Dance Little Sister

After a break, during which Mick Jagger recorded with both John Lennon in Los Angeles and Ron Wood in London (more on the latter session later on), the Rolling Stones returned to Musicland Studios to continue recordings for a new studio album. During their first visit to Munich, in November 1973, the Stones worked on three songs that would make it to the final album.

This time around (January 14-28, 1974) the band, with Mick Taylor, who missed the first sessions because of illness, back in their ranks worked on five more future album tracks. Once again, Nicky Hopkins and Billy Preston were around to help out on keyboards, but they sat out on 'Dance Little Sister', a no-nonsense rhythm and blues track that appealed to Ian Stewart's perception of what the Stones ought to be.

Dance Little Sister is a typical Keith Richards R&B rocker. After the first few seconds, where the guitar and drums almost struggle to find the exact groove, the song rocks at road-running pace with twin guitar riffs under the bonnet. Stu confirms the song's rock 'n' roll origin capturing a trade-mark bar room piano feel.

Adapted from the following sources:
Martin Elliott, The Rolling Stones Complete Recording Sessions 1962-2002, Cherry Red Books, 2002.
James Hector, The Complete Guide To The Music Of The Rolling Stones, Omnibus Press, 1995.

Says the new guy......

For the general public guitarist Ron Wood and keyboard player Chuck Leavell still are the 'new guys' within the Rolling Stones, despite the fact that they're working with the band since 1973 and 1981 respectively. In a recent interview with Relix, Chuck Leavell sheds light on his predecessors in the band:

The Stones have a history of great keyboardists and piano players: Ian (Stu) Stewart, Jack Nitzsche, Nicky Hopkins, Billy Preston, Ian McLagan and others that made brief appearances - like my pal Mac Rebennack (Dr. John) and another one of my heroes, Leon Russell. In the beginning, it was really Stu’s band, and when I came in, he became my big brother. He treated me so well and looked after me as the “new guy.” He was such a great guy, unique individual and fantastic boogie and rock player.

I got to know Nicky a bit - we were introduced in ‘82 by Ronnie Wood when we played Wembley Stadium. I was such a big fan and was quite nervous when we met. He invited me to lunch the next day, and we went - just the two of us. We traded stories, and we wrote letters to each other after that for years. I always called him “The Master of the Motif.” He had this unbelievable ability to find these little vignettes that just made a song like 'Angie' and 'She’s A Rainbow'. It’s sad that Stu, Nicky, Billy and Jack are no longer with us.

Broken Head Blues

Still hot from their 1973 European tour, the Rolling Stones entered Musicland Studios, Munich, West Germany, to record material for a new album planned for a quick release. Guitarist Mick Taylor missed the sessions (November 13-24) because of illness, but with the help of keyboard players Billy Preston and Nicky Hopkins the band recorded early versions of tracks that would appear on the new album.

Ian Stewart contributed some trademark boogie woogie piano to 'Broken Head Blues', an instrumental jam that would develop into 'Black Limousine', a track from 1981's "Tattoo You" album. The jam also featured Faces guitarist Ronnie Wood, who was present at the sessions for one night, and got a co-credit on the final track. The song symbolized a return to basics, and is said to be a tribute to Muddy Waters and Jimmy Reed, the latter's 'You Don't Have To Go' not being far away.

Adapted from the following sources:
Martin Elliott, The Rolling Stones Complete Recording Sessions 1962-2002, Cherry Red Books, 2002.
James Hector, The Complete Guide To The Music Of The Rolling Stones, Omnibus Press, 1995.

Preston Time

The Rolling Stones supported their "Goats Head Soup" release by nearly 30 European shows (September 1 - October 19, 1973). The tour, considered by many as one of the band's best, proved to be guitarist Mick Taylor's last, but also marked the live debut for keyboard player Billy Preston. Preston, who had been around with the Stones since 1969, replaced Nicky Hopkins, member of the band's touring party since 1971.

In his biography of Nicky Hopkins, author Julian Dawson recalls the thin man's departure from the Stones' live ranks: "Nicky was suddenly no longer in the touring party and his keyboard duties were shared between Ian Stewart and opening act, Billy Preston. What was no doubt intended as a temporary absence, due to conflicts between his Stones commitments and the demands of his solo career, in fact became permanent and Billy Preston was waiting in the wings, eager to replace him".

In the meantime, Stu remained where he was: 'managing the road' for the band, and playing piano during some shows, on assorted songs, that is. 

Adapted from the following source: Julian Dawson, And On Piano....Nicky Hopkins, Backstage Press, 2011.

Fact sheet: Goats Head Soup

"Goats Head Soup", the Rolling Stones' 11th studio album, was recorded in Byron Lee's Dynamic Sound Studios in Kingston, Jamaica (November-December, 1972), and got released on August 31, 1973. Critics deliberated, veering from reserved praise to weary disappointment, but in his review on Allmusic author Stephen Thomas Erlewine puts the record in some fine perspective: "Sliding out of perhaps the greatest winning streak in rock history, the Rolling Stones slipped into decadence and rock star excess with "Goats Head Soup", their sequel to "Exile On Main St.".

This is where the Stones' image began to eclipse their accomplishments, as Mick Jagger ascended to jet-setting celebrity and Keith Richards slowly sunk deeper into addiction, and it's possible hearing them moving in both directions on Goats Head Soup, at times in the same song. As Mick Jagger plays the devil (or dances with Mr. D, as he likes to say), the sex and sleaze quotient is increased, all of it underpinned by some genuinely affecting heartbreak, highlighted by 'Angie', one of three ballads on the album (the other ones being 'Coming Down Again' and 'Winter'). This may not be as downright funky, freaky, and fantastic as "Exile", yet the extra layer of gloss brings out the enunciated lyrics, added strings, wah-wah guitars, explicit sex, and violence, making it all seem trippily decadent.

If it doesn't seem like there's a surplus of classics here, all the songs work well, illustrating just how far they've traveled in their songcraft, as well as their exceptional talent as a band - they make this all sound really easy and darkly alluring, even when the sex'n'satanism seems a little silly. To top it all of, they cap off this utterly excessive album with 'Star Star', a nasty Chuck Berry rip that grooves on its own mean vulgarity - its real title is "Starfucker," if you need any clarification, and even though they got nastier (the entirety of "Undercover", for instance), they never again made something this dirty or nasty. And, it never feels more at home than it does at the end of this excessive record".

Ian Stewart played piano on two tracks, the aforementioned 'Star Star' and the blues and boogie tinged 'Silver Train', a song first worked on during "Sticky/Exile" sessions in 1970. Other members of the keyboard department on "Goats Head Soup" were familiar names: Nicky Hopkins (piano on 6 tracks) and Billy Preston (clavinet on '100 Years Ago' and 'Doo Doo Doo Doo Doo (Heartbreaker)').

Suggested further reading:
Mark Blake, Strange Brew (album review), Mojo Special Edition, 2003.
David Cavanagh, Goats Head Soup, The Ultimate Music Guide (from the makers of Uncut)
James Hector, The Complete Guide To The Music Of The Rolling Stones, Omnibus Press, 1995.

Preparing For Don

On July 17, 1973, in a London studio, the Rolling Stones recorded some instrumental backing tracks to be used for the shooting of promo-films. The shootings, directed by Michael Lindsay-Hogg, were premiered in the "Don Kirshner's Rock Concert" TV show. Mick Jagger added live vocals to three songs from the upcoming studio album "Goat's Head Soup": 'Angie', 'Dancing With Mr. D.', and 'Silver Train'. Just like on the album track, Ian Stewart plays piano on 'Silver Train', but he is not seen in the video. Of course not!

Don Kirshner's Rock Concert was an American music variety show that ran during the 1970s and early 1980s, created and produced by Don Kirshner and syndicated to television stations. It premiered on September 29, 1973, with the taped performance by the Stones. It happened to be the band's first appearance on American TV in more than four years.

Stew

After his first job for the Stones, overdubbing saxophone on 'Live With Me', Bobby Keys, and horn mate Jim Price, joined the band during many tours and recording sessions until the summer of 1973. Here's how Bobby remembers Ian Stewart, or Stew, as he calls him!

Ian Stewart was our road manager, although he was also more than that. Stew was the guy who'd come back to the dressing rooms and tell us when to go onstage. No one would go toward the stage until Stew said so. All the promoters would come back there and tell us we had to go on, but Stew was the guy who brought the Stones onstage and made sure that the stage was ready. And he always had such a charming way of telling everyone it was time to go: "All right, my little lovely showers of shit, my little three-chord wonders, it's time to go!".

The funny thing is, in his boogie-woogie piano realm, boy, he was a motherfucker. He could play. He was really special. But he was always very self-effacing about his piano-playing, he never gave himself the credit. I remember at some point asking someone what Stew's deal was, which was when I found out that he was in fact the original piano player for the Stones. I had no idea because when I came on Nicky Hopkins was playing piano with 'em and I thought, well, that's Nicky, he's the best, that explains that.

It's very unusual that you find somebody who was one of the actual founding members of a band take what would seem to be a secondary seat in the organization as opposed to being onstage - I mean, he's driving the guys to the gig. He'd play on some stuff, but not a lot. Even so, I know how well loved he was by Keith and Charlie and Mick and Bill. Of all the bitching they'd do about each other, I never heard anybody bitch about Stew. Ever.

I loved him, too. The first car that I bought in England I bought from Stew. It was a Riley Elf. I hadn't even heard of a Riley before. Stew was also instrumental in getting me into the band, or bringing Jim Price and me to Mick's attention as a horn section. I'd met Mick and Keith as a saxophone player, but as a horn section it was Ian Stewart who brought us to Mick's and Keith's and Charlie's and Bill's attention because of the Delaney & Bonnie Southern gospelrock thing. He was a big fan of Leon Russel's and Dr. John's. The fact that Jim Price and I got to play with the Rolling Stones had a lot to do with Ian Stewart.

Adapted from the following source: Bobby Keys, Every Night's a Saturday Night, Counterpoint, 2012.