As The Rolling Stones’ first album since 2005, barring their 2016 covers album Blue & Lonesome, fans of the much-loved classic rock band will enjoy their long-awaited return to the studio: Hackney Diamonds. The album consists of 12 tracks and boasts a star-studded line up of fellow legends including Stevie Wonder, Lady Gaga, Bill Wyman, and Glastonbury’s latest two Sunday night headliners, Beatle – Paul McCartney, and The Rocketman – Elton John. Nathan Collett shares some insight into the band's return.
The album opens with its first single Angry, an upbeat and powerful hitter with a catchy riff and Mick Jagger’s age-old vocals. This song initially sounds a lot more pop than classic rock, however Keith Richards’ signature guitar playing makes no mistake, this is a rock record and if it ends up being the Stones’ last one, they’re going out strong. Despite this, it is easy to see the loss of drummer Charlie Watts’ influence on the band’s music, and I would argue that they are missing both his drumming ability and his ear for music production. Angry whilst a good song seems a little overproduced, as do a few other songs on this album, I’d suggest that with Watts’ perfectionism this might not have been the case.
The album continues with a bit of a clunky transition into Get Close, which is another decent sounding song, but just falls a little short of the mark for what I would expect from The Rolling Stones. The track is rescued by the technically great saxophone solo midway through, otherwise I’d argue it was just a relatively generic pop-rock song designed to fill a slot on the album.
Depending On You is the first song on this album which I really did enjoy, the guitars have a clean and crisp tone allowing Mick Jagger to show that at 80, he can still sing. This is a chilled song, which seems to highlight the talents that the band have built up through playing with each other for over 60 years. My enjoyment continued into Bite My Head Off which features Paul McCartney on the bass, this is another upbeat rock song which was catchy and fun to listen to, despite some questionable use of overdrive. Much like the last track Whole Wide World is another upbeat classic rock song, with a sing along chorus and some nice riffs which are easy on the ear. The guitar solo midway through would be loved by any classic rock fan, seeming more reminiscent of a band like Lynyrd Skynyrd than the Stones’ own former hits.
One of this album’s major strengths is the Stones’ decision to keep a strong blues influence across many of the tracks, this comes through incredibly on Dreamy Skies. I think that blues music really suits Jagger’s aging voice whilst also allowing the others in the band to display immense technical prowess in playing their instruments.
I think this particularly comes through on Rolling Stone Blues which I would point towards as the best song on the album, rightfully saved as the song which draws the record to a close. Whilst some of the songs on this album seem a bit overproduced, this is the exact opposite, it sounds raw and authentic thanks to its twangy guitar sounds marrying well with some signature Stones harmonica. If I was to point to a track to suggest that the Stones were still at the top of their game, this one would be it.
Naturally the Stones’ status as musical legends allows them to bring in whichever guest stars pleases them the most. This works brilliantly with both Live By The Sword featuring Elton John’s incredible piano skills, as well as the album’s second single Sweet Sounds of Heaven featuring Stevie Wonder on Piano as well as Lady Gaga’s piercing vocals. Both of these are cracking songs which I’ve had on repeat since initially hearing them, Gaga brings a Tina Turner-esque sound whilst Elton John’s additions to Live By The Sword married well with the Rolling Stones’ classic rock sound, reminding me of his own hit Saturday Night’s Alright (For Fighting).
Overall, Hackney Diamonds is a good record, there are plenty of solid songs which would be enjoyed by any classic rock fan, as well as lots of exciting cameos from some of our other favourite artists. Some of their experimentation with more ‘pop’ sounds aren’t to my own taste; that does not take away from the fact that these rockstars are still killing it into their 80s.
Nathan Collett
Edited by Natalie Howarth
Image: Official album cover, videos courtesy of The Rolling Stones on YouTube
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