiss this album because it\'s not 1972 and this isn\'t Exile On Main Street.

28 people found this helpful

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Mandrek Larl

Probably the best new release this year, certainly the longest awaited return to form...

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on November 6, 2023

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I doubt whether more words have ever been written, or spoken, about a new album, not just at the time of its release but also ahead of its appearance. So what can I add that hasn\'t already been written or said about the Rolling Stones "Hackney Diamonds"? In truth probably nothing [but that\'s not going to stop me], but is it really as good as everybody has said? Undeniably the answer is yes it is as good, or perhaps even better, because this is simply the Rolling Stones back to their imperious best, nothing more, nothing less, with twelve tracks that mix Stones style sleazy rocking and rolling with their take on country blues; funk, soul, and gospel; even punk; and of course the blues.

Lead single and opener "Angry" is a punky rocker that with its bursts of staccato guitar from Richards and Woods has the potential to be a constant in their live set. Second track "Get Close" with Elton John tinkling the ivories and a sumptuous sax break form James King is an archetypical big Stones sleazy rocker that can hold its head-up among their '70's oeuvre as Jagger sings of "wanting to get close to you". Things then calm down with the power-ballad "Depending On You", it\'s another with potential to become a classic, just listen for that moment when Steve Jordan's kick-drum comes in.

Possibly my favourite track, or at least a contender for my favourite, "Bite My Head Off" featuring Paul McCartney riffing on scuzzy bass guitar is another hard rocking punky number that could give the safety-pinned spikey-haired upstarts of the class of '76 a run for their money without breaking into a sweat. "Whole Wide World" that follows keeps up the rocking tempo, another with punky undertones but it\'s set apart by its sheer quality [and the guitar solo]. And after the rocking, the country blues "Dreamy Skies" calms things down, the Stones have always enjoyed a touch of the hillbilly honky-tonks and this one is up there with the best of them in the "Dead Flowers" mould.

"Mess It Up" is a mid-tempo rocker with a touch of funk as Jagger dusts down his falsetto before Elton John returns joining old boys Charlie Watts and Bill Wyman for the straight-ahead snarling rocker "Live by the Sword", it\'s another that have could have come from the Stones' early seventies catalogue. "Driving Me Too Hard" that follows is a mid-tempo rocker with touches of the Stones '80s template before the beautiful sumptuous stripped-back ballad "Tell Me Straight" has Richards taking-over the vocal duties,,it\'s not quite up there with "Thief In The Night" but I've always enjoyed these Richards' interludes and this one is no exception, my only complaint is that at less than three minutes it\'s too short.

Penultimate track "Sweet Sounds of Heaven" was the second single released ahead of the album. With Lady Gaga and Stevie Wonder sitting-in this gospel-tinged soul number is nothing short of gob-smacking with its "improvised" coda putting it beyond perfection, even at seven minutes plus it\'s too short. Changing direction and closing the album is a simple stripped-down cover of Muddy Water's "Rolling Stone Blues" with Jagger showing he's lost none of the touches that made him one of the all-time best blues harmonica players; is this a way of closing the circle that started with a Muddy Waters record on platform two of Dartford railway station sixty-two years ago?

And that\'s it. These "Hackney Diamonds" may have been a long time in coming but they're quintessentially the essence of the Rolling Stones, a mix of styles yes but there's not a duffer amongst them, and as an album it\'s a near perfect 11 [I could argue that in parts it\'s perhaps a little overproduced but that\'s splitting hairs]. You may perhaps quibble with its lack of originality, the Stones have never been scared to borrow from others but with "Hackney Diamonds" they've stuck close to the knitting drawing inspiration from across their years and not repeating past mistakes by being influenced by short-term musical zeitgeists. If this turns out to be the Stones' last studio release [and on the basis of this showing let\'s hope there's still more to come] then they are going out on a high and with contributions from friends, peers, contemporaries and old boys this is more than just another record, it\'s a celebration of their incredible longevity and the esteem in which they're held by their peers, disappointingly though 30 year veteran sideman bassist Darry Jones doesn\'t put in an appearance.

5 stars, probably the best new release this year, certainly the longest awaited return to form.

10 people found this helpful

andy

Long overdue

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on October 21, 2023

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Twelve tracks of long overdue new album music. Unlike the last album - "Blue & Lonesome (non-original songs) recorded quickly and having a rough round the edges feel to it and even having the odd mistake thrown in for good measure, "Hackney Diamonds", for various reasons, was recorded over a much longer period and has an infinitely more polished feel about it.

"Hackney Diamonds" is produced by Andrew Watt, I don\'t know whether the Glimmer Twins didn\'t get involved production-wise or not but they are not credited as producers on the album in the notes that come with it. So already there's a few things that are going to have an influence the sound - the lack of a tight recording schedule perhaps, a new Producer and then there's the fact that it\'s just so long since an album of new material was presented to fans - eighteen years ago.

Like millions of fans, I've waited many years for the release of this album and I'm so grateful for it. We are told just after the "Thanks" and "Special Thanks" in the notes: "Dedicated with love to Charlie Watts". I'm sad that Charlie is only playing on two songs - "Mess It Up" and "Live By The Sword", but I did find it great to hear him play on those couple of new songs and again grateful for his presence on the album, but I guess we all have to get used to his loss. Will there be more from Charlie? Well, we are told twenty-thee songs were recorded of which twelve eventually ended up on "Hackney Diamonds" so will there be more from Charlie? I do hope so.

Paul McCartney, Stevie Wonder, Elton John, Bill
Wyman and Lady Gaga play and or sing on certain tracks but you'd probably need to look up which songs since, with the exception of Lady Gaga's noticeable vocal and possibly Paul McCartney (because Mick says his name) you probably wouldn\'t know which songs - that said, they are all superb.

"Hackney Diamonds" opens with the (surely) familiar by the time of the albums release "Angry" that is followed by another eleven tracks that are an incredible mix of songs, though this was kind of expected given the two tracks previously released songs from the album pre-release. I always like to hear Keith take the lead vocal. Just the one song this time - "Tell Me Straight", and his voice and the song are both amazing. "Hackney Diamonds" closes with brilliant acoustic guitar and harp blues. Unfortunately it\'s a short song - I'd have liked there to have been more, both of the song and of the genre on the album but you can\'t have everything I guess.

The CD comes with a twelve-page booklet that contains song lyrics and personnel, credits, thanks, artwork, and dedication.

01 Angry
02 Get Close
03 Depending On You
04 Bite My Head Off
05 Whole Wide World
06 Dreamy Skies
07 Mess It Up
08 Live By The Sword
09 Driving Me Too Hard
10 Tell Me Straight
11 Sweet Sounds Of Heaven
12 Rolling Stone Blues

6 people found this helpful

DRMU

A surprisingly good and fresh-sounding album!

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on October 28, 2023

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I write this review one day after the Rolling Stones debuted at No.1 in the UK charts, and after just having listened to it for a third time. I have to say "Congratulations" to the Stones for an impressive achievement after all these years in producing a great-sounding album and by proving that the general public in this country (and in other countries) are still willing to pay to listen to them.

I've become more familiar with the tracks on this third listening, and I can\'t say that I dislike any of the twelve songs, even though they have different strengths and occasional weaknesses. The lead track "Angry" sounds so vintage a Stones kind of song, with Mick's vocal and Keith's guitar riffs leading us into a very high tempo first four tracks on the album. On the fifth track "Whole Wide World", Mick sounds the most "English" in accent compared to other attempts to be either an American blues singer or country performer, with references to Fulham in London (very near to where I grew up), and what with the album's title "Hackney Diamonds" a real sense of the Stones harking back to their London roots. The two tracks with the late Charlie Watts on drums ("Mess It Up" and "Live By The Sword"), and the latter with Bill Wyman on bass, show that the Stones still have a sense of where they came from and where they have moved on to, even though the drummer on other tracks Steve Jordan does a great job, and producer Andrew Watt must take credit for making this album sound so fresh and crisp. Mick's vocals are tremendous throughout, as are Keith and Ronnie's excellent guitar work and backing vocals, but Keith's vocal on "Tell Me Straight" provides a good counter-balance to Mick, and has some thought-provoking words: "Is the future all in the past? Just tell me straight".

How can 80-year-old Mick, 79-year-old Keith (80 in November, I believe) and 76-year-old Ronnie sound so good, instrumentally and vocally at such an advanced age? Their guest collaborators Paul McCartney, Elton John, Stevie Wonder and Lady Gaga, are also not in the youngest phases of their lives, but their contributions are excellent, too (perhaps bar too many vocal pyrotechnics from Lady Gaga on "Sweet Sounds of Heaven", almost stealing the song away from the Stones - only my personal view). So, with this album, should the Stones admit "Is the future all in the past? Just tell me straight"? Clearly, time is not on their side, and the final Muddy Waters track "Rolling Stones Blues" might suggest that (even though the three Stones deny that it\'s a swan song). However, the Stones have not sounded this good for a very, very long time, and hence deserve our congratulations for doing so well and very deservedly getting the top album spot in our UK charts.

10 people found this helpful

zeitbombe

Richtig Gut !

Reviewed in Germany on October 21, 2023

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Wenn man in den 80ern aufgewachsen ist…

Ja, prinzipiell bin ich vielleicht etwas zu jung für die Rolling Stones, denn wer hört schon gerne Musik, welche von Musikern gespielt wird, die aus der Generation der eigenen Eltern stammen.
Ich habe die Herren, abgesehen von einigen Songs, also sehr lange ignoriert.
Richtig eingestiegen bin ich in das Thema, Rolling Stones, also erst, als ich meinen 40 Geburtstag längst hinter mir hatte und mich wieder dem Vinyl gewidmet habe.
Jetzt könnte man denken, ich habe eine Menge verpasst aber ich sehe es eher so, dass ich mich, völlig aufgeschlossen und unvoreingenommen , dem gesamten Katalog der Künstler widmen kann.
So ging es mir beispielsweise auch mit Pink Floyd oder The Who.
Während die Fans, der „guten, alte Zeit“, von Dark Side of the Moon oder Who’s next, oftmals mit neueren Werken nichts anfangen können, da sie Vergleiche zu den genannten Werken ziehen und vor allem suchen, sehe ich Veränderung und Entwicklung.
Doch nun zu Hackney Diamonds.
Meine Fr… ist das gut !
Ich kenne mittlerweile alle und liebe viele Alben der Stones und frage mich, wo hier die Entwicklung und die Veränderung ist. Sie ist da aber eben nicht radikal. Einfach anders, als bei manch anderem Künstler. Man bleibt sich treu aber man langweilt den Zuhörer in keinem einzigen Moment. Das Niveau, der Songs, ist ebenso hoch, wie das Alter, der Musiker und wenn man hier Schwachstellen oder Kopien, des Schaffens, der Herren, sucht, wird man wohl enttäuscht werden. Können sie es immer noch oder können sie es gar immer besser ? Ich will das nicht entscheiden aber Fakt ist, sie können es nach wie vor laut, sie können es leise, sie können es dreckig, bluesig oder auch unfassbar süß ( Sweet Sound of Heaven ). Oder etwas kürzer, sie können es verdammt gut.
Sobald man das Visuelle ausblendet, würde man niemals vermuten, welche Altersklasse hier rockt. Ich höre sehr viel Musik und sehr viele Bands und ein solcher Satz hat sicherlich Gewicht aber ich kann es kaum anders sagen, die Rolling Stones sind die größte Rock&Roll Band der Geschichte. Gemessen an der Konstanz, dem Erfolg und der Schaffensdauer, bleibt kaum eine andere Wahl.
Viele Bands hätte gehen sollen, als sie es noch in Ehre hätten tun können. Nach diesem Release können die Rolling Stones gerne bleiben. Zenit überschritten ? Nein, danach klingt es in keinem Augenblick.
Absolute Kaufempfehlung, das Album macht unglaublich Spaß!

Kurz zum Vinyl, nach der Enttäuschung, des trotz Vorbestellung, nicht lieferbaren, grünen Vinyls, habe ich umgehend storniert und halte nun die Standard Version in meinen Händen. Klanglich nicht überragend aber dennoch sehr gut. Staubfrei, plan und mit beschichteten Innenhüllen versehen.
Der Preis ist, wie immer, im Vergleich zur CD, eine Frechheit aber was will man machen, ich stehe einfach auf diese großen Scheiben ????‍♂️

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Max Bottax

Ottanta e passa... e non sentirli affatto.

Reviewed in Italy on October 27, 2023

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Ho letto diverse recensioni del disco sulla stampa specializzata: molte entusiastiche a prescindere, altre che hanno riguardato la sfera più sociale che musicale. Mi spiego, gli Stones hanno 80 anni suonati che senso secondo loro un nuovo disco per una Band che ha già detto tutto e fatto la storia universale del Rock ? Molti si sono concentrati sul mero aspetto commerciale dell'operazione, che è innegabile c'è e di certo non lo sarebbe se gli Stones come poche altre band universali, non attirassero i quattrini che fanno muovere il music-business. Puliamo il tutto dagli stereotipi ed ascoltiamo questo "Hackney Diamonds".
A me nel complesso è piaciuto, non entrerà nel podio della loro produzione, ma l'ho trovato un album decisamente onesto che mischia aspetti diversi della loro favolosa carriera. La produzione affidata a Andrew Watt mi è piaciuta molto, un sound pulito, diretto ed energico dove secondo me da il meglio in quelle canzoni spiccatamente più pop che rock, che rimandano ai R.S degli anni '90 : "Whole Wide World" e "Mess it up" su tutte.
Il singolo apripista "Angry" a parte il bel video con l'attrice Sydney Sweeney, è forse uno degli episodi meno riusciti dell'album dove Mick Jagger gigioneggia con la sua voce ed i tre minuti sembrano una caricatura di loro stessi. "Hackney Diamonds" è anche il primo lavoro dopo la morte dello storico batterista Charlie Watts, il sostituto Steve Jordan imprime una batteria più presente e francamente piacevole per come strutturata.
In "Dreamy Skies" si entra nella macchina del tempo, sembra una canzone del loro periodo blues a cavallo dei seventies, così come per il finale di "Rolling Stones Blues" il rimando al loro ultimo lavoro di covers è più che evidente. Pre finale con "Sweet Sounds of Heaven" con Lady Gaga e Stewie Wonder, 7 minuti di goduria blues ai massimi. C'è spazio per la voce roca di Keith Richards che prende il microfono a M,Jagger in "Tell me straight". Alla fine ce ne fossero di album così in giro, questi ad 80 anni fanno impallidire pseudo bande rock dell'ultima generazione, una italiana in particolare ad esempio.
Passo alla cassa e nel dubbio di quale colore del vinile comprare, mi porto a casa questo forse ultimo inedito dei Rolling Stones.

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