Goats Head Soup

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Goats Head Soup
Studio album by The Rolling Stones
Released 31 August 1973
Recorded 25 November – 21 December 1972 and 23 May – 20 June 1973, Dynamic Sound Studio, Kingston, Jamaica, except "Hide Your Love", recorded at De Doelen, Rotterdam, Netherlands, Summer 1973
Genre Rock, blues rock, funk rock
Length 46:56
Language English
Label Rolling Stones
Producer Jimmy Miller
The Rolling Stones chronology

Exile on Main St.
(1972)		 Goats Head Soup
(1973)		 It's Only Rock 'n Roll
(1974)
Singles from Goats Head Soup
  1. ""Angie"/"Silver Train""
    Released: 20 August 1973
  2. ""Doo Doo Doo Doo Doo (Heartbreaker)"/"Dancing With Mr. D""
    Released: December 1973

Goats Head Soup is the 11th British and 13th American studio album by The Rolling Stones, released in 1973. It featured the song "Angie", which went to No. 1 as a single in the US and top 5 in the UK.

History

Recording

In November 1972 the band relocated to Kingston, Jamaica's Dynamic Sound Studios. Keith Richards said in 2002: "Jamaica was one of the few places that would let us all in! By that time about the only country that I was allowed to exist in was Switzerland, which was damn boring for me, at least for the first year, because I didn't like to ski... Nine countries kicked me out, thank you very much, so it was a matter of how to keep this thing together..."[1]

Of the recording process, Marshall Chess, the president of Rolling Stones Records at the time, said in 2002, "We used to book studios for a month, 24 hours a day, so that the band could keep the same set-up and develop their songs in their free-form way, starting with a few lyrics and rhythms, jamming and rehearsing while we fixed the sound. It amazed me, as an old-time record guy, that the Stones might not have played together for six or eight months, but within an hour of jamming, the synergy that is their strength would come into play and they would lock it together as one..."[1]

Jagger said of their approach to recording at the time, "Songwriting and playing is a mood. Like the last album we did (Exile on Main St.) was basically recorded in short concentrated periods. Two weeks here, two weeks there – then another two weeks. And, similarly, all the writing was concentrated so that you get the feel of one particular period of time. Three months later it's all very different and we won't be writing the same kind of material as Goats Head Soup."[2]

On the sessions and influence of the island, Richards said, "The album itself didn't take that long, but we recorded an awful lot of tracks. There were not only Jamaicans involved, but also percussion players who came from places like Guyana, a travelling pool of guys who worked in the studios. It was interesting to be playing in this totally different atmosphere. Mikey Chung, the engineer at Dynamic, for example, was a Chinese man — you realise how much Jamaica is a multi-ethnic environment."[1]

The first track recorded at Dynamic was "Winter", which Mick Taylor said started with "just Mick (Jagger) strumming on a guitar in the studio, and everything falling together from there."[2]

The album's lead single, "Angie", was an unpopular choice as lead single with Atlantic Records which, according to Chess, "wanted another 'Brown Sugar' rather than a ballad."[1] Contrary to popular belief, the song was not about David Bowie's first wife Angela; nor was it about Richards' first daughter, Dandelion Angela. The song was written before the sex of his upcoming baby was known. He says in his memoir, *Life*: "I just went, 'Angie, Angie.' It was not about any particular person; it was a name, like 'ohhh, Diana.' I didn't know Angela was going to be called Angela when I wrote 'Angie'. In those days you didn't know what sex the thing was going to be until it popped out. In fact, Anita named her Dandelion. She was only given the added name Angela because she was born in a Catholic hospital where they insisted that a 'proper' name be added." (*Life*, p. 323, Ch. 8.)

Despite its laid-back sound, many of Goats Head Soup's songs have a darker quality to them, such as the opener "Dancing With Mr. D" (D as in Death). An alternate version can be heard on bootlegs that features a ripping Taylor guitar solo that was not featured on the album version.

Also featured is the Top 20 US hit "Doo Doo Doo Doo Doo (Heartbreaker)", which criticises the New York police for the accidental shooting of a 10-year-old.

This was the last Rolling Stones album produced by Jimmy Miller, who'd worked with the band since 1968's Beggars Banquet sessions. Miller developed a debilitating drug habit from his years spent with the band.

Aside from the official band members, other musicians appearing on Goats Head Soup include keyboard players Billy Preston, Nicky Hopkins and Ian Stewart.

Recording was completed in January 1973 in Los Angeles and May 1973 at London's Olympic Sound Studios. The song 'Silver Train' actually was a leftover from 1970s recordings at Olympic Sound Studios, and 'Hide Your Love' was recorded during rehearsals at De Doelen in Rotterdam. Goats Head Soup was also their first album to exclusively contain original material by the band since Their Satanic Majesties Request in 1967.

Release and aftermath

At the time of release, Jagger said, "I really feel close to this album, and I really put all I had into it... I guess it comes across that I'm more into songs. It wasn't as vague as the last album which kind of went on so long that I didn't like some of the things. There's more thought to this one. It was recorded all over the place over about two or three months. The tracks are much more varied than the last one. I didn't want it to be just a bunch of rock songs."

Preceded by "Angie" as the lead single, which sailed to No. 1 in the United States and became a worldwide hit, Goats Head Soup was released in late August 1973 and also shot to No. 1 worldwide. The Rolling Stones' autumn 1973 European Tour followed soon after, in which four slots in the set list were given to the new material: "Doo Doo Doo Doo Doo (Heartbreaker)," "Star Star," "Dancing with Mr D," and "Angie." (The popular bootleg recording Brussels Affair would result from this tour.)

Critical reaction to the album was varied at the time. Bud Scoppa called the album "one of the year's richest musical experiences"[2] in Rolling Stone, while Lester Bangs derided the effort in Creem, saying, "There is a sadness about the Stones now, because they amount to such an enormous 'So what?' The sadness comes when you measure not just one album, but the whole sense they're putting across now against what they once meant..."[2]

Goats Head Soup is now generally considered to have marked the end of the Stones' "golden age", with Stephen Thomas Erlewine saying, "Sliding out of perhaps the greatest winning streak in rock history, the Stones slipped into decadence and rock star excess with Goats Head Soup... This is where the Stones' image began to eclipse their accomplishments, as Mick ascended to jet-setting celebrity and Keith slowly sunk deeper into addiction, and it's possible hearing them moving in both directions on Goats Head Soup, at times in the same song."[3] Goats Head Soup has endured as a popular seller and has gone triple platinum in the United States.

The album cover was designed by Ray Lawrence and photographed by David Bailey, a friend of Jagger's who had worked with The Rolling Stones since 1964. The portrait of Jagger on the front cover was approximately life size in the original 12-inch LP format.

The sessions for Goats Head Soup were abundant with outtakes. Two of these — "Tops" and "Waiting on a Friend" — would surface on Tattoo You in 1981, and feature Mick Taylor on guitar; "Through the Lonely Nights" became the B-side to the "It's Only Rock 'n Roll (But I Like It)" single and was released on CD for the first time on the 2005 compilation Rarities 1971–2003.

In 1994 Goats Head Soup was remastered and reissued by Virgin Records, and again in 2009 by Universal Music. The first pressing of the Universal remaster contains a censored version of "Star Star" that was on the original US vinyl release, but not on the 1994 Virgin CD; later pressings contain the uncensored version. The album was reissued once more in 2011 by Universal Music Enterprises in a Japanese-only SHM-SACD version, which includes the uncensored version of "Star Star" with a previously unreleased fadeout.

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source Rating
Allmusic link
Robert Christgau (B) link
Rolling Stone link
Sputnikmusic link
Stylus Magazine (favourable) link

Track listing

All songs by Mick Jagger and Keith Richards.

Side one
No. Title Length
1. "Dancing with Mr. D"   4:53
2. "100 Years Ago"   3:59
3. "Coming Down Again"   5:54
4. "Doo Doo Doo Doo Doo (Heartbreaker)"   3:26
5. "Angie"   4:33
Side two
No. Title Length
6. "Silver Train"   4:27
7. "Hide Your Love"   4:12
8. "Winter"   5:30
9. "Can You Hear the Music"   5:31
10. "Star Star"   4:25

Personnel

The Rolling Stones
  • Mick Jagger – lead and backing vocals, electric guitar on "Winter", harmonica on "Silver Train", piano on "Hide Your Love"
  • Keith Richards – electric and acoustic guitar, backing vocals, lead vocals on "Coming Down Again", bass guitar on "Doo Doo Doo Doo Doo (Heartbreaker)" and "Silver Train"
  • Mick Taylor – electric, acoustic and slide guitar, bass guitar on "Dancing with Mr. D" and "Coming Down Again", backing vocals
  • Charlie Watts – drums
  • Bill Wyman – bass guitar
Additional personnel

Chart positions

Album
Year Chart Position
1973 UK Top 50 Albums 1[4]
1973 Billboard Pop Albums 1[citation needed]
Single
Year Single Chart Position
1973 "Angie" UK Top 50 Singles 5[citation needed]
1973 "Angie" The Billboard Hot 100 1[citation needed]
1973 "Angie" Adult Contemporary 38[citation needed]
1974 "Doo Doo Doo Doo Doo (Heartbreaker)" The Billboard Hot 100 15[citation needed]

Certifications

Country Provider Certification
(sales thresholds)
United States RIAA 3× Platinum
France SNEP Gold
United Kingdom BPI Gold

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Loewenstein, Dora; Philip Dodd (2003). According to the Rolling Stones. San Francisco: Chronicle Books. ISBN 0-8118-4060-3. 
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 "Goats Head Soup". timeisonourside.com. Retrieved 1 January 2007. 
  3. ↑ Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Goats Head Soup". All Music. Retrieved 1 January 2007. 
  4. ↑ "Number 1 Albums – 1970s". The Official Charts Company. Archived from the original on 9 February 2008. Retrieved 10 June 2011. 

External links

Preceded by
Sing It Again Rod by Rod Stewart		 UK number-one albums
22–29 September 1973 		Succeeded by
Sladest by Slade
Preceded by
Brothers and Sisters by The Allman Brothers Band		 Billboard 200 number-one album
13 October – 10 November 1973 		Succeeded by
Goodbye Yellow Brick Road by Elton John
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