The Second Coming: The Rolling Stones Live 1966-7

Let The Airwaves Flow 2 : Melbourne, Paris and London 1966-67 – The Rolling Stones

Side One

1. Introduction / The Last Time (Jagger, Richard)
2. Mercy, Mercy (Covay, Miller)
3. She Said Yeah (Jackson, Christy)
4. Play With Fire (Jagger, Richard)
5. Not Fade Away (Hardin, Petty)
6. That’s How Strong My Love Is (Jamison)
7. Get Off My Cloud (Jagger, Richard)
8. (I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction (Jagger, Richard)
9. She Smiled Sweetly (Jagger, Richard)

Side Two

1. Paint It, Black (Jagger, Richard)
2. 19^th Nervous Breakdown (Jagger, Richard)
3. Lady Jane (Jagger, Richard)
4. Get Off My Cloud (Jagger, Richard) / Yesterday’s Papers (Jagger, Richard)
5. Ruby Tuesday (Jagger, Richard)
6. Let’s Spend The Night Together (Jagger, Richard)

Side One

Tracks 1 – 8 recorded live at the Palais Theatre, Melbourne for Radio 3 UZ on February 24^th 1966

Track 9 recorded live for the Eamonn Andrews Show, ABC TV, February 5^th 1967

Side Two

Recorded live at the Olympia, Paris for RTL Radio on April 11th 1967

Mick Jagger – lead vocals, harmonica

Brian Jones – guitar

Keith Richard – guitar, backing vocals

Bill Wyman – bass

Charlie Watts – drums

Following on from Let The Airwaves Flow 1 this second volume continues to highlight the live prowess of The Rolling Stones during the Brian Jones-era. As we move towards 1967 we see the Stones dispensing with the r’n’b and soul classics they had been playing since 1962, replacing them with increasingly commercial original material written by Jagger/Richard.

The absence of Brian Jones in the writing credits is highly significant, and although he remained the focus of attention in live shows, Brian Jones central position within the Stones was fatally undermined by his inability to write songs. By 1965 tough pop classics such as The Last Time, Heart Of Stone, Get Off My Cloud and Satisfaction were rolling off the Jagger/Richard pop production line. However Jones still had a major part to play live, as shown by his intricate guitar part on Play With Fire from Melbourne in 1966. With immense lyrical irony the version of Satisfaction from this session is interrupted by an advert for Salco shirts “for the young man who agrees to pay less for the best.”

1967 saw the Stones return in triumph to the Olympia in Paris where they delivered a swaggering set of self-penned pop classics, with not a cover version in sight. Jagger’s every utterance provoked extensive screaming. The Wyman / Watts rhythm section exhibited remarkable versatility, from driving neo-psyche thumpers such as 19th Nervous Breakdown and Paint It Black, to framing the quiet ballads of Ruby Tuesday and Lady Jane with elegance and restraint. Jones was again in his element on these numbers, adding intricate woodwind to Ruby Tuesday. Yesterday’s Papers received a rare live outing, combined here with a Get Off My Cloud that featured highly complementary guitars from Richard and Jones.

Finally an added bonus track: the Stones live on British television in early 1967 performing the rarely-heard She Smiled Sweetly for (of all people) Eamonn Andrews.

Sadly this was as good as it got for the initial version of the band. Throughout the summer of 1967 sustained police activity broke Brian Jones and incarcerated Jagger and Richard, resulting in the deeply sarcastic single We Love You. The remainder of 1967 was spent in Olympic very slowly recording Their Satanic Majesties Request, an LP that is best be described as of its time.

When the Stones returned to the live arena in November 1969 it would be without Jones. This new version of the Stones would eventually assume the mantle of “the greatest rock’n’roll band in the world” but not without considerable cost, both personal and artistic. No band has yet matched the live Rolling Stones of 1965-1967. That combination of road-hardened raunch and total pop sensibility was unique and irresistible. This collection demonstrates just how good they sounded.

Sleeve notes: Flowerboy Venus