Artist Spotlight
The Rolling Stones
Ralph Wilson Stadium
July 11, 2015
By James Baase
To commemorate this summer’s Rolling Stones North American “ZIP CODE Tour”, which kicked off in May, and comes to Buffalo on July 11, we decided to offer our individual rankings of our top 25 favorite songs. With a span of over 53 active years, spawning eight Billboard #1 singles and an additional 15 songs reaching the top 10 in the US, this proved to be quite a daunting task.
Ever since reaching the US as part of the British Invasion of 1964-1965 the Rolling Stones have proven to be a force to be reckoned with. Their rebellious edge, in contrast to the more clean-cut persona of fellow Invaders such as The Beatles and The Dave Clark Five, provided something for the 1960s youth counterculture to identify with.
Drawing their namesake from a Muddy Waters song, their influence was deeply rooted in the blues. The Stones’ early success and longevity can be attributed to continuing on a path which kept that style paired with rock and roll, and not falling into a pattern of short-lived pop songs or allowing discord among band members to be career-enders.
With a string of four albums in four years that are arguably considered their best work; Beggars’ Banquet (’68), Let It Bleed (’69), Sticky Fingers (’71) and Exile on Main Street (’72), the Rolling Stones firmly implanted their presence in the minds of a generation that was experiencing great turmoil and change during the Vietnam War and Civil Rights era.
The Stones continued to be prolific throughout the 70s, and when the ephemeral craze of punk and disco began to wane, their fans seemed to respond. Some Girls (’78) and Tattoo You(’81) were their two best selling albums.
With 24 US-released studio albums, the songwriting team of Mick Jagger and Keith Richards has racked up an amazing catalog over their huge career, even containing their own version of nearly every style of music. This has not only provided the soundtrack for the lives of a generation, but fueled probably the most prolific live act in the world. Record-breaking tours over the years, which continue to fill stadiums, have kept the Stones in the minds of everyone.
In addition to the obvious hits, check out some of the hidden gems contained on our lists. There may be some good tracks you’ve never gone deep enough to discover. Without further adieu here is our ranking followed by each writer’s individual rankings.
Rock Show Critique’s Top 25
01. (I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction
02. Wild Horses
03. Beast Of Burden
04. Gimme Shelter
05. Jumpin’ Jack Flash
06. You Can’t Always Get What You Want
07. Paint It Black
08. Angie
09. Honky Tonk Women
10. Waiting On A Friend
11. Ruby Tuesday
12. Sympathy For The Devil
13. As Tears Go By
14. Start Me Up
15. Get Off Of My Cloud
16. Tumbling Dice
17. Street Fighting Man
18. Let’s Spend The Night Together
19. Under My Thumb
20. Happy
21. Brown Sugar
22. Time Is On My Side
23. Doo Doo Doo Doo Doo (Heartbreaker)
24. It’s Only Rock ‘n Roll (But I Like It)
25. Just My Imagination (Running Away From Me)
James Baase’s Top 25 Stones List
01. Beast Of Burden
02. Gimme Shelter
03. Sympathy For The Devil
04. (I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction
05. As Tears Go By
06. Waiting On A Friend
07. You Can’t Always Get What You Want
08. Get Off Of My Cloud
09. Just My Imagination (Running Away With Me)
10. Jumpin’ Jack Flash
11. Street Fighting Man
12. Ruby Tuesday
13. Honky Tonk Women
14. Out Of Time
15. Wild Horses
16. Some Girls
17. Time Is On My Side
18. She’s A Rainbow
19. Don’t Stop
20. Memory Motel
21. Paint It Black
22. Mother’s Little Helper
23. Midnight Rambler
24. Doo Doo Doo Doo Doo (Heartbreaker)
25. Dead Flowers
Thom Jennings Top 25 Stones List
01. Gimme Shelter
02. Jumpin’ Jack Flash
03. Honky Tonk Women
04. Paint It Black
05. Sympathy For The Devil
06. You Can’t Always Get What You Want
07. Wild Horses
08. Happy
09. Start Me Up
10. Angie
11. Beast Of Burden
12. Bitch
13. Brown Sugar
14. (I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction
15. It’s Only Rock ‘N’ Roll
16. The Last Time
17. Little T & A
18. Neighbors
19. One Hit (To The Body)
20. Ruby Tuesday
21. Shattered
22. She’s So Cold
23. Tumbling Dice
24. Under My Thumb
25. Waiting On A Friend
Joseph Suto’s Top 25 Stones List
01. Waiting On A Friend
02. Angie
03. Let’s Spend the Night Together
04. Beast Of Burden
05. Start Me Up
06. Tumbling Dice
07. Doo Doo Doo Doo Doo (Heartbreaker)
08. Wild Horses
09. (I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction
10. You Can’t Always Get What You Want
11. Hang Fire
12. Under My Thumb
13. Ruby Tuesday
14. Rocks Off
15. Get Of Of My Cloud
16. Happy
17. Sweet Virgina
18. Let Me Down Slow
19. Paint It Black
20. As Tears Go By
21. Time Is On My Side
22. New Faces
23. Miss You
24. Mother’s Little Helper
25. Monkey Man
Dave Leary’s Top 25 Stones List
01. Jumpin’ Jack Flash
02. (I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction
03. Paint It Black
04. Wild Horses
05. Street Fighting Man
06. Honky Tonk Women
07. Under My Thumb
08. Gimme Shelter
09. Angie
10. Ruby Tuesday
11. As Tears Go By
12. Tumbling Dice
13. Let’s Spend The Night Together
14. Brown Sugar
15. Get Off Of My Cloud
16. Time Is On My Side
17. She Smiled Sweetly
18. Waiting On A Friend
19. It’s Only Rock “N” Roll
20. You Can’t Always Get What You Want
21. Beast Of Burden
22. Start Me Up
23. Sympathy For The Devil
24. Emotional Rescue
25. Mixed Emotions
Just the type of inihsgt we need to fire up the debate.