THE second in a planned trilogy of Stones re-releases, this four-CD set covers the five years between 1978 and 1983.
The effort put in by the curators of this series is questionable – where most reissues come with a revised tracklisting, an offering of B-sides or at the very least some alternate takes, these have thus far contained little more than a slightly cleaner version of the original recording.
Onwards, though, to the albums themselves. Some Girls showcases the band's valiant and often successful attempts to marry their natural rock sound to the disco vogue and, in Beast of Burden, births at least one Stones classic.
Emotional Rescue and Undercover are limper affairs, consisting largely of leftovers, jams and illjudged reggae.
But the bar is raised again on Tattoo You – a record which, with the raw Start Me Up and the tender Tops, comes close to recalling their youthful vigour.
Rory Dollard
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