Hackney Diamonds, the 26th album from rock legends The Rolling Stones, is not a return to form.
It’s not an essential Stones album to challenge the unassailable run of records they delivered through the 60s and early 70s.
But it is testament to the endurance of both its individual members and the very style of rock’n’roll they helped engineer.
And, at the risk of sounding controversial, it’s good! It’s the Stones in fine touch, frontman Mick Jagger sounds great, while guitarists Keith Richards and Ronnie Wood have moments of brilliance and stay very solid for the rest of it.
The highs and lows of The Stones’ 26th album
The Stones know how to start strong, and the lean rock’n’roll of opening track ‘Angry’ gives us all the hallmarks of modern-day Stones we expect.
The song will inevitably make its way into their setlists from here on in. It sounds written for their stadium spectaculars, you can practically see Keith’s devilish grin as he bashes out those broad chords, and Mick’s gangly dance moves as he toys with his besotted audience.
Jagger adopts a Dylan-esque melody and cadence on the mildly mawkish ‘Depending On You’, a perfectly passable Stones love ballad that proves the frontman can still tug at the heart strings fairly effectively.
On the flipside, ‘Bite My Head Off’ is a raucous bar-room stomper that makes us wish The Stones’ longtime sax man Bobby Keys was still around to anoint it with his perfect squalling horn lines.
They did manage to get a pretty high-profile bassist onboard in Sir Paul McCartney, who turns in a simple but beautifully fuzzy performance.
Most importantly, this song shows the venom and power that still lingers in Jagger’s voice.
Echoes of ‘Sweet Virginia’ come down the line on ‘Dreamy Skies’ thanks to its languid acoustic strumming and general loose vibe.
Mick takes a rest on ‘Tell Me Straight’, allowing Keith a chance to step up to the mic. Keith has sung a grand total of zero truly great Stones songs and doesn’t trouble the scorer here. But it’s a genuinely nice AOR ballad that doesn’t spoil the party.
If there is a triumph on this album, and it’s perhaps a little generous to say that there is, it is ‘Sweet Sound Of Heaven’.
This could easily have been disastrous. When you put The Rolling Stones, Stevie Wonder, and Lady Gaga together, you risk spoiling the broth. Too many cooks, too many egos, too many conflicting musical ideas. But the result is tasteful.
At first, Jagger’s melody sounds perhaps uncomfortably close to that of ‘You Can’t Always Get What You Want’, but that’s easily forgiven and forgotten when the song’s heartening chorus kicks in, especially when you realise the song is in tribute to late great Stones drummer Charlie Watts.
Both Gaga and Wonder hang back, the former’s vocal adding significant spice without spoiling the balance, the latter’s bluesy piano playing fitting in with the Stones modus operandi seamlessly.
The Stones’ long flirtation with disco continues on ‘Mess It Up’, an upbeat and crystalline piece of pop that sadly sounds dated in all the wrong ways.
Thankfully their lifelong dedication to the blues allows for a strong finish as they tackle Muddy Waters’ ‘Rolling Stone Blues’. The band were always really great when they were ripping off Black artists.
A reasonable addition to a complex legacy
Surely the big question that follows The Rolling Stones is: Why are you still doing this?
It’s not harsh. Everyone is entitled to retirement if they want it, and the Stones can certainly afford it. But they’re equally entitled to continue doing what gives them life.
If you are going to slam this record — and it’s your right to do so, the Stones can hack it — it might be worth considering a few key points.
Is there anything on here that’s as bad what the Stones’ served us up on Dirty Work or Undercover?
Is the worst moment on Hackney Diamonds really any more embarrassing than Mick Jagger dating a woman 44 years younger than him?
And, perhaps most importantly, if The Rolling Stones want to keep making records in their 80s, how much damage does that really do? Their legacy has been imperfect for decades, and we’ve marvelled at the very fact they are still alive for almost as long.
Is Hackney Diamonds terrible? No.
Is it as good as any of their classics? Of course not.
Do you need it in your life? If you’re a Stones tragic, you’ve already pre-ordered it. If you’re not, you can cherry pick a couple of its best moments and throw them on your Stones playlist.
Then, go back and immerse yourself in Exile On Main Street. Or Let It Bleed. Or Beggar’s Banquet. Or Aftermath. Or Sticky Fingers. You get the idea.
