Rolling Stones gathered no moss in early years

Editor's Note: This is the ninth story in a weekly series giving readers a "Beginner's Guide" to important figures and genres of music. This story focuses on the legendary Rolling Stones.

Writing about the Rolling Stones is painful and pointless, not only because so much has already been written about the band, but also because trying to encapsulate in a few inches what the Stones have meant to rock 'n' roll is impossible.

In their legendary, decades-long career, Mick Jagger, Keith Richards and crew have had their share of ups and downs. They have produced some of the genre's most critically acclaimed albums, earned an undying reputation as rebels and amassed millions in earnings, but their influence and greatness is simply immeasurable. No words can do them justice.

That being said, maybe the best way to assess the importance of the Stones is to look at the band in its prime, a time when there was no debating one fact -- the Rolling Stones were the greatest rock band in the world.

The band put out four studio albums in those four years -- Beggars Banquet, Let It Bleed, Sticky Fingers and Exile -- all of which are typified by an emphasis on roots rock, country and blues influences.

Along with its usual influences, such as Chicago blues artist Willie Dixon, the Stones threw in healthy doses of country-blues patriarch Robert Johnson and soul singer Otis Redding. Add to that potent mix a rebellious and out-of-control rock band, and four masterworks are the result.

Not even the Beatles could keep pace with the Stones of this era, possibly due to the bands' differing influences. While John Lennon and Paul McCartney looked to the clean-cut sounds of Motown, Jagger and Richards dredged up the lowdown sounds of Chicago blues and southern soul.

"(The Beatles) went for the clean R&B and the Stones went for the grittier," said Ken Kubala, manager of City Lights Records, 316 E. College Ave. "The Stones were Chicago and the Beatles were Detroit."

Beggars Banquet ushered in the Stones' glory days. Bolstered by such classics as "Street Fighting Man" and "Sympathy for the Devil," the Stones' rebel attitude came to the fore on this album. Jagger's lyric writing was growing more intense and provocative, while Richards asserted himself as a true guitar master; never flashy but always rock-solid, his riffing was becoming legendary and his solo break on "Sympathy for the Devil" stands as one of rock's greatest.

"To be honest, I think their older stuff is the better of their work," said Brian Martin, assistant manager of Vibes Music, 226 E. College Ave. "Things along the lines of their classic work, like 'Sympathy for the Devil,' really stand out to me."

Following the resounding success of Beggars Banquet, the Stones released Let It Bleed in 1969. Featuring the political rocker "Gimme Shelter," the album served as a fitting closer to the turbulent '60s.

Original lead guitarist Brian Jones died while the album was being recorded, and replacement Mick Taylor brought along more flash but less creativity. With Jones out of the mix, Richards exerted even more influence over the band. His love of rough-and-tumble blues is evidenced by "Midnight Rambler" and a cover of Johnson's "Love in Vain."

Sticky Fingers, maybe the least intense of the four albums, served as a showcase for Taylor's guitar mastery. His lead work was featured prominently on several tracks, especially "Can't You Hear Me Knocking."

The album's best songs, however, are those where the band acts as one cohesive unit. "Wild Horses" is a song of pure brilliance; Jagger's sings pained lyrics in a startlingly pained tone, Richards' plays heartfelt acoustic guitar, drummer Charlie Watts and bassist Bill Wyman lay down perfect rhythms and Taylor's intricate, sparse lead work offers poignant exclamations to Jagger's words.

As good as those three albums were, however, Exile On Main Street stands above them all -- in fact, it may be the one album that most clearly defines what rock 'n' roll is. Jagger sings of decadence and decay and Richards plays Chuck Berry rhythms with reckless abandon.

On the whole, Exile sounds like a train going off its track; the playing seems more reckless than refined and Jagger's lyrics are near incomprehensible at times. But from the time Jagger snarls "Aww yeahhh . . ." at the start of "Rocks Off" to the album's close, the band is compelling.

"If you wanted to define rock, that would be a good place to start," Kubala said.

The album opens with the uproarious one-two punch of "Rocks Off" and "Rip This Joint," and tears through country numbers such as "Sweet Virginia," blues standards such as "Stop Breaking Down" and an all-time classic in "Tumbling Dice."

Mick Jagger has said the band has never sounded as good as it did on Exile, which is a shame, though unsurprising. Once rock sounds so good, the idea of it getting any better seems impossible.