POLL: Their Satanic Majesties Request--"The Stones In Another Land"

Released in December 1967, Their Satanic Majesties Request reached No. 3 in the UK and No. 2 in the US easily going gold, but its commercial performance declined rapidly. It quickly went gold but than faded under much scrutiny as being nothing more than another Sgt. Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band ripoff. Many didn't understand and accept the stones sound on this lp.

Their producer and manager Andrew Loog Oldham, already fed up with the band's lack of focus, distanced himself from them following their drug bust and finally quit, leaving them without a producer. The Stones would produce this album themselves. Producing an album much different than anything previously done with ex producer Oldham.

Keith Richards never cared to much for Majesties and has been critical of the album in later years. While he likes some of the songs "2000 Light Years From Home", "Citadel" and "She's A Rainbow", Richards stated: "the album was a load of crap".

It would be the last time the stones would explore these psychedelic grounds. The blokes would go back to rock and blues with their next lp Beggars Banquet.

From WIKIPEDIA:

Personnel:
The Rolling Stones

• Mick Jagger – lead and backing vocals, percussion
• Keith Richards – guitars, backing vocals
• Brian Jones – Mellotron, organ, guitar,flute, soprano saxophone, electric dulcimer, recorder, percussion
• Bill Wyman – bass guitar, percussion, backing vocals, lead vocals and piano on "In Another Land"
• Charlie Watts – drums, percussion,tabla

Additional personnel

• Nicky Hopkins – piano, organ,Mellotron, harpsichord
• John Paul Jones – stringarrangement on "She's a Rainbow"
• Ronnie Lane – backing vocals on "In Another Land"
• Steve Marriott – backing vocals and 12-string acoustic guitar on "In Another Land"

Richie Unterberger of AllMusic writes:

Without a doubt, no Rolling Stones album – and, indeed, very few rock albums from any era – split critical opinion as much as the Rolling Stones' psychedelic outing. Many dismiss the record as sub-Sgt. Pepperposturing; others confess, if only in private, to a fascination with the album's inventive arrangements, which incorporated some African rhythms, Mellotrons, and full orchestration. What's clear is that never before or after did the Stones take so many chances in the studio…In 1968, the Stones would go back to the basics, and never wander down these paths again, making this all the more of a fascinating anomaly in the group's discography.


Bill Wyman:

Every day at the studio it was a lottery as to who would turn up and what – if any – positive contribution they would make when they did. Keith would arrive with anything up to ten people, Brian with another half-a-dozen and it was the same for Mick. They were assorted girlfriends and friends. I hated it! Then again, so did Andrew (Oldham) and just gave up on it. There were times when I wish I could have done, too.


Mick Jagger:


There's a lot of rubbish on Satanic Majesties. Just too much time on our hands, too many drugs, no producer to tell us, "Enough already, thank you very much, now can we just get on with this song?" Anyone let loose in the studio will produce stuff like that. There was simply too much hanging around. It's like believing everything you do is great and not having any editing.


Brian Jones:


It's really like sort of got together chaos. Because we all panicked a little, even as soon as a month before the release date that we had planned, we really hadn't got anything put together. We had all these great things that we'd done, but we couldn't possibly put it out as an album. And so we just got them together, and did a little bit of editing here and there.

Singles from Their Satanic Majesties Request

1. "In Another Land"/"The Lantern"
   Released: 2 December 1967
2. "She's a Rainbow"/"2000 Light Years from Home"
   Released: 23 December 1967

Their Satanic Majesties Request »

All in all I always liked this album. Baroque pop sounding this album always left a mysterious side of the stones exposed for all to listen to.
"2000 Light Years From Home" is one of the greatest psychedelic songs ever made IMHO. Love "Citadel", Billies "In Another Land" "And Sing This Song All Together" "The Lantern." Totally dig the album cover.


The Rolling Stones - Their Satanic Majesties Request (Full Album) (Deluxe Edition): The Rolling Stones - Their Satanic Majesties Request (Full Album) (Deluxe Edition) - YouTube »


Their Satanic Majesties Request - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia »

An underappreciated album by most critics but loved by many fans alike. An odd album that has gained much appreciation and discussion over the near 50 years since its release.

Please share your knowledge, stories about this odd gem.

Now as Mick, Keith and Brian would say:

On With The Show!

 

What a turd On With The Show...is.

 

2000 Man
2000 Lights year's from Home
She's A Rainbow

 

Fantastic album from start to finish, really unique in the Stones catalogue. It has aged very well and might sound better today than it did in 1967 . They might have replaced "Sing This All Together (See What Happens)" with "We Love You" and "Dandelon" but the meandering is part of this album's appeal. Took me ages to find the hidden Beatles' heads on the sleeve..

 

The Beatles -Sgt Pepper
Last trk> A Day In The Life
The Rolling Stones-TSMR
Last trk > On With The Show.
Monty Python catch phrase springs to mind ' Say no more'.

 

2000 Man
She's a Rainbow
The Lantern

 

This would have been much harder if "We Love You" and "Dandelion" were on the list. My top three are definitely "Citadel" which my band performed for a string of shows, "2000 Light Years From Home," and "The Lantern." Brazilian Mac Rybell may have done the best Stones cover ever (IMO ).

 

I can't pick 3, I can come up with 2.

"She's a Rainbow"
"2000 Light Years from Home"

Most kids around here looked at this record as a pathetic attempt to match "Sgt. Pepper".
Most thought The Stone were threw but they kicked us all in the a$$ with "Jumpin' Jack Flash".

 

My favourite Stones album.

Citadel
2000 Light Years From Home
Gomper (because I always like to back an underdog)

 

...a great soundtrack for a "Fantasy" or"science fiction" film...in any case a good album...!

 

An atypical Stones album by any measure, but to my mind, the most interesting and risky set they ever did. If you get the chance to hear the 2003 remaster on SACD, do so. The depth and detail of the production is amazing.

 

Great album, and I've compiled "my own" version of it, which I like better.
A1 - Sing This All Together
A2 - Citadel
A3 - 2000 Man
A4 - Dandelion
A5 - In Another Land
B1 - We Love You
B2 - The Lantern
B3 - Gomper
B4 - She's a Rainbow
B5 - Sing This All Together (reprise)
B6 - 2000 Light Years From Home

 

I agree...

 

+ 1

All of it, but if I have to pick:

'She's A Rainbow'
'The Lantern'
'2,000 Light Years from Home'

It's also a favourite of Andy Partridge which is a good enough endorsement for me.....

 

Got tbe Original UK Stereo ( alas not the mono)very underrated, only let down with a couple of turds on the run.

 

I'm kinda glad it's not overloaded with overplayed hits.

 

The Stones' greatest album (their second greatest is Let It Bleed.) A million times better than the wretched and horrifically overrated Beggar's Banquet.

 

Chose Citadel, Lantern, and 2000 LYFH. In Another Land, 2000 Man, and Gomper would be the next three after those.

 

I guess that's exactely what would have happened if "Satanic Majesties" would have had a dedicated US tracklist. Shame that this is the first Stones album not to have one, would have loved an alternate version of this album.

 

Great album. Citadel is a particular favourite of mine but they are all good except for In Another Land. As a poster said earlier, it has worn well, unlike you-know-which album.

 

A Stones album, that appealed to another listening group.The Kraut and Prog-Rock, Psychedelic music nerds like me. I had access to most Stones albums, but the only one I borrowed out for longer was this one. Became one of my first CDÄs later on and by now I got various pressings + remasters in my iTunes folder. Even after diging The Stones much more this remains special. The artwork alone is so FAR OUT. Must be one of - if not - the dopest artwork of all LP's released by a big Rock group. icking weaker trax makes nort muh sense, since it is a part of a concept, not a compilation of single its but I went with 4,5 and ten

 

I just picked two - Citadel, my favorite, and She's A Rainbow. If I picked a third it would have been 2,000 Light Years From Home.