The Rolling Stones – Some Girls (1978)

It was an interesting time for music. The traditional scene of music from the 1960s, whom had cherished bands that had a hippie edge, like The Rolling Stones, had faded away. In its place was Disco music, and on the other side, a Punk underground movement existed that wouldn’t go away. This album is a reflection of the trends and sounds that, ironically, killed the traditional Rock movement for bands like The Rolling Stones. This is seen as one of the better albums by The Rolling Stones, oddly enough, so let’s take the time to observe the music here. The cover is an interesting one as well, showcasing the band’s sense of humour. Let’s jump in.

We kick off with Miss You which sounds quirky and different in its own way, with some excellent Fender Telecaster styled parts from Keith Richards. It is instantly listenable and catchy, particularly with singing from Mick Jagger. An extraordinary listen, and a nice mixture of Disco based beats and clanging guitars. The Rolling Stones showed here that they were still alive and kicking, and Mick Jagger screams and yelps along nicely. An iconic song, and a nice take on of the music of the time. There is a lovely saxophone piece here in the second half. Very awesome listening, a classic piece of song craftsmanship that is timeless. Nice song, and a great take on the music at the time. There is a harmonica solo towards the end, which is rather different. Good job.

Next is When The Whip Comes Down begins with a sort of Sex Pistols styled sound, except its not the Sex Pistols here. It does sound really adventurous and wonderful listening from The Rolling Stones regardless. A loud, raw and punchy piece, this is catchy and listenable from start to finish. Sounding a lot like God Save The Queen, this is a monumental listen from The Rolling Stones. Sounding raw, loud and punchy, The Rolling Stones showcase a different side to their musicality towards the end of the 1970s. Decent tune, and definitely worth hearing. It has a pounding outro, which is definitely different. Nice job boys.

Just My Imagination (Running Away With Me) is next, with some interesting guitar parts that are semi-Disco wah-wah sort of parts. A really nice and sleazy sort of sound is here, and the piece sounds quite unlike anything else out there in the history of music. A pleasant and decent listening experience from The Rolling Stones, this song is a great piece about infatuation with the opposite sex. A very listenable and decent piece, the midsection with the guitar solo here is quite good, too. A cool listening experience, and never dull or boring through its four and a half minute length, it puts to shame a lot of the earlier Progressive Rock bands from the 1970s. Great to hear. It goes into an intense jam to finish off this song, a very nice twist.

Some Girls is the title track here, with a classic wah-wah Disco inspired riff to begin with, before launching into a fairly straightforward listen about women and the things some girls like to buy. It’s a parody sort of piece about what women want, but is really quite neat sounding. The sound here is perfect for the times, being reflective of the Disco and Punk phenomenon of the time. A sleazy, dirty piece of gold this songs is, and this does sound fantastic. Some really explicit sexual lyrics are here sung from Mick Jagger, which is a good addition from The Rolling Stones. A really good song, a must hear for fans of The Rolling Stones.

Next along is Lies. This begins as a fairly up tempo Rock number that sounds raw and direct. The band sound really awesome here in this three minute gem, just taking a basic song concept and making it sound very 1978. A good song to hear, there is a very unusual guitar solo here in the middle. This is very inspired and fresh, with Mick Jagger yelping and screaming throughout. The Rolling Stones had made another good record here, and you can hear why. Good effort, even though it is only three minutes long. Nice job.

Following is Far Away Eyes which begins with acoustic guitar, piano and slide electric guitar as well. Mick Jagger sings in a mock Southern U.S.A. way. A strange piece that is a take on Country music which was more prevalent in days gone by than today. Good to hear a bit of variety here on this album, a really nice mellow and valuable listen. The slide guitar playing is quite prominent in the middle here as a solo, but sounds great anyway. It’s a parody story of the American Christian preachers who request people send their money to them as well, not a good listen for those who identify themselves as Christian. Still, a good listen from start to finish.

Respectable begins with some fine chugging guitar parts, before going straight into another up tempo piece that sounds raw and nasty. It’s very, very good, keeping the theme of the album going along nicely. Loud, raw and punchy, The Rolling Stones did a terrific job here. Very catchy and energetic, the guitar solo here is very amazing. Good fun to listen to, it is a very consistent and enjoyable listen that is fast and fun. Great listen, one of the best songs from the album here.

Before They Make Me Run begins with some dirty Fender Telecaster riffs and has Keith Richards singing, oddly enough. A decent song with some acoustic guitars as well, this is a different listen from the rest of the album, without sacrificing the feel and flow of the rest of the album. A refreshing effort, there is a cool slide guitar solo here that sounds different. Great to hear, and just a little bit different. Nice and a good listen from start to finish. It’s apparently about drug troubles this piece.

Next along is Beast Of Burden which begins with a nicely recorded guitar riff, before launching into another really good song with Mick Jagger back on lead vocals. A very good listen, once again and sounding very beautiful and laidback here. Great to hear that The Rolling Stones could still make excellent music after their heyday, and this album is proof of that. Some mock singing about pretty girls is here instead of a guitar solo, which is different. Another decent song, and another very good reason to hear this album. A thrilling listen all the way through to the end. Good piece of music.

Last here is Shattered which is a straightforward piece by The Rolling Stones. A good song to finish off this album with, it sounds like a decent song to hear at the end of this unusual musical mish-mash of great ideas, multiple genres and badass Rock and Roll attitude. Never wearing out their welcome, The Rolling Stones could still make great music in 1978. This album is proof. Mick Jagger yelps and screams wonderfully in this last song. Good tune to conclude with.

This is much better than expected from The Rolling Stones, particularly several years after the release of their monumental opus Exile On Main Street album. A good album with many surprise twists and turns within, The Rolling Stones kept on rolling. Nice effort by all involved.

Genre busting.

8/10