12 X 5 (1964)
1.Around and Around
2.Confessin' the Blues
3.Empty Heart
4.Time is on My Side
5.Good Times, Bad Times
6.It's All Over Now
7.2120 South Michigan Avenue
8.Under the Boardwalk
9.Congradulations
10.Grown Up Wrong
11.If You Need Me
12.Susie Q
 
The second full length Rolling Stones
album sounds an awful lot like their first. Actually, the first
five Rolling Stones albums sound pretty similar to one another. Not that that
is a bad thing necessarily - it's just a bit hard to distinguish
whether or not the band really evolved at all during this early phase of
their career. Of course, who cared whether or not bands evolved back in
the early to mid sixties? Just get them in a studio, make some quick
songs, and get the album released. That's exactly what this is, coming out
less than six months after their debut, and barely clocking in at over
30 minutes.
What we have here is a lot of the same. Some of the numbers sound a bit
more "rock" influenced than "blues" influenced - but the distinction back
then was a hard one to make. Plus, it's arguable whether or not this
could have been intentional or not. Mick and Keith do manage to pen a
few original tunes, and they fit quite nicely, although the best
material are the well-known covers. Highlights are the opening
Around and Around as well as the less-than-two minute ending
track Susie Q. Other great listens are the instrumental 2120
South Michigan Avenue and the "cover" of Irma Thomas' Time is On
My Side, which most people have never heard, so it remains best
known as a Stones' "original".
It's a quick, fast, enjoyable listen, although owning it is not
essential if you have any of their other early albums. The only real
embarrassment is Under the Boardwalk that just doesn't seem
appropriate for a band like the Rolling Stones to cover, and seems a bit out
of place here.
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