Great album like Goats, Short and Curlies and great piano wise. Funny lyrics. Time waits-Brilliant, Till the next time-Excellent- Luxury, If you really want...........all Great tracks, Fingerprint....
I've been listening to this album since I got it in December 1974, and your review is dead on, with one exception. Time Waits for No One may be the single most beautiful Stones song ever.
My ranking (posted before I watch the video). No bad songs on this album. 10. Short and Curlies 9. Ain't Too Proud to Beg 8. If You Really Want to Be My Friend 7. Luxury 6. Till the Next Goodbye 5. Dance Little Sister 4. It's Only Rock 'n Roll (But I Like It) 3. Fingerprint File 2. If You Can't Rock Me 1. Time Waits for No One
Could not agree more with the mixing. I always felt like I had to turn the volume up so much to hear anything, and I’m 34 haha. Like you said, hopefully a new mix will be possible in the future.
A fun episode to list to. IORR is my 2nd fave Stones LP after Goats Head Soup. The 'murky' makes it the best. #1 Time Waits for No One #2 If You Really Want to be My Friend.
Great analysis, thanks! Dance Little Sister has always been my favorite on the album. Also really like Time Waits for No One, although I prefer the non-album version with the extended clock outro. If You Can’t Rock Me has grown on me over the years and wish they had included it more in their live set lists (in place of You Got Me Rocking). Finally, I think Through the Lonely Nights should’ve been included on the album in place of If You Really Want to Be My Friend.
Wow. Surprise call with fingerprint file! It is a great underrated track. I don't know if I personally would rank it above time waits for no one. But great food for thought. Another thoroughly enjoyable video from hang fire!
Thanks a lot. Mission accomplished. I hope you’re happy. Now every time I hear FF I will vision you doing your impressions. Thanks a lot. Mission accomplished. I hope you’re happy. If they dumped Black & Blue, and replaced Short and curlies with fool to cry Ain’t to proud to beg with hand of fate Til the next time with memory motel Throw Crazy Mama in there because they’re both pretty short albums. We’d have an album that equaled GHS. GHS belongs in the same class as BB-Exile for me. BB, LIB, GYYYO, SF, EXILE, (New and improved) IORR, LYL, and SG. Not too shabby. 🙄😍 And of course #1 is Time waits for no one!! But i love your enthusiasm and impressions so i’ll let it slide for now. 😁. Thanks for your review!
My favorite Stones album, probably because I first started buying albums when this came out and my first concert was their 1975 tour. I specifically watched this to see where you ranked Fingerprint File and I completely agree with your ranking!!! Whole heartedly agree with what you said about every song on this album.
Short and curlies may not be a good standalone track, but doesn't sound bad when listened to as the part of the album.. Totally agree on the exile flavour argument.
I Love all 10 songs on this album I consider it vastly underrated Till the Next Time is a beautiful ballad… Short and Curlies rocks out I find your critiques of Stones Albums to be very strange, but then I switched off after Undercover. The Stones became a Corporation after that point… Mick J sings beautifully on IORR he gives 100%
Hi, Justin. Yes, this is an underrated gem, imo. I mean, If You Can’t Rock Me, IORR, Fingerprint File, Luxury, Time Waits For No one, Dance Little Sister, lots of highlights, what’s not to like !Mostly agree with your ranking, though I would put If You Really Want To Be My Friend a bit higher, I really love that track. My only gripe is the sound, it could use a remix !! And on top of that, IORR has my favorite Stones album cover, so it will rank very high in my potential album ranking ! 😎🎸👍
What, anti Short and Curlies? Madness. Are you a real Stones fan? I am serious. You glow about so much of the 90s dribble and then attack this bluesy groove. Sometimes I can't figure you out my man. I get we all have our own choice, but this tune is awesome. Its always been an under rated track. .
Well, done video again. I must say, though time waits for no one is without a doubt my favorite on the album. Mike Taylor’s solo is just ridiculous. I really like fingerprint file and dance little sister, but I would have to move up on that list luxury and if you really wanna be my friend. I would put them over. It’s only rock ‘n’ roll just simply because I’ve heard that song so many times I’m all set with it. I would also agree with you that short and curly should never have been made. But since it was, it has to go on the bottom of the list. Great job.
I'm a little biased because IORR was the 2nd Stones album I bought when it came out - that week. (GHS was first). Short And Curlies to me is like a fun loose throwaway - maybe same kind of feeling for me as I have toward Hide Your Love - but I like it. Dance Little Sister actually I prefer the outtake with two bridges instead of just one. As you said - it becomes more of a song. IORR was only #1 for a week which back then was a bit of a failure. And still to this day doesn't have really big sales. For me, the big fault was not a big single on the album. Especially coming after JJ FLash, Honky Tonk, Brown Sugar, Angie. I'm with you IORR is a fun "classic" but really to me too, never a great studio track - really sounds like the jam that was later re-formed by Jagger and added lyrics etc. It's a classic but really not a very good single and the sales at that time kind of shows it. But really there's not a single on the album - Ain't Too Proud was as you know the 2nd single and a great original cover version. For me Time Waits For No One is near the top of my all time favorite Stones songs - play it regularly to this day. Greatest Stones lyrical guitar solo ever - the production is amazing - love the opening and closing Charlie rimshots. Jagger great vocals of course. Glimmer Twins at their best on that one. I still remember Fingerprint file live at MSG in 1975 - super one of kind as you said. Really love your summation. For me IORR doesn't hit the level of Beggars through GHS (yes through GHS) but it's still a fantastic listen. I don't dislike any song on it. But lacking that killer single.
I completely agree with you on this album Justin. Decent tunes let down by the mix. Despite that however, Fingerprint File is a monster cut, up there with their greatest.
Finally, a video on IORR! A solid album but a bit undercooked and I think it could've improved if the band kept working at it a bit longer (and added Through the Lonely Nights and Living In The Heart Of Love). I really enjoyed this video and your thoughts on each song - here's my raking from best-worst: It's Only Rock 'n Roll (But I Like It) Till The Next Goodbye Ain't Too Proud To Beg If You Can't Rock Me Fingerprint File Dance Little Sister Time Waits For No One Luxury Short and Curlies If You Really Want to Be My Friend All pretty good tracks except for Short and Curlies and IFYRWTBMY (both of which I have nothing but hate for lol)
'Fingerprint File' is a forgotten brilliant track. Great vocal by Mick Jagger! Amazing funky lead bass guitar by Mick Taylor with Bill Wyman on keyboard! Mick Taylor absolutely stands out on 'Time Waits for No One', for which MT should also have part writing credit. Yes, 'If You Can't Rock Me' is a fantastic and overlooked album opener (and concert opener forgotten by Jagger and Richards) with a brilliant Keef riff, standout drumming by Charlie Watts - who thinks he is dynamite, and great lead guitar work by Mick Taylor. 'HIde Your Love' on the prior Goat's Head Soup album is another often overlooked track where Mick Taylor shines brilliantly on blues lead guitar. Overall, IORR tends to be underrated and overlooked This album is a great Rolling Stones rocker, especally to a 16 year old kid like me in 1974! All five members have great shining moments here! And I like it, yes I do!
Sticky Fingers was so good and Exile so esoteric! Goats was seen as a let down and then IORR! So So! B&B - Big departure! Some Girls! Bingo! Comeback City! ER...underrated! Tatoo You, last great Stones album! Great songs afterward spread out over the years and the ultimate concert band from '89 to present day!
Great recap on It's Only Rock and Roll....thanks for your breakdown, Justin! Time Waits For No One is one of my all-time favourite Mick Jagger vocals! And I totally agree with you regarding Fingerprint Files! No one...NO ONE!....is cooler than Mick when he talks/emotes during the outro of that song! Fucking BRILLIANT! Thanks again for your excellent recap! Take good care, and all the best to you and yours for the Holiday Season! ♥🎵🎶
Glad you reviewed this album Justin before 2024 is gone, I've played it a million times and have the 12" picture vinyl ( rare & cool ). Love every track. In my mind its in there with all the other big 5/6 albums late 60's to mid to late 70's🕺👅🎵🎶🥁🎹🎸🎸💎🔥👏☘️👌
Ironic that I chose that album for my "music breakfast" always loved it! ...hard to chose my fave sing but your pics & critiques are great!! I have a jigsaw puzzle of the cover art, which I've never been able to complete... thaks for your work Justin!!!❤❤❤❤
10. Short and Curlies. C- 9.Til the Next Goodbye c+.8.It's Only R N R. B+ 7.If You Can't Rock Me B+.6.Aint Too Proud To Beg.B+5 Finger Print File.A-4.Dance Little Sister A.3.Luxury A+2 Time Waits For No One. A+1. If You Really Want to Be My Friend. A+. My least favorite album by them in the 70's still gets pretty high marks. They are my all time favorite.
I always found it interesting that Ain't Too Proud To Beg never makes it on to compilations but was a decent sized hit off this album. It would have worked great on Made In The Shade, Rewind, Jump Back, 40 Licks, GRRR or Honk, but it's always neglected.
When "Scarlet" was finally being released (I had never seen it in any bootlegs) I was sooooo looking forward to it. But then I was disappointed because it signaled to me that the Stones had no intention of having a Deluxe Expanded Edition of IORR by putting it in GHS. And then "Living in the Heart of Love" being released on Tattoo further cemented that theory. But then again, EOMS reissue had "Title 5" which clearly wasn't from the Exile years, it sounds more like it's from 1967, so maybe there is some hope. Most of my IORR boots are just different mixes, but the extended version Dance Little Sister is bitchin! I love the studio bootlegs because it's interesting to hear the process of the songs evolving. My favorite era of the Stones is the Mick Taylor era, and IORR is dead last for the Taylor albums. Not a bad album at all, but you can tell Jimmy Miller was no longer an influence. I've always been under the impression it wasn't one thing that made Taylor quit, but a series of things happening that influenced his decision to leave...and the nail in the coffin was "Time Waits For No One." Taylor had only been credited with writing credits for (correct me if I'm wrong) "Ventilator Blues" and "Stop Breaking Down," despite being one of the driving forces behind songs like "Sway," "Moonlight Mile," and "Winter," where the only contribution by Keith was on "Sway" for backing vocals yet still received the Jagger/Richards credit. Not to mention CYHMK. I've heard a story that Taylor was told by Jagger he would receive writing credit for TWFNO, and was quite proud of that, and was talking to either a friend or someone in the music circles or industry and was told he didn't receive credit. Not only that, but his solo was shortened and edited (OK, if this recording exists...I MUST HAVE IT!!!!) and that was the final straw. Interesting enough, 5 years later Mick Taylor would release a self-titled debut album and open with a song called "Leather Jacket" recorded as an instrumental during I think the 1970 Trident sessions (when he started collaborating AS a Rolling Stone), and ended the album with an instrumental called "Spanish A Minor" that at the 11:50 mark ends the song with the melody from TWFNO. P.S. You forgot to mention an interesting fact. IORR is the 2nd of only 3 non-compilation studio albums to feature 6 Rolling Stones. Let it Bleed had Brian Jones and Mick Taylor...IORR has Mick Taylor and Ron Wood...Tattoo You has Mick Taylor and Ron Wood. 🌈The more you know!
I love this album!!! The Stones at their best. I hate this sentence that The best is exile e nothing after that deserves to be devoted. I mean: Goats Head Soap; IORR; Black and Blue; Some Girls; Tatoo You;… Voodoo Lounge; Bigger Bang; Hackney. There are allways terrific songs. My P1 would be Time Waits for no one; followed By fingerpoint file, If You Can’t rock me and IORR
Off topic: Just saw an interview with Bill and he claimed he and Charlie were broke even during the big stadium tours. Did they not split the loot evenly from live performances? I know M&K were much richer from songwriting but they had very successful tours and I think B&C would get performance royalties from the endless radio plays. Been in heavy rotation for decades.
Make sure you all get the speed corrected cut of the album on CD from 2009. Fingerprint File has an even deeper slower grind groove. Love that track. As with 2000 Man, and Sympathy For The Devil, etc. it told the future…. Swap Short and Curlies for Sure The One You Need, or Living in the Heart of Love, and the album becomes closer to an higher ranked classic. Sadly, Living….and Drifting Away, the best of the outtakes were mined for the Tattoo You deluxe. So IORR Deluxe may not happen. Would love the now bootlegged demo version of the title track brought to better fidelity if a IORR box is feasible in the future. Thanks for making the case for a deluxe box/ new mix Justin.
This album is special, it's not the best, but I have a special attachment to it. For me, it represents the dark side of the 70s! Listening to this album is like watching the movies Dirty Harry or Death Wish. Full 70s!!! And yes, Fingerprint File is a masterpiece. One of the best Stones songs ever. And at number 2, If You Can't Rock Me. I love it!!!
😢😢Ronnie Wood’s 1974 “I’ve Got My Own Album to Do” is sort of a ‘Sister album’ to “IORR”. Sure The One you Need and Act Together appear along with some Great Jagger duet vocals on tracks including I Can Feel the Fire are seemingly swapped for the song It’s Only Rock and Roll….
Very perceptive and well done. I think IYRWTBMF is too often under-rated. Also I’d truncate DLS with a hard ending vs fade out. You’re dead on about the mix. And Luxury is an unappreciated classic like Hand of Fate. Keep these reviews coming!
For anyone who likes If You Really Want to be My Friend, seek out the unreleased song Fast Talking, Slow Walking. There are a few differing version out there. That song is the theme/idea taking another direction.
Wow, that was a pretty low rating for an album that I categorically place amongst their best. Regardless of how it sounds, the songwriting and performances are too great. Other big name artists wished they could’ve produced an album this good. I wouldn’t have included “Short and Curlies,” but the song is pretty damn funny. I can’t help but laugh at that juvenile humor. The other song I would’ve axed is “Ain’t Too Proud to Beg,” but only to then include the “Drift Away” cover. Sure, it is a very faithful cover, but damn it does it sound great. Because they seemingly choose things at random, I wouldn’t be surprised if we get a remix of the album sooner rather than later. There probably won’t be any anniversary attached to it, though.
I could never get into Fingerprint File. On the flip side I like Short and Curlies. I agree it’s kind of a silly song but I love the flow of the song, if that makes any sense? I’m not a musician so I don’t have the technical terms in my arsenal.
Ok so I think this album is somewhere in the middle of the Stones catalog for quality. I disagree a lot on some of your picks though😁. LUXURY is the worst …horrible. The other song I disagree on is SHORT AND CURLIES …I LOVE IT. i would put it a put number 6 probably. Like you said it is like an EXILE track…very Keith, pretty funny too! Top - TIME WAITS FOR NO ONE then ITS ONLY….I do like FINGERPRINT, great playing from everyone…I think JAGGER is doing Curtis Mayfield ala FREDDIES DEAD here. Ok thanks enjoyed it.
I pretty much agree with you except in a couple of places, "Until the Next Goodbye" is in my opinion a much better song than you give it credit. I also think "It's Only R&R" is a great song. A general criticism of the album I have is that all the songs are stretched too long. Luxury and Dance Little Sister would be excellent songs if they were consolidated better. I agree Short and Curlies is terrible. Maybe one their all time worst. Here's how I would rank each of the songs from 1 to 10. IF YOU CAN'T ROCK ME 8 AIN'T TO PROUD TO BEG 8 IT'S ONLY ROCK N ROLL (BUT I LIKE IT) 10 TILL THE NEXT GOODBYE 7 TIME WAITS FOR NO ONE 10 LUXURY 6 DANCE LITTLE SISTER 6 IF YOU REALLY WANT TO BE MY FRIEND 6 SHORT AND CURLIES 3 FINGERPRINT FILE 10 That's a really solid album. That averages to 7.4, so a 3.9 on a scale of five. We're not too far off. And if you take Short and Curlies out it would average to 7.9.
It's ironic that the popular tune on this album has Kenny Jones on skins..he has the Charlie feel by placebo effect ..I found out about it from Wikipedia tho....btw, Brian Jones never inspired the glimmers twins, never M Taylor, only Ronnie.
There are killer live versions of Dance Little Sister and Luxury on the Live at the El Mocambo CD that was released last year. I kept waiting for Fingerprint File with every song after Short and Curlies, but it never came. I personally rank it almost at the bottom. I always felt that the funk groove of the song was a bit too simple (they would do a much better job with funk on songs from Black and Blue, Some Girls and Emotional Rescue) and that Mick J's rap was at best disingenuous and at worst, downright comical. Overall, I liked this album a tiny bit better than Goats Head Soup, but nowhere near as much as Exile and Sticky Fingers.
For me, ths is a good-but not great-album, & like Goat Head Soup, the problem is the production. But, this is Mick & Keith’s first time producing an album on their own, so that can be forgiven. I would love if they released a remasterd & expanded version of it as they did with Goat Head Soup. Like that expanded release, I might lke it much better. Also, the versions of these songs on Love You Live are much better.
Top 2. 1. Till the Next Goodbye 2. Dance Little Sister One of the best-sounding records. Glimmer Twins did a great job until they quit after Undercover. After that, their productions don't sound like the real Stones that I love.
![NISAMANEE - TADA (ท้าดา) [ OFFICIAL MV ]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/hcQHEPMmJpU/mqdefault.jpg)
Oops, really needed to mention that my rating is out of 5 stars 😊 ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Fingerprint File IS one of the BEST Stones songs ever.
Great album like Goats, Short and Curlies and great piano wise. Funny lyrics. Time waits-Brilliant, Till the next time-Excellent- Luxury, If you really want...........all Great tracks, Fingerprint....
I've been listening to this album since I got it in December 1974, and your review is dead on, with one exception. Time Waits for No One may be the single most beautiful Stones song ever.
She's got you by the ball! She's got your name, she's got your number, she's screaming like thunder! LOL!
I gotta say, I love this track
Good Night, Sleep Tight!
Short and Curlies is a great Mick Jagger joke and I love it because it always put a smile on my face!!!
Very underrated album. Always loved it.
FINGERPRINT FILE! I broadly agree with your list and absolutely concur with you on the number one. Superb track - and what a great ending.
My ranking (posted before I watch the video). No bad songs on this album.
10. Short and Curlies
9. Ain't Too Proud to Beg
8. If You Really Want to Be My Friend
7. Luxury
6. Till the Next Goodbye
5. Dance Little Sister
4. It's Only Rock 'n Roll (But I Like It)
3. Fingerprint File
2. If You Can't Rock Me
1. Time Waits for No One
I agree with your list and your
comment: No bad songs on it
I love Till the Next Goodbye. One of the great Stones ballads.
I Love The Album❣
Short and curlies is most excellent dude
Time Waits For No One is amazing!
Could not agree more with the mixing. I always felt like I had to turn the volume up so much to hear anything, and I’m 34 haha. Like you said, hopefully a new mix will be possible in the future.
I appreciate the niche you've created by your dedication to the Stones! I've been a big fan since Satisfaction!
I agree about "Fingerprint file". A fantastic highlight, and not just of this album. Ditto for "Time waits for no-one".
Fingerprint File is my favourite on the album too. That guitar riff is everything...
I actually like Short and Curlies.... it's a fun tongue in cheek sort of song
A fun episode to list to. IORR is my 2nd fave Stones LP after Goats Head Soup. The 'murky' makes it the best. #1 Time Waits for No One #2 If You Really Want to be My Friend.
Great analysis, thanks! Dance Little Sister has always been my favorite on the album. Also really like Time Waits for No One, although I prefer the non-album version with the extended clock outro. If You Can’t Rock Me has grown on me over the years and wish they had included it more in their live set lists (in place of You Got Me Rocking). Finally, I think Through the Lonely Nights should’ve been included on the album in place of If You Really Want to Be My Friend.
Totally agree with you. 'Through the Lonely Nights' is one of the best Glimmer Twins ballad gems.
Wow. Surprise call with fingerprint file! It is a great underrated track. I don't know if I personally would rank it above time waits for no one. But great food for thought. Another thoroughly enjoyable video from hang fire!
Thanks a lot. Mission accomplished. I hope you’re happy. Now every time I hear FF I will vision you doing your impressions. Thanks a lot. Mission accomplished. I hope you’re happy.
If they dumped Black & Blue, and replaced
Short and curlies with fool to cry
Ain’t to proud to beg with hand of fate
Til the next time with memory motel
Throw Crazy Mama in there because they’re both pretty short albums.
We’d have an album that equaled GHS. GHS belongs in the same class as BB-Exile for me. BB, LIB, GYYYO, SF, EXILE, (New and improved) IORR, LYL, and SG. Not too shabby. 🙄😍
And of course #1 is Time waits for no one!! But i love your enthusiasm and impressions so i’ll let it slide for now. 😁. Thanks for your review!
My favorite Stones album, probably because I first started buying albums when this came out and my first concert was their 1975 tour.
I specifically watched this to see where you ranked Fingerprint File and I completely agree with your ranking!!! Whole heartedly agree with what you said about every song on this album.
Short and curlies may not be a good standalone track, but doesn't sound bad when listened to as the part of the album.. Totally agree on the exile flavour argument.
Great rock song!!!❤
I Love all 10 songs on this album
I consider it vastly underrated
Till the Next Time is a beautiful ballad…
Short and Curlies rocks out
I find your critiques of Stones Albums to be very strange, but then I switched off after Undercover. The Stones became a Corporation after that point…
Mick J sings beautifully on IORR he gives 100%
Hi, Justin. Yes, this is an underrated gem, imo. I mean, If You Can’t Rock Me, IORR, Fingerprint File, Luxury, Time Waits For No one, Dance Little Sister, lots of highlights, what’s not to like !Mostly agree with your ranking, though I would put If You Really Want To Be My Friend a bit higher, I really love that track. My only gripe is the sound, it could use a remix !! And on top of that, IORR has my favorite Stones album cover, so it will rank very high in my potential album ranking ! 😎🎸👍
What, anti Short and Curlies? Madness. Are you a real Stones fan? I am serious. You glow about so much of the 90s dribble and then attack this bluesy groove. Sometimes I can't figure you out my man. I get we all have our own choice, but this tune is awesome. Its always been an under rated track. .
I had this on 8 track and it was bright pink. Loved it.
Well, done video again. I must say, though time waits for no one is without a doubt my favorite on the album. Mike Taylor’s solo is just ridiculous. I really like fingerprint file and dance little sister, but I would have to move up on that list luxury and if you really wanna be my friend. I would put them over. It’s only rock ‘n’ roll just simply because I’ve heard that song so many times I’m all set with it. I would also agree with you that short and curly should never have been made. But since it was, it has to go on the bottom of the list. Great job.
I'm a little biased because IORR was the 2nd Stones album I bought when it came out - that week. (GHS was first). Short And Curlies to me is like a fun loose throwaway - maybe same kind of feeling for me as I have toward Hide Your Love - but I like it. Dance Little Sister actually I prefer the outtake with two bridges instead of just one. As you said - it becomes more of a song. IORR was only #1 for a week which back then was a bit of a failure. And still to this day doesn't have really big sales. For me, the big fault was not a big single on the album. Especially coming after JJ FLash, Honky Tonk, Brown Sugar, Angie. I'm with you IORR is a fun "classic" but really to me too, never a great studio track - really sounds like the jam that was later re-formed by Jagger and added lyrics etc. It's a classic but really not a very good single and the sales at that time kind of shows it. But really there's not a single on the album - Ain't Too Proud was as you know the 2nd single and a great original cover version. For me Time Waits For No One is near the top of my all time favorite Stones songs - play it regularly to this day. Greatest Stones lyrical guitar solo ever - the production is amazing - love the opening and closing Charlie rimshots. Jagger great vocals of course. Glimmer Twins at their best on that one. I still remember Fingerprint file live at MSG in 1975 - super one of kind as you said. Really love your summation. For me IORR doesn't hit the level of Beggars through GHS (yes through GHS) but it's still a fantastic listen. I don't dislike any song on it. But lacking that killer single.
I completely agree with you on this album Justin. Decent tunes let down by the mix. Despite that however, Fingerprint File is a monster cut, up there with their greatest.
Finally, a video on IORR! A solid album but a bit undercooked and I think it could've improved if the band kept working at it a bit longer (and added Through the Lonely Nights and Living In The Heart Of Love). I really enjoyed this video and your thoughts on each song - here's my raking from best-worst:
It's Only Rock 'n Roll (But I Like It)
Till The Next Goodbye
Ain't Too Proud To Beg
If You Can't Rock Me
Fingerprint File
Dance Little Sister
Time Waits For No One
Luxury
Short and Curlies
If You Really Want to Be My Friend
All pretty good tracks except for Short and Curlies and IFYRWTBMY (both of which I have nothing but hate for lol)
'Fingerprint File' is a forgotten brilliant track. Great vocal by Mick Jagger! Amazing funky lead bass guitar by Mick Taylor with Bill Wyman on keyboard! Mick Taylor absolutely stands out on 'Time Waits for No One', for which MT should also have part writing credit. Yes, 'If You Can't Rock Me' is a fantastic and overlooked album opener (and concert opener forgotten by Jagger and Richards) with a brilliant Keef riff, standout drumming by Charlie Watts - who thinks he is dynamite, and great lead guitar work by Mick Taylor. 'HIde Your Love' on the prior Goat's Head Soup album is another often overlooked track where Mick Taylor shines brilliantly on blues lead guitar. Overall, IORR tends to be underrated and overlooked This album is a great Rolling Stones rocker, especally to a 16 year old kid like me in 1974! All five members have great shining moments here! And I like it, yes I do!
Sticky Fingers was so good and Exile so esoteric! Goats was seen as a let down and then IORR! So So! B&B - Big departure! Some Girls! Bingo! Comeback City! ER...underrated! Tatoo You, last great Stones album! Great songs afterward spread out over the years and the ultimate concert band from '89 to present day!
Wow. We are so different on this one. I regard IORR as a classic, Till the Next Goodbye a personal favorite.
Great recap on It's Only Rock and Roll....thanks for your breakdown, Justin! Time Waits For No One is one of my all-time favourite Mick Jagger vocals! And I totally agree with you regarding Fingerprint Files! No one...NO ONE!....is cooler than Mick when he talks/emotes during the outro of that song! Fucking BRILLIANT! Thanks again for your excellent recap! Take good care, and all the best to you and yours for the Holiday Season! ♥🎵🎶
Glad you reviewed this album Justin before 2024 is gone, I've played it a million times and have the 12" picture vinyl ( rare & cool ). Love every track. In my mind its in there with all the other big 5/6 albums late 60's to mid to late 70's🕺👅🎵🎶🥁🎹🎸🎸💎🔥👏☘️👌
Forgot to say I love your take on Fingerprint File. Agree100 per cent🕺👅🎵🎶🤓👌
Ironic that I chose that album for my "music breakfast" always loved it! ...hard to chose my fave sing but your pics & critiques are great!! I have a jigsaw puzzle of the cover art, which I've never been able to complete... thaks for your work Justin!!!❤❤❤❤
Go go pleise 🎉❤
10. Short and Curlies. C- 9.Til the Next Goodbye c+.8.It's Only R N R. B+ 7.If You Can't Rock Me B+.6.Aint Too Proud To Beg.B+5 Finger Print File.A-4.Dance Little Sister A.3.Luxury A+2 Time Waits For No One. A+1. If You Really Want to Be My Friend. A+. My least favorite album by them in the 70's still gets pretty high marks. They are my all time favorite.
If you really want to be my friend ! Is brilliant and fingerprint file is sooo underrated.
I always found it interesting that Ain't Too Proud To Beg never makes it on to compilations but was a decent sized hit off this album. It would have worked great on Made In The Shade, Rewind, Jump Back, 40 Licks, GRRR or Honk, but it's always neglected.
When "Scarlet" was finally being released (I had never seen it in any bootlegs) I was sooooo looking forward to it. But then I was disappointed because it signaled to me that the Stones had no intention of having a Deluxe Expanded Edition of IORR by putting it in GHS. And then "Living in the Heart of Love" being released on Tattoo further cemented that theory. But then again, EOMS reissue had "Title 5" which clearly wasn't from the Exile years, it sounds more like it's from 1967, so maybe there is some hope. Most of my IORR boots are just different mixes, but the extended version Dance Little Sister is bitchin! I love the studio bootlegs because it's interesting to hear the process of the songs evolving.
My favorite era of the Stones is the Mick Taylor era, and IORR is dead last for the Taylor albums. Not a bad album at all, but you can tell Jimmy Miller was no longer an influence. I've always been under the impression it wasn't one thing that made Taylor quit, but a series of things happening that influenced his decision to leave...and the nail in the coffin was "Time Waits For No One." Taylor had only been credited with writing credits for (correct me if I'm wrong) "Ventilator Blues" and "Stop Breaking Down," despite being one of the driving forces behind songs like "Sway," "Moonlight Mile," and "Winter," where the only contribution by Keith was on "Sway" for backing vocals yet still received the Jagger/Richards credit. Not to mention CYHMK.
I've heard a story that Taylor was told by Jagger he would receive writing credit for TWFNO, and was quite proud of that, and was talking to either a friend or someone in the music circles or industry and was told he didn't receive credit. Not only that, but his solo was shortened and edited (OK, if this recording exists...I MUST HAVE IT!!!!) and that was the final straw. Interesting enough, 5 years later Mick Taylor would release a self-titled debut album and open with a song called "Leather Jacket" recorded as an instrumental during I think the 1970 Trident sessions (when he started collaborating AS a Rolling Stone), and ended the album with an instrumental called "Spanish A Minor" that at the 11:50 mark ends the song with the melody from TWFNO.
P.S. You forgot to mention an interesting fact. IORR is the 2nd of only 3 non-compilation studio albums to feature 6 Rolling Stones. Let it Bleed had Brian Jones and Mick Taylor...IORR has Mick Taylor and Ron Wood...Tattoo You has Mick Taylor and Ron Wood.
🌈The more you know!
I love this album!!! The Stones at their best. I hate this sentence that The best is exile e nothing after that deserves to be devoted. I mean: Goats Head Soap; IORR; Black and Blue; Some Girls; Tatoo You;… Voodoo Lounge; Bigger Bang; Hackney. There are allways terrific songs.
My P1 would be Time Waits for no one; followed By fingerpoint file, If You Can’t rock me and IORR
Off topic: Just saw an interview with Bill and he claimed he and Charlie were broke even during the big stadium tours. Did they not split the loot evenly from live performances? I know M&K were much richer from songwriting but they had very successful tours and I think B&C would get performance royalties from the endless radio plays. Been in heavy rotation for decades.
Make sure you all get the speed corrected cut of the album on CD from 2009. Fingerprint File has an even deeper slower grind groove. Love that track. As with 2000 Man, and Sympathy For The Devil, etc. it told the future….
Swap Short and Curlies for Sure The One You Need, or Living in the Heart of Love, and the album becomes closer to an higher ranked classic.
Sadly, Living….and Drifting Away, the best of the outtakes were mined for the Tattoo You deluxe. So IORR Deluxe may not happen. Would love the now bootlegged demo version of the title track brought to better fidelity if a IORR box is feasible in the future. Thanks for making the case for a deluxe box/ new mix Justin.
This album is special, it's not the best, but I have a special attachment to it. For me, it represents the dark side of the 70s! Listening to this album is like watching the movies Dirty Harry or Death Wish. Full 70s!!! And yes, Fingerprint File is a masterpiece. One of the best Stones songs ever. And at number 2, If You Can't Rock Me. I love it!!!
😢😢Ronnie Wood’s 1974 “I’ve Got My Own Album to Do” is sort of a ‘Sister album’ to “IORR”. Sure The One you Need and Act Together appear along with some Great Jagger duet vocals on tracks including I Can Feel the Fire are seemingly swapped for the song It’s Only Rock and Roll….
Tme Waits for No One is my favorite. Short and Curlies I think is a long distance cousin to AC/DC Big Balls lol
Very perceptive and well done. I think IYRWTBMF is too often under-rated. Also I’d truncate DLS with a hard ending vs fade out. You’re dead on about the mix. And Luxury is an unappreciated classic like Hand of Fate. Keep these reviews coming!
For anyone who likes If You Really Want to be My Friend, seek out the unreleased song Fast Talking, Slow Walking. There are a few differing version out there. That song is the theme/idea taking another direction.
ooow!! a-aaaaawwwright 🙂↕️🙌🙌🙌
Song 🎉❤p
Wow, that was a pretty low rating for an album that I categorically place amongst their best. Regardless of how it sounds, the songwriting and performances are too great. Other big name artists wished they could’ve produced an album this good.
I wouldn’t have included “Short and Curlies,” but the song is pretty damn funny. I can’t help but laugh at that juvenile humor. The other song I would’ve axed is “Ain’t Too Proud to Beg,” but only to then include the “Drift Away” cover. Sure, it is a very faithful cover, but damn it does it sound great.
Because they seemingly choose things at random, I wouldn’t be surprised if we get a remix of the album sooner rather than later. There probably won’t be any anniversary attached to it, though.
IORR No. 1 Luxury is No. 2 for me.
I could never get into Fingerprint File. On the flip side I like Short and Curlies. I agree it’s kind of a silly song but I love the flow of the song, if that makes any sense? I’m not a musician so I don’t have the technical terms in my arsenal.
The album is 48 minutes long. If you cut Short and Curlies , the second side flows flawlessly and the record is still 45-46 minutes.
Ok so I think this album is somewhere in the middle of the Stones catalog for quality. I disagree a lot on some of your picks though😁. LUXURY is the worst …horrible. The other song I disagree on is SHORT AND CURLIES …I LOVE IT. i would put it a put number 6 probably. Like you said it is like an EXILE track…very Keith, pretty funny too! Top - TIME WAITS FOR NO ONE then ITS ONLY….I do like FINGERPRINT, great playing from everyone…I think JAGGER is doing Curtis Mayfield ala FREDDIES DEAD here. Ok thanks enjoyed it.
I pretty much agree with you except in a couple of places, "Until the Next Goodbye" is in my opinion a much better song than you give it credit. I also think "It's Only R&R" is a great song. A general criticism of the album I have is that all the songs are stretched too long. Luxury and Dance Little Sister would be excellent songs if they were consolidated better. I agree Short and Curlies is terrible. Maybe one their all time worst. Here's how I would rank each of the songs from 1 to 10.
IF YOU CAN'T ROCK ME 8
AIN'T TO PROUD TO BEG 8
IT'S ONLY ROCK N ROLL (BUT I LIKE IT) 10
TILL THE NEXT GOODBYE 7
TIME WAITS FOR NO ONE 10
LUXURY 6
DANCE LITTLE SISTER 6
IF YOU REALLY WANT TO BE MY FRIEND 6
SHORT AND CURLIES 3
FINGERPRINT FILE 10
That's a really solid album. That averages to 7.4, so a 3.9 on a scale of five. We're not too far off. And if you take Short and Curlies out it would average to 7.9.
It's ironic that the popular tune on this album has Kenny Jones on skins..he has the Charlie feel by placebo effect ..I found out about it from Wikipedia tho....btw, Brian Jones never inspired the glimmers twins, never M Taylor, only Ronnie.
There are killer live versions of Dance Little Sister and Luxury on the Live at the El Mocambo CD that was released last year. I kept waiting for Fingerprint File with every song after Short and Curlies, but it never came. I personally rank it almost at the bottom. I always felt that the funk groove of the song was a bit too simple (they would do a much better job with funk on songs from Black and Blue, Some Girls and Emotional Rescue) and that Mick J's rap was at best disingenuous and at worst, downright comical. Overall, I liked this album a tiny bit better than Goats Head Soup, but nowhere near as much as Exile and Sticky Fingers.
Make a million for the Texans/ Twenty sollar, me.
Profound political statement.
It’s the lack of Jimmy Miller that stands out on this album
You don't like the mix? I think it's much livelier than GHS.
Boy am i stupid.........I thought they never sounded better in the studio!! I thought the mix was great :)
For me, ths is a good-but not great-album, & like Goat Head Soup, the problem is the production. But, this is Mick & Keith’s first time producing an album on their own, so that can be forgiven. I would love if they released a remasterd & expanded version of it as they did with Goat Head Soup. Like that expanded release, I might lke it much better. Also, the versions of these songs on Love You Live are much better.
Top 2.
1. Till the Next Goodbye
2. Dance Little Sister
One of the best-sounding records. Glimmer Twins did a great job until they quit after Undercover. After that, their productions don't sound like the real Stones that I love.
My favourite is luxury, funny enough mick Taylor doesn't play on it.a very good lead by keef