Shine A Light - Rolling Stones (The)

Author's product rating:   

Originality	Definitely a cut above the rest
Lyrics	Thought-provoking
Quality and consistency of tracks	A couple of weak links
How does it compare to the artist's other releases	Good
Value for Money	Satisfactory

Advantages:	great
Disadvantages:	their are some filler tracks, and some tracks good guitar and singing quality is not so good

Recommend to potential buyers:

yes

Full review

rolling stones shine a light

this compact disc was performed by the rolling stones at the beacon theatre in new york. i believe that not all the songs contained on the compact disc were all taken from the film; i think that some of the songs were taken from different live events from the bands most recent american tour. the album has two discs and contains twenty two tracks, two of which are non musical as you will find out.

1 jumping jack flash 4:22 -being the first track on this compact disc is of much interest as it has always been one of my favourites. in the track the rolling stones are introduced to the stadium by the master of ceremonies, and later martin scorsese is heard saying "first song".

the track begins by the introduction guitar notes from keith richards and seconds later some soft drum beats from charlie watts are heard. the main guitar rhythm is frequently played throughout the song. The vocals done by mick jagger are super, having lost none of his passion for singing.

their is also good back up support from Keith and the back up singers when the lyrics are spoken " its alright now, its jumping jack flash, its a gas gas gas". some of this song is largely repetitive, though listening to it many times i cannot fault it. i would however find this is their most musically best version of this song, and i believe that this version of it cannot be beaten in terms of performance quality. previous versions seemed to focus on a more accoustic style, and at other times it was played much harder resulting in a comparatively ordinary and perhaps less great outcome. rating 8/10

2 shattered 4:06 - This song starts with a few chords, and then Jagger repeats the lyric shattered, time after time. this song falls short in terms of impressiveness compared to the first song. 6/10

3 she was hot 4:44 - an older track played more in a fast country and western style. great accompaniment from keith richards, ronnie wood guitar, and organ sounds. good song though not a great. 5/10

4 all down the line 4:35 - similar to she was hot in terms of playing fast style beats and the lead guitar. jagger is accompanied singing via a team of back up singers. their is also a hint of saxophone. 5/10

5 loving cup (with jack white III) 4:02 - this song i have never heard before though relies mainly on Jaggers singing, there is soft drum beats along with piano notes. keith richards at chorus times of the song follows in with some mistimed back up vocal singing. this is more of a filler track. 4/10

6 as tears go by 3:31 - much more or of an older rolling stones song's. this is much more of a ballad music song that sounds rather soppy in terms of lyrics and in presentation. i feel this song is contradictory to the rolling stones, rock and roll traditional pure rock and roll tracks. 6/10

7 some girls 4:19 - no comment

8 just my imagination 6:39 - well the way the band played this song was just terrific, the introduction music to the song did not disappoint. the vocals were varied and great in performance. their are saxophone high notes during when mick jagger also reaches with the high pitched notes. the variation from deep singing and high tones is amazing to hear, the main chorus is jazz based sax tunes which provides the icing on the cake on this track. 8/10

9 faraway eyes 4:37 - this song has a country and western feel to it. unoriginal in that it focuses on rolling stone's usual music theme of girls, sex, drugs. though what makes it another great song is that it combines a slow build up, a much more better performance and a song that i have never heard before with some mistimed back up singing from keith richards, at the end of this track jagger says to his fellow band members "thanks cracker head's". 7.5/10

10 champagne and reefer (with buddy guy) 5:58 - an old jazz song that included a guest performance by legendary buddy guy. this is a man who overshadows all of the rolling stones in terms of musical legendary status based on history. this particular track is an awesome performance a true joy to hear. the singing from jagger and buddy guy, also with lead guitars and the jazz guitar, harmonica, drums, all combine well. by hearing this song alone, buddy guy gets his guitar and his loud singing prowess even better known. 10/10 excellent

11 tumbling dice - 4:24 - relies heavily on mike jagger's singing and lead guitar.

12 band introduction's - 1:39 lead back up singer lisa fisher, bernard fowler bonnie chaplin, also a number of musicians that play saxophone, trumbone and trumpet. keyboard chuck lavelle, bass guitar darrell jones, guitar ronnie wood, drum's charlie watt's, guitar keith richards. this band introduction included a speech whereby jagger introduces the band by name and charlie watts saying "hallo" to the audience, and keith richards saying a few words. this part of the album is not musically of any importance though as it was part of the movie and in front of a live stage audience that I guess it had to be included. no rating necessary.

13 you got the silver - 3:21 performed by keith richards in a solo effort, the singer plays a banjo sounding guitar this time and contains many rhyming lyrics. this song lacks depth or real purpose musically, though for a solo effort, it is really good. 7/10

14 connection - 3:30 keith richards is the lead singer in this song, this sounds rhythm and blues in musical type, and is well performed. this is likely to be more of a filler song, or to provide mick jagger with a tea break. 5/10

15 martin scorsese Introductions 0:12 - this introduction is rather irrelevant musically.

disc two

1 sympathy for the devil 5:56 -

2 live with me (With Christina Aguilera) 3:54 great performance especially with christina aguilera.

3 start me Up 4:05 - does not need explanation, fast introduction guitar and drumming introduction with the famous lyrics "start me up". bass guitar from darryl jones really serves this song well. one criticism of this track along with some of the other tracks on this compact disc is that this song in particular does not sound so fluently in singing, and as a result the track suffers slightly as a result.

4 brown sugar 5:25 an all time rolling stones great track, impressive, and this appears to be an extended version of the song. it contains the well known saxophone playing.

5 i can't get no satisfaction 5:37 another of the better known tracks, full of guitar, and singing by mick jagger, trumpet and trombone musical sounds throughout. this song arguably contains slightly controversial lyrics during the song where the lyrics mention "girl reaction", along with the smoking of cigarettes.

6 paint it black 4:28 a track first produced in 1966 where it hit number one in both the united kingdom and in america. this is sung by mick jagger, accompanied largely with an organ that has a middle eastern type sound throughout. the song also includes slight. backing vocals and a mellow drum banging beat.

7 little tanda 4:09 one of the lesser known stones tracks. as soon as I heard the lyrics "she is my little rock and roll", i soon remembered the lyrics and as it is sang by keith richards, it is a nice melody song, combining many instruments with good variation.

8 im free 3:30 as this track is the penultimate of the album it made for a great finale to a very pleasing album. it also went to prove that the Rolling Stones are free to do whatever they want. as a reflection on the album as a whole, who can argue with them? especially with this track.

9 shine a light 4:05 - aptly named after the band's music video shown at the cinema in april 2008. the track has a much more nineteen eightees feel to it, and is included from another stones live album.

the good points that i noticed from this album and having seen the shine a light 2008 movie was that undoubtedly the rolling stones despite their age still possess the high ability to entertain on stage and on compact discs.

the bad points were that keith richards and the lead guitar were not up to the highest standards. at times the backup up singing from keith richards was mis timed and did not sound well. i think the age and health might have played its part here. though these disadvantages for do not really carry too much criticism considering the overall great music quality.

i certainly enjoy listening to the Stones seemingly more than any other rock and roll band. an comact disc that is worth buying that is suitable for any rolling stones fan. this compact disc is available to own for around six Pounds on Amazon marketplace, and widely available at good record shops.