keepers-2
keeper avg-.250
It's easy to see why this album is largely forgotten by radio and history. The songs are a stylistic grab bag, several composed of a groove and very few words, such as funky opener "Hot Stuff" - in over 5 minutes it only has 5 words, apart from Jagger's ad lib DJ barking. What is impossible to see is how "Hand Of Fate"***** does not show up on any official Stones compilation. Starting with a badass Richards riff, it evokes the best of Exile On Main Street, while the in-your-face guitars in closer "Crazy Mama"**** foreshadow the the Black Crowes' hard-rock take on the Faces; and Ron Wood's guitar has never sounded as raw as on "Hey Negrita" another loosely-structured blues jam, though what it lacks in structure it makes up in spontaneity, including some witty piano by Billy Preston. Not that the album is all rockers. Following the template of "Moonlight Mile" from Sticky Fingers, "Memory Motel" may be the Stones' greatest ballad; well-written throughout, the execution surpasses the typical Stones repertoire thanks to all those guest musicians. While no song jumps out as a single, it's impossible to point to any track, from the deliberate "Memory Motel" down to the ramshackle reggae "Cherry Oh Baby", as not being an artistic success.
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