Sticky Fingers (1971)
1.Brown Sugar
2.Sway
3.Wild Horses
4.Can't You Hear Me Knocking
5.You Gotta Move
6.Bitch
7.I Got the Blues
8.Sister Morphine
9.Dead Flowers
10.Moonlight Mile
 
Sandwiched in the middle of the band's
"classic" period (1968-1972), this was regarded as another gem by
critics and fans, yet I've always felt it was lacking a little
something. The whole release seems to emulate a very drugged-out, hung
over feel (musically and lyrically) that seems a bit strained at times.
Of course, being that this band was riding such a creative high, this is
by no means a bad record. They just seem tired.
It also seems like just about every song here is controversial in some
form another, with a lot of songs making reference to drugs etc. Even
the killer Brown Sugar is a slang for a certain type of drug (or
so I'm told). Actually, the "accepted" theme of the song isn't much better.
Let's just say that "Brown" is the color of
the girls skin - you can figure out the rest. This is something I doubt
anyone can get away with today. Ironically one of the least
offensive tracks here is called Bitch (not about a female - the word is used as a verb here) and,
to be honest, it's one of the most hippest danceable song on the whole
album, complete with a full brass section.
This album also features some of their best country stuff, with the
humorous Dead Flowers, and the most serious (i.e. normal) song
Wild Horses that shows their softer side. When they turn to the
blues, it gets a little monotonous. I Got the Blues is the least
inspired thing here and You Gotta Move is o.k. for a minute or
so, but then that gets tiring as well. Can't You Hear Me
Knocking has some good moments, but it doesn't have the worthiness
to be over seven minutes long.
Back to more of the drug songs - Sister Morphine is really almost
too depressing to enjoy, but it has some good parts and Moonlight
Mile is actually a great classic that is fitting to end the album
(or any album). To be honest, when you think about how strung out these
guys were in the early seventies, it's a bit of a miracle that the guys
are still even alive. And, yes, that was a real zipper on the original
album cover - just in case anyone thought the content wasn't sleazy enough.
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