When an album starts with ‘Gimme Shelter’ and closes with ‘You Can’t Always Get What You Want,’ you know you’ve got something special on your hands.
Let It Bleed, released in 1969 less than a year after the triumph of Beggars Banquet, is a popular choice for The Rolling Stones’ best album. In addition to those two stone-cold classics, the album features the epic ‘Midnight Rambler,’ a staple of the band’s live shows, and a slew of under-appreciated gems.
‘You Got the Silver,’ from The Rolling Stones’ classic 1969 album Let it Bleed, is arguably the best song to ever feature Keith Richards on lead vocals.
Richards didn’t steal the mic from Mick Jagger very often — maybe once per album — but on some of his tracks it’s hard to imagine anybody else, even Mick, doing a better job.
Let It Bleed is the third Rolling Stones album on this list and the last record listed that isn’t by either (spoiler alert!) Bob Dylan or The Beatles.
The title song was a play on The Beatles’ ‘Let It Be,’ which had been recorded but not officially released when this album came out. I love how artists during the 60s were constantly tweaking and drawing inspiration from each other. The Stones and The Beatles wrote their share of Dylan-esque tunes, inspired by his example, while Dylan returned the favor (his ‘4th Time Around’ was a direct response to ‘Norwegian Wood’).
John Lennon once said that everything innovative The Beatles ever did would show up six months later on a Rolling Stones record.
Another year, another classic. In 1969, The Rolling Stones released Let It Bleed and kept up their crazy streak. I’m always amazed to see the consistent output of excellence year after year in the 60s by artists such as The Stones, Bob Dylan and The Beatles. It must have been amazing to be alive at that time and experience all of these albums one after another in real time.
If Let It Bleed consisted of nothing but its first and last tracks, it would still be an album for the ages. As it is, the stuff in between is damn good in its own right (particularly the title song and ‘You Got the Silver,’ which features Keith Richards on lead vocals). But it’s all about the bookends.
Meet Me In Montauk 