Of the Stones’ flawless series of records beginning with 1968’s Beggars Banquet and ending with the ragged excesses of 1972’s Exile on Main Street, there is a case to be made for Sticky Fingers as the Stones’ absolute peak. Cloaked in a druggy haze, Sticky Fingers saunters through a smorgasbord of the Stones’ hottest cuts, from the hot-footed Brown Sugar through soaring country opus Wild Horses, the Santana-inspired long form jam on Can’t You Hear Me Knocking, good natured country vamp Dead Flowers and the haunting album closer Moonlight Mile. Jimmy Miller’s production is both canny and spare and new guitarist Mick Taylor’s interplay with Keith Richards’ swashbuckling rhythm guitar allows the Stones’ songs to be ornate and dynamic in ways they never have before. Jagger, as always, plays the pouting ringmaster with his vocal approach shapeshifting from song to song, giving each a distinct feel. Sticky Fingers is a snapshot of the Stones at their most vital – a wildly creative pop culture phenomenon more than deserving of the mantel of the greatest rock and roll band in the world.
Pete Whelan 