Neil: In an unprecedented return, rock giants The Rolling Stones released a new single, “Living in a Ghost Town,” on April 23rd without any warning- following them postponing upcoming dates of their No Filter tour due to the ongoing Coronavirus pandemic. It’s a sign they’ve made some headway on new music they’ve supposedly been chipping away at for years, since their last original music 8 years ago, “Doom and Gloom” & “One More Shot” off their 2012 greatest hits collection “GRRR!” In a world of face-mask fashion and stay-at-home Instagram Challenges, guitarist Keith Richards called up producer Don Was last month and decided it was time to release Ghost Town to the world. Frontman Mick Jagger felt the same, and later told Apple Music’s Zane Lowe how they got the track release-ready over these past few weeks. Said Jagger, ‘Well I’ve got to rewrite it.’ Some of it is not going to work and some of it was a bit weird and a bit too dark... I didn’t have to rewrite very much, to be honest.” The original cut was recorded out in LA last year, while reworking was done remotely between Was, Jagger, and Richards in true COVID fashion.
The song itself screams “The Rolling Stones”: it’s not exactly a departure in any sense, but who the hell’s complaining? It’s not a rip-off of their hits either- the vocal is raw, like you’d expect from Mick Jagger, but not the piercing howl on songs like “Jumpin’ Jack Flash” or “Doom and Gloom.” Drummer Charlie Watts is conservative with the sticks, and the drums take a quiet but interesting role on the track with a Motown groove that wants to be disco (à la the Temptations’ Papa Was a Rolling Stone.) Guitarists Keith Richards and Ronnie Wood complement each other with a couple minimalist licks and chant behind Jagger’s vocal and harmonica line in a classic Stones arrangement. In fact, It sounds a ton like the disco-inspired Miss You off of 1978’s Some Girls.
It’s pretty freaky that the Stones found a song so fitting of the situation- like Richards told Lowe, “It’s sort of eerie when suddenly it’s coming to life,” he said. “I mean the ghost comes to life…” It’s equally impressive though, how the Stones are attempting to break into a market of listeners two generations removed from the kids that filled up London blues clubs in those early years. The album cover itself could be a single from any 2020 pop act with the whole neon aesthetic, if you didn’t recognize the tongue slapped on it. The trippy, synth-supported chorus might pull a couple of teenage ears a little closer too. It’s this type of evolution that makes you look at four seventy-somethings from London and think to yourself “Shoot- these old dogs still got it!”
Overall Grade: 8/10 Points for keeping it simple, consistent with the time, and writing an all-around strong return. There’s something for everyone. However, it’s pretty predictable as a Stones single and lacks punch with its mellow vibe, but makes up for it with a solid instrumental performance.
Photo: People.com
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