*Review* Aftermath (1966)

Aftermath

Released
April 15, 1966

JP died, and I am Sean

I warn you, I say filler and compliment the instrumentation a lot in this review, just sayin’

1. Mother’s Little Helper

Here are one of the few songs where The Stones sound “cool”

Its dark, real, and overall has a nice texture with the guitar feedback and the sickly little riff. Really nice, and a good way to start the album

2. Stupid Girl

Aftermath is really a shining example of what Brian Jones’s contributed to the album.A nice little sexist ditty, Stupid Girl is repetitive but it has a nice flow and the organ makes this song stick out.  

3. Lady Jane

This little b-side is one of my favorite songs from The Rolling Stones. It has a flowing sincerity to it that should not be there, but you can feel it, or at least I can.Richard’s subdued guitar Brian Jones and his little dulcimer, form a really solid base, while Jagger’s voice along with the harpsichord make this song stand out from the rest of the catalog

4. Under My Thumb

Oh, oh damn, this song, its a perfect little jam. Seriously, everything about this song works, and it does it in such a tight manner. The marabias (Jones being awesome), the piano mixed with acoustic, the drums, the distorted guitar and bass, and then you add Jagger and his little coughing sounds, and you can feel the flow of the melody.

Side note, most live versions of this song are a tad disappointing for me, no marambias, and the song is reduced a bit, but the Almount version is a nice slow jam.

5. Doncha Bother Me

Nothing much to the song, except the nice drums and great slide guitar.

6. Going Home

Oh, sweet Jesus why did this have to be 11 minutes long?

The song is nice but it seems like they only made it so long as to kill album space. I mean, this is the first album where Jagger and Richards wrote everything. While the song drones on, it makes for good background music. Seriously, what the hell?

7.Flight Of 505

Besides sounding like the title of a Twilight Zone song, this song is pretty unremarkable. Ian Stewart’s piano is nice though

8.High And Dry

While I consider this song as filler,(like the last 3 songs) it is complemented by the nice guitar picking, sweet bass, and a good harmonica to fill in the sound. Say what you want about the Stones, but they are very competent musicians

9.Out Of Time

Whoa, marimbas and organ, oh this song is already good from the start. With a swelling chorus, loaded piano, this song gets it right on the dot, I miss when The Stones were a great pop band.

10.It’s Not Easy

Alright, this is where the filler train starts up again. For me, most Rolling Stones albums contain insincere filler, but that is the thing I love about Aftermath, the filler is always serviceable.

11.I Am Waiting

A nice little pleasant song, very soft. Good guitar picking, good dulcimer action, good stuff.

12.Take It Or Leave It

I know this song is filler, but I have a soft spot for it. I think its the chorus, and Jagger’s dictation of the lyrics.Also I can relate to the lyrics, which is hard for a Stones song.

13. Think

Oh yeah, I love the fuzz of the guitars on this track. A nice little song that I also hold close.

14. What To Do

I can’t stop thinking of the Buddy Holly song when I hear this. Again, filler, but good filler. Potato chip like filler

Aftermath represents the forgotten part of the stones, the era where they were a damn fine pop band. With catchy hooks and choruses, and excellent instrumentation by Brian Jones, Aftermath remains one of the best Rolling Stones albums