Mick Jagger - The Very Best of Mick Jagger

  by Anthony Strutt

published: 25 / 11 / 2007

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Review

This 17 track CD/DVD traces the solo hits of one Mick Jagger. Mick will always be famous as the lead singer of one of England's greatest bands. Refusing to quit, they are constantly milking their back catalogue for just one more world tour. Not many people know his solo work and that’s because there isn’t much of it at all really. He has released just four solo albums, ‘She’s the Boss’ (1985), ‘Primitive Cool’ (1987), “Wandering Spirit’(1993) and ‘Goddess in the Doorway’ (2001). Ten of these tracks come from those albums, while the other tracks are largely unreleased songs or come alternatively from various singles he has put out and collaborations he has been involved in with other musicians. ‘God Gave Me Everything’ opens the CD up. Co-written with Lenny Kravitz, it has an easy-on-the-ear acoustic guitar backed by some loud rock guitar and a vocal very typical of Mick which kicks ass big time. ‘Put Me in the Trash’ sounds like a mid 70’s Stones or New York Dolls number. ‘Just Another Night’ comes from ‘She's the Boss’ and was a minor hit at the time. It has a dated but decent rocking groove to it. ‘Don't Tear Me Up’ is moody, laid back and reflective. ‘Charmed Life’ comes from the ‘Wandering Spirit’ sessions, but never made the album, and is the first unreleased track here. A remix of the original track, it is quite funky and somewhat fast. ‘Sweet Thing’ has a great rhythm to it and has a classic delivery. ‘Old Habits, Die Hard’ won a Golden Globe award for best original song when it appeared in the 2004 remake of the classic Michael Caine movie, ‘Alfie’, this time starring Jude Law on the lead role, and is classic rock with a capital R. ‘Dancing in the Street’ comes from 1985 and is the most famous song here. Sung as a duet with David Bowie, both South Londoners do justice to the old Martha and the Vandellas’ hit. ‘Too Many Cooks’ is another unreleased track. Written by John Lennon and backed by an all star line up, it promises more than it delivers and, full of brass, sadly sounds very much a product of the 70’s and dated. ‘Memo from Turner’ is the oldest song here, and featured in the 1970 Donald Cammell/Nic Roeg film, ‘Performance’, in which Jagger played a rock star. It was Mick's first solo single on 7” vinyl. ‘Lucky in Love’ is a dated heavy rock number, while ‘Let's Work’ has funky guitar and sounds very 1980's. ‘Joy’ is a duet with Bono, and, a classy piece of songwriting, strangely sounds a lot like a Who track. ‘Don't Call Me Up’ finds a mature Mick reflecting back on his earlier days. ‘Checking Up On My Baby’ is a cover of a Sonny Boy Williamson song and again unreleased has a deep Southern Blues feel and, featuring some boogie woogie piano and Doors- like guitar, is a return to what Mick did at the start of the Rolling Stones career. ‘(You Gotta to Walk and) Don't Look Back’ was written by Smokey Robinson and is sung as a duet between Peter Tosh and Mick. Recorded for a Tosh album in 1978, it is needless to say a reggae number of the classy variety. It ends with ‘Evening Gown’ which again is reflective and modern sounding and perfectly delivered.

Track Listing:-

1 God Gave Me Everything
2 Put Me In The Trash
3 Just Another Night
4 Don't Tear Me Up
5 Charmed Life
6 Sweet Thing
7 Too Many Cooks (Spoil The Soup)
8 Lucky In Love
9 Let's Work
10 Joy
11 Don't Call Me Up
12 Checkin' Up On My Baby
13 Evening Gown