SOME 31 years ago one of rock and roll’s icons, the band Rolling Stones, was plagued with internal conflicts.
Some say it was about ego and creative differences, particularly musical directions between the band’s leaders and songwriters; frontman Mick Jagger and lead guitarist Keith Richards.
It was almost inevitable that the band would break up; it was just a matter of time as Mick Jagger was more interested in doing a solo album than touring and promoting the band’s latest album.
Of course, history would prove that despite their differences the Rolling Stones did not break up and are probably the biggest rock and roll band today in terms of live concerts and album sales.
The Beatles are long gone and just a memory but the Rolling Stones lives on and are still rocking.
From out of that tumultuous decade, the ‘80s, something good musical-wise came out and some say probably the best “Rolling Stones” (pun intended) album from that era.
From that free online encyclopedia a.k.a. the internet:
Talk Is Cheap is the debut solo album by Keith Richards of the Rolling Stones, released in 1988. Recorded and released during a long-standing falling out with Mick Jagger, Talk Is Cheap received positive reviews upon its release.
Relations between Jagger and Richards had grown tense into the third decade of the Rolling Stones as they began to disagree on the musical direction of the band; “You Don’t Move Me” would be written about their feud. The image-conscious Jagger was keen to follow the trends and keep the Rolling Stones current, while Richards wanted to preserve their reputation and roots. When Jagger was more interested in pursuing his solo career instead of touring for Dirty Work in 1986, Richards began a solo project for the first time.
Richards teamed up with Steve Jordan, who had worked on Dirty Work, and the pair wrote several new songs. Recording began in August 1987 at Le Studio in Morin Heights, Quebec, and continued sporadically until the following May with visits to Montserrat and Bermuda. In order to assert his independence further, Richards signed with Virgin Records, while the Rolling Stones were under contract to Sony Music.
The core of the band, called the X-Pensive Winos, consisted of Waddy Wachtel, Ivan Neville, Charley Drayton and Steve Jordan, with many guest artists taking part in the recording, including Sarah Dash, Bootsy Collins, Maceo Parker, the Memphis Horns and Patti Scialfa, and the only musician from the Stones to appear, guitarist Mick Taylor.
It was the 1980s and disco music was the rage. Almost all radio stations were playing it, discos were sprouting everywhere, and everyone wanted to “shake their booty” to the music.
From its heyday during the 1960s to the ‘70s, rock music was suddenly relegated to the background and to remain relevant some rock bands tried to incorporate or fused disco beats to their songs. Of course, the results were atrocious.
Thus when Keith Richards’ Talk is Cheap solo album was released it was a breath of fresh air. He was able to fuse rock, funk, reggae a bit of blues and Memphis soul, resulting into what is probably the best “Rolling Stones” related album of that era.
I first heard the album in its entirety when a lady friend from England passed by Iloilo and asked me to accompany her to Boracay. She brought the album Talk is Cheap with her and in Boracay we asked the DJ in one of the bars to play it.
When passersby heard strains of the music, the bar was filled in no time; it was a weekend of “sex, drugs, alcohol and rock and roll”.
From an AllMusic Review by Chris True:
In 1987, it was anyone’s guess if the Stones would ever get back together. Sure, Mick Jagger and Keith Richards were well known for their public disagreements, but when Jagger decided to tour in support of his second solo album, Primitive Cool, Richards was disheartened and finally succumbed to the idea of recording without the Rolling Stones. Taking the band he had assembled to back up Chuck Berry for the Hail! Hail! Rock ‘n’ Roll documentary (along with longtime session player Waddy Wachtel), Richards put together an album that was straightforward, musical, and better than a good portion of the Stones‘ output in the first half of the ’80s. The lead single “Take It So Hard,” “Whip It Up,” and “Struggle” are classic Richards’ riffology, and tracks like “Locked Away” are emotional without being maudlin and worldly but not sounding adult contemporary. The main point of Talk Is Cheap is the music, nothing more; Richards obviously didn’t want to fret about anything but the groove. While Jagger‘s solo work sounded like Mick with some studio musicians, Keith had assembled a band, found a productive songwriting partner in Steve Jordan, and created a record that was free of frills. Simply put, Richards sounded like he was playing for himself, and playing with a certain sense of enjoyment. The new band, the X-pensive Winos, had a different work ethic than the Stones, forcing Richards to focus on the music. What resulted was a solid album built on fundamentals rather than style. It’s hard not to see who the real musical force was in the Stones after hearing Talk Is Cheap.
And Moi couldn’t agree more.
Here’s what Keith Richards himself has to say about his solo album:
This album holds up, I’ve been listening to it and not through the mists of nostalgia either because it doesn’t affect me that way. This is more than the sum of its parts. I really admire it. We were having fun and you can hear it. (brotherlouie16@gmail.com/PN)
