Dirty Work (album)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Dirty Work | ||
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| Studio album by The Rolling Stones | ||
| Released | 24 March 1986 | |
| Recorded | 8 April - 17 June 1985, 16 July - 17 August 1985 |
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| Genre | Rock | |
| Length | 40:03 | |
| Label | Rolling Stones/Virgin | |
| Producer(s) | Steve Lillywhite and The Glimmer Twins |
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| Professional reviews | ||
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| The Rolling Stones chronology | ||
| Rewind (1971-1984) (1984) |
Dirty Work (1986) |
Steel Wheels (1989) |
Dirty Work is an album by The Rolling Stones, released in 1986. It is historically significant for having been recorded during the period whereby relations between frontman Mick Jagger and guitarist Keith Richards soured considerably.
Contents |
[edit] History
The record was designed to be a return to basic hard rock after the muted dance experiments on albums like Undercover and Emotional Rescue, though it is possible that the absence of any dance-oriented numbers on Dirty Work has to do with Mick Jagger's limited involvement in its creation.
The first album as part of their new deal with CBS Records, Dirty Work's initial sessions began in April 1985 in Paris, running for two months before breaking for a short spell. Just preceding their start, Mick Jagger had released his first solo album, She's the Boss, much to Richards' annoyance, since the latter's first priority was The Rolling Stones and he was stung that Jagger was pursuing a career as a pop star. Not surprisingly, the sessions were tense, with Jagger often away on promotional duties for his solo project while Richards recorded with Ron Wood, Bill Wyman and Charlie Watts, Jagger adding his vocal parts later on. The divide between Jagger and Richards was never more obvious on July 13, 1985 when Jagger performed a solo set at Live Aid while Richards and Wood strummed acoustic guitars behind Bob Dylan.
Charlie Watts was not as involved in the sessions due to a period of heroin and alcohol abuse. Watts told Ed Bradley on 60 Minutes in 1993 he was addicted to heroin as well as alcohol during the 1980s, and this is why replacement drummers are credited on both Undercover and Dirty Work. Steve Jordan and Anton Fig appear on tracks, as does Ron Wood, who is the drummer on the final song, the Richards' lead vocal "Sleep Tonight". Jagger would later cite Watts' personal state as one of the reasons he vetoed a tour in support of Dirty Work in 1986, preferring to start work on his second album, Primitive Cool.
As a sign of Jagger's minimal contribution to the songwriting, four of the album's eight original compositions were credited to Jagger/Richards/Wood and one to Jagger/Richards/Chuck Leavell. Only three were credited to Jagger/Richards, the lowest number since Out of Our Heads. Dirty Work is the first Rolling Stones record to feature two tracks with Richards taking lead vocal, a precedent all subsequent studio albums would follow.
Following a further month of final recording in July and August 1985 (which saw guest appearances by Jimmy Page, Bobby Womack and Tom Waits), co-producer Steve Lillywhite supervised several weeks of mixing and the creation of 12 inch remixes. On December 12, the Rolling Stones were all touched by a sad event. Ian Stewart, their long-time road manager and pianist, died suddenly of a heart attack at the age of 47. In remembrance of their friend, a hidden track of Stewart playing Big Bill Broonzy's "Key to the Highway" would be included following the prophetically titled "Sleep Tonight".
In March 1986, The Rolling Stones' cover of "Harlem Shuffle" (their first lead single from a studio album not to be a Jagger/Richards original since the earliest days of the band) was released to a receptive audience, reaching #13 in the UK and #5 in the US, though it did not receive the same amount of exposure as previous hits. The follow-up single "One Hit (to the Body)" was a Top 30 hit and featured a revealing video of Jagger and Richards seeming to trade blows.
Dirty Work was released a week after "Harlem Shuffle", reaching #4 in the UK and the US (going platinum there), but the critical reaction was less than enthusiastic. Many reviewers felt the album was slight in places, with weak, generic hard rock songwriting from Richards and Wood and puzzlingly abrasive vocals from Jagger. Many felt as though Jagger was saving his best material for his solo records, though the critical reaction to those heavily-produced records was muted as well.
Dirty Work's critical standing has not improved over the years, in part because it lacks any notable hits, and in part because of the plastic, recognizeably mid-80s production. To this day, the album — the product of a band not functioning together at all — is regarded as perhaps the weakest Rolling Stones record. It is noteworthy for being the only Rolling Stones album not to feature on the band's 2002 retrospective, Forty Licks.
Breaking with Rolling Stones tradition, the album contained a lyric sheet, apparently at the insistence of CBS Records, who also pushed for the atypical colorful band-photo cover. (Rewind, a greatest hits album released a year earlier, also contained a lyric sheet, as have several subsequent greatest hits and live albums, and all Stones studio albums.) The album was also noteworthy as the first major release to be issued simultaneously on compact disc.
In 1994, Dirty Work was remastered and reissued by Virgin Records.
[edit] Track listing
All songs by Mick Jagger and Keith Richards, except where noted.
- "One Hit (to the Body)" (Mick Jagger/Keith Richards/Ron Wood) – 4:44
- Featuring Jimmy Page on guitar and Bobby Womack on backing vocals
- "Fight" (Mick Jagger/Keith Richards/Ron Wood) – 3:09
- "Harlem Shuffle" (Bob Relf/Ernest Nelson) – 3:24
- Featuring Bobby Womack and Tom Waits on backing vocals
- "Hold Back" – 3:53
- "Too Rude" (Lydon Roberts) – 3:11
- "Winning Ugly" – 4:32
- "Back to Zero" (Mick Jagger/Keith Richards/Chuck Leavell) – 4:00
- Featuring Bobby Womack on guitar
- "Dirty Work" (Mick Jagger/Keith Richards/Ron Wood) – 3:53
- "Had It with You" (Mick Jagger/Keith Richards/Ron Wood) – 3:19
- "Sleep Tonight" – 5:11
- (hidden track) (Big Bill Broonzy/Charles Segar) – 0:33
- Track 11 is an uncredited recording of "Key to the Highway" performed by Ian Stewart, who died on 12 December 1985 just following Dirty Work's completion
[edit] Personnel
- Mick Jagger - vocals
- Keith Richards - guitars, vocals
- Ron Wood - guitar, bass guitar, drums, vocals
- Bill Wyman - bass guitar
- Charlie Watts - drums
- Matt Clifford - keyboards, piano
- Chuck Leavell - organ, piano, keyboards
- Bobby Womack - vocals
- Steve Jordan - percussion
- Anton Fig - percussion
- Ian Stewart - keyboards
- Patti Scialfa - vocals
- Ivan Neville - percussion, bass, vocals
[edit] Charts
Album
| Year | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|
| 1986 | UK Top 100 Albums | 4 |
| 1986 | The Billboard 200 | 4 |
Singles
| Year | Single | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1986 | "Harlem Shuffle" | The Billboard Hot 100 | 5 |
| 1986 | "Harlem Shuffle" | Mainstream Rock Tracks | 2 |
| 1986 | "Harlem Shuffle" | Hot Dance Music/Club Play | 4 |
| 1986 | "Harlem Shuffle" | Hot Dance Music/Maxi-Single Sales | 5 |
| 1986 | "Harlem Shuffle" | UK Top 100 Singles | 13 |
| 1986 | "Winning Ugly" | Mainstream Rock Tracks | 10 |
| 1986 | "One Hit (To The Body)" | Mainstream Rock Tracks | 3 |
| 1986 | "One Hit (To The Body)" | The Billboard Hot 100 | 28 |
| 1986 | "One Hit (To The Body)" | UK Top 100 Singles | 80 |
| The Rolling Stones |
|---|
| Mick Jagger | Keith Richards | Charlie Watts | Ron Wood |
| Former members |
| Brian Jones | Bill Wyman | Mick Taylor | Ian Stewart | Dick Taylor |
| See also |
| Chuck Leavell | Darryl Jones | Andrew Loog Oldham | Allen Klein |
| Related articles |
| Discography | The Glimmer Twins | Nanker Phelge | Rolling Stones Records | Rock and Roll Circus |
| Categories |
| The Rolling Stones | Members | Albums | Singles | Songs | Tours |
[edit] External links
- Rolling Stones DIRTY WORK DIRTY WORK Rolling Stones
- [1] Stylus Magazine article defending Dirty Work
| The Rolling Stones |
|---|
| Mick Jagger | Keith Richards | Charlie Watts | Ron Wood |
| Former members |
| Brian Jones | Bill Wyman | Mick Taylor | Ian Stewart | Dick Taylor |
| See also |
| Chuck Leavell | Darryl Jones | Andrew Loog Oldham | Allen Klein |
| Related articles |
| Discography | The Glimmer Twins | Nanker Phelge | Rolling Stones Records | Rock and Roll Circus |
| Categories |
| The Rolling Stones | Members | Albums | Singles | Songs | Tours |
