The Rolling Stones- Goat's Head Soup song-by-song discussion!

Just a personal footnote on GHS. There are a handful of albums I distinctly remember buying. By that I mean, I recall the day as if I am watching a movie. I bought this album at Korvettes on Main Street in Flushing NY. I would change buses on Main St every day traveling to my HS. Most of us in High School weren't flush with cash and every record purchase was carefully planned. I was discovering so much great music at this time. I would think for a week about which album by which band I could no longer live without. GHS was carefully considered and won out over three or so other finalists. I loved it then and probably love it more now for those memories. This would have been been 5 years after its release. Back then we only heard the cuts that would be played on local radio , much of this was fresh listening if you didn't have a buddy with a particular album. I think that may be forgotten in the passage of time. There are certainly Stones albums I reach for more often but this one will always have a special spot for me.

 

My kind of post. Love this. Thank you!

 

Dancing With Mr. D is just a failed attempt. Yes, there are decent things about the song. But the Stones had been there before to much greater affect. A band producing an inferior copy of itself is always going to come off poorly. Not a fan of the chorus hook "Dancing with Mr. D...... Mr. D..... ", just not a good hook.

Now Do Do Do Do Do, familiar enough type of Stones song, but it's original enough, good enough to work. Stones hadn't done a committed ballad like Angie for a long time, I like that one. Silver Train sounds like an Exile outtake, but it's all right. "Starbucker"... juvenalia. Ooh, we swore. Another failure.

I actually don't mind the production the way some people do. But failing with the first and last song, I have to take off a lot of points for that.

 

Silver Train was started at the Sticky Fingers sessions.

 

Hell, it was one of the more creative periods..."out of ideas" my butt!

Nothing can top Bill's classic eyeroll in the "Start Me Up" video

That is true...it took a while for me to warm to the song (and the album in general)

Okay, @Clanceman , yer in charge of the Some Girls song-by-song discussion!

Awesome

My gawd...what in the name of sweet chocolate christ were they thinking there?! And people say Dirty Work is a bad album cover...

I've been kicking it around the last day or two, @John Fell but how would you fancy doing the Sticky Fingers song-by-song?

Give me an hour or so, gang, I'll lash together the "100 Years Ago" write up.

 

This is the only Taylor/Wood era Lp up to Undercover I never heard as a complete LP until much later in life. I had Made In The Shade, so knew those songs. I had a copy of Winter I taped off the radio about '79. No idea why our local AM station played that track late at night in an otherwise Top 40 playlist. Must have been the DJ's pick. I used to play that cassette quite a bit to hear it. First exposure to the album came in the CD era via a drummer mate who always had it on constant rotation, so I feel like I know the album intimately through osmosis Dr D is therefore fresh for me still. Like an undiscovered classic. I like its 'voodoo' groove too. (actually slow druggy sound.as above .is a better description). And it's easy to tune out the lyrics which seem more about maintaining The Stones 'transgressive' persona than anything else to connect with.

 

From Wiki:

"100 Years Ago" is a song by the Rolling Stones featured on their 1973 album Goats Head Soup.

Credited to Mick Jagger and Keith Richards, guitarist Mick Taylor said at the time of its release, "Some of the songs we used (for the album) were pretty old. '100 Years Ago' was one that Mick [Jagger] had written two years ago and which we hadn't really got around to using before."[1] The song is described by Tom Maginnis in his review as having a, "wistful air with a country lilt... before making several tempo shifts into a funky, sped-up groove..." The song's lyrics see Jagger reflect on aging;

Now all my friends is wearing worried smiles, Living out a dream of what they was; Don't you think it's sometimes wise not to grow up?

Went out walkin' through the wood the other day; Can't you see the furrows in my forehead? What tender days, we had no secrets hid away; Now it seems about a hundred years ago

The song then veers into a distinctive breakdown, slowing considerably before Jagger begins singing a verse in a noticeable drawl, before speeding back-up and turning into a funk jam of sorts.

Recording took place at Kingston's Dynamic Sound Studios in November and December, 1972, with a final mix conducted in June 1973. Jagger performs lead vocals and is accompanied by Taylor on backing. Taylor performs the song's guitars while Keith Richards and Charlie Watts perform bass and drums, respectively. Nicky Hopkins provides piano while Billy Preston performs clavinet.

"100 Years Ago" was only played on the first two performances of European Tour of 1973, and has not been performed live since.


Keno’s site sez:

100 YEARS AGO

Recording Dates: November 25 - December 21, 1972; Final mix; June 1973. Released on Goat's Head Soup in 1973.
Lead Vocal: Mick Jagger Backing Vocals: Mick Jagger & Mick Taylor Electric Guitars: Mick TaylorDrums: Charlie Watts Bass: Bill Wyman Piano: Nicky Hopkins Clavinet: Billy Preston


100 YEARS AGO
(M. Jagger/K. Richards)

Went out walkin' through the wood the other day
And the world was a carpet laid before me
The buds were bursting and the air smelled sweet and strange
It seemed about a hundred years ago

Mary and I, we would sit upon a gate
Just gazin' at some dragon in the sky
What tender days we had no secrets hid away
Well, it seemed about a hundred years ago

Now all my friends is wearing worried smiles
Living out a dream of what they was
Don't you think it's sometimes wise not to grow up?

Went out walkin' through the wood the other day
Can't you see the furrows in my forehead?
What tender days, we had no secrets hid away
Now it seems about a hundred years ago

Now if you see me drinkin' bad red wine
Don't worry 'bout this man that you love
Don't you think it's sometimes wise not to grow up?

You're gonna kiss and say good-bye, yeah, I warn ya
You're gonna kiss and say good-bye, yeah, I warn ya
You're gonna kiss and say good-bye, oh Lord, I warn ya
Please excuse me while I hide away

Call me lazy bones
Ain't got no time to waste away
Lazy bones ain't got no time to waste away
Don't you think, don't you think, it's just about time to hide away? Yeah, yeah!

Oh kiss me, kiss me
Kiss me baby, good-bye, yeah
Good-bye, yeah, good-bye, yeah, good-bye, yeah
Come on, kiss me
Yeah, your gonna kiss me baby - bye
I warn ya, I warn ya, I warn ya I warn ya, I warn ya!

(NOTE TO KENO: Bill doesn't play bass on this track, Keith does!)

 

"100 Years Ago" is my favourite song on the album. Everything comes together nicely on this track- Jagger's wistful lyric, Nicky's piano, Keith and Charlie's rhythm section...but the real stars here are Mick Taylor and Billy Preston, whose contributions on guitar and clavinet respectively pretty much make the song. Just put the faster section at the end where Taylor and Preston really get cooking on a loop and I be good to go!

 

"100 Years Ago" is great song and it would have fitted well on Exile - with that magical Exile sound. I think the song is badly placed as track 2. I see it more of a towards the end track.
Larvly guitar from Mr. Taylor!

 

I have never been as much a fan of 100 Years Ago as some people. The 'lazy bones" section seemed sort of lame to me. Mick Taylor and Billy Preston dominate the song and Taylor's solos are good. Mick Taylor handles all the guitars on this as Keith plays bass since Bill Wyman was again unavailable. Nicky Hopkins also appears on this one so both keyboardists appear on the song. Martin Elliott's book assumes that Preston's parts were overdubbed later. I read that Stevie Wonder's song Superstition was released shortly before this was recorded and it might have given the Stones the idea to have Billy add the clavinet to the song as they were fans of the song and it prominently features the clavinet.

 

Just popped in to say that "GOATS HEAD SOUP" has been a favourite of mine since I was a child of 5 and my Dad played it for me - I wouldn't change a single note and I cherish my original UK vinyl. Brilliant heady, psychedelic voodoo music that rocks my world every time.

The Stones are in a whole 'nother class. 1972 at its finest here.

And I LOVE the sleeve!

 

100 Years Ago:

And now onto Track Two, 100 Years Ago, a more reflective track.
The song starts with with Billy's clavinet with Nicky's piano following suit, Mick starts at :02, painting a scene of a calm, serene environment where he and Mary (Marianne Faithful) would walk and take in the scene and just feel joy, and then Keith and Charlie come in at :19, and I love you Bill, but Keith totally nails it here, he has a strong groove here, and of course, he and Charlie have that synergy that can never be with another guitarist or drummer, you can see why they wanted Charlie so badly in the early days, and hiring him was one of the best decisions Mick, Keith, or Brian ever made. The way this track has that mellow country/funk feel is just brilliant, and of course the way it goes slower at 2:02 is great, and oh my god, that outro, that outro, THAT OUTRO, THAT ****ING OUTRO at 2:34 is just orgasmic, the way Taylor and Billy work off each other, both playing to each other's strengths, duking it out with each other, and Mick is just howling, the words mean what, who knows, but it just has passion and lust, almost like the frustration of knowing those passionate and intimate moments are gone and can never be recaptured. At least, that's what I get from it. It's kind of like Layla in reverse, with the softer beginning of mourning and regret, and the firey end of passion and lust. This song is absolute brilliance, one of my top 5 all time Stones songs, I give it Brussels on a scale of one to ten!!!!!

 

I have always enjoyed this song - it's a bit different for a Stones song - more of a Mick song obviously with some Billy Preston influence. I like the "lazy bones" section and I've always enjoyed Beck's song "Jackass" as a result as I feel he lifted the phrase "lazy bones" from this song ("when I wake ups someone will sweep up my lazy bones"). It's a song with several segments to it - the standard verse/chorus structure, the "lazy bones" section and the final funked up ending. It's different from anything on Exile - or any other Stones record for that matter). It's the sound of the band shifting gears and exploring different song ideas and sounds.

 

Considering we just talked about an album where many of us bitched about Billy, gotta say, I have no complaints about him on this record, and I think this and the last two records show to trick to Billy: he's fun in small doses.

 

100 Years Ago is an absolute stellar track!! The hidden gem of the album!

The Stones were great at changing gears in a song and the ending of this one makes me tap my toe everytime!!!! Look no further for proof of what Taylor brought to the table!!!

I wish they had kept it in the 73 tour set list. It would have been smoking by Brussels!!!

 

Fantastic story! What other records did this one beat out on that trip to Korvettes?

 

I'm not even going to look back in the thread...just glad I missed what was likely the standard trashing of "Dancing With Mr. D", which I (the minority here) still say is a great opener and a great track overall.

That said, I cannot say enough good things about "100 Years Ago". Like the rest of the album it has that hangover vibe, but in a good way. Made me feel happily sentimental the very first time I heard it. Sentimental for what? I have no idea, but I loved it.

 

No question, the outro bit is one of my favourite pieces of Stones music ever, I've got a few pleasant memories involving that bit of music which I won't get into here...

It didn't occur to me until years after the fact but when I was a kid my mum would wake me up singing "Lazybones..." which she probably got from this very song.

We'll start coming down again on Tuesday.

 

I love the sound of the amplifiers in Mr D, that in itself make this the right opener.

 

That is true, you can sort of hear Keith's amp in the intro, can't you?

 

I do like this album, and liked it more once I was able to stop trying to compare the "other" albums of artists I love to their best albums. I completely agree that the overall murkiness hurts the album's reputation, as it sometimes sounds like a cassette copy of the original version. ha

100 Years Ago is a monster track to me. Easily on my shortlist of Best Little-Known Stones songs. I love the lyrics and of course the outro jam between Preston and Taylor.

 

“100 Years Ago” is a great track, and I love the performances by Mick Taylor and Billy Preston on clarinet on the outro . GHS sounds good to me primarily because of these underrated moments. The interplay between piano and acoustics on “Angie”, Taylor’s gorgeous slide on “Winter”, Keith’s fragile lead vocal on “Coming Down Again”, or “Hide Your Love”, which is basically a four minute excuse to let Taylor and Keith (? On bass) run around the frets.

 

My only issue with 100 Years Ago is that the outro wasn't extended for another minute or ten.

 

Yes that outro deserves the CYHMK treatment!!!!!!!!!!!!