Mick Jagger

Mick Jagger is one of rock’s greatest singers and
songwriters. That is common knowledge. This should be: He has written and
recorded superb work outside the double-guitar tangle of the Rolling Stones, and
this collection proves it, going back to the sneering evil of 1970’s “Memo From
Turner” and climaxing with the sublime country soul of “Evening Gown,” from
1993’s Wandering Spirit. Many of these songs are about having it all and
realizing that still isn’t enough: the pneumatic rock of “God Gave Me
Everything‚” the dark jangle of “Old Habits Die Hard,” from the Alfie
soundtrack; the ironic jump of the 1992 demo “Charmed Life.” That is also a
recurring theme in Jagger’s determined R&B modernism, from the synth drums that
time-stamp 1985’s “Just Another Night”to the wiry funk of Spirit’s “Sweet
Thing” and Jagger’s pop-gospel romp with Bono, “Joy,” from 2001’s Goddess in the
Doorway. But it is in the ballads --the dynamic climb of “Don’t Call Me Up,” the
heated devotion in “Evening Gown”--where confession and exploration quietly meet
and burn. In comparison, the rarities here are straightforward fun: a 1973 soul
fling with John Lennon and a Sonny Boy Williamson cover from Jagger’s all-blues
‘92 session with L.A. band the Red Devils, which still deserves to be an album
in its own right.