I’ll start with a question, rather rhetorical: “Who is really interested in reading a review of the Rolling Stones’ 31st studio album?” My answer is, “no one”. The British superstars are in their 61st year of their career and are and will remain the longest-running musical band on planet Earth. Such is their caliber and the generational acceptance they’ve had for over half a century that I don’t think it makes sense to criticize their choices. Those who are going to buy the album, will buy it. And they’ve left so many hackney diamonds in their wake that this one is just another in a row. Here, I’m just limiting myself to making a presentation as we ought to as a magazine.
This hackney diamond is the first studio diamond with Rolling Stones music since 2005’s “A Bigger Bang”, since 2016’s “Blue & Lonesome” is an album of cover songs only. Starting to listen to it and since the first notes of “Angry” which opens the album, I felt like I was listening to the Rolling Stones period “Bridges To Babylon” and “A Bigger Bang”, as a continuation of where they left off that is. A mid tempo rock with a definite Rolling Stones feeling, and as it progressed, it was “Whole Wide World” that got me the most excited. “Hackney Diamonds” rolls along at the expected pace, with the “stamp” of the Stones’ sound and feeling clearly imprinted on every note and every lyric of the album. The big moment of “Hackney Diamonds” comes somewhere towards the end with “Sweet Sounds Of Heven” with the participation of the top pop star nowadays, the great Lady Gaga. The album closes with a cover of “Rolling Stone Blues”, a composition by Muddy Waters, an American bluesman who from the 40’s to the early 80’s ruled the roost on the other side of the Atlantic. But the key element of all the songs on the album, and certainly one of the secrets of the Rolling Stones’ success, is their air play and the ability they give their music to be heard by anyone.
The late Charlie Watts, only got to play on “Mess It Up” and “Live By The Sword”. On the other tracks, the drums were handled by the immense Steve Jordan of The Blues Brothers and who carries an encyclopedia as a bio. The guests on “Hackney Diamonds” are several more, with Paul McCartney and Elton John being the most notable of these.
Many people say with certainty that “Hackney Diamonds” is the last album of Rolling Stones. Personally, I wouldn’t bet a cent on it. We’ve said it before for many bands and artists and thankfully, we’re screwed. And don’t let me hear anything about ages, these guys are capable of raising the average age of Earth’s people…
