The British Invasion is back in full swing and I am living for it.
In late August, The Rolling Stones began exciting their fans with a secretive ‘something new’ on the horizon. The Hackney Gazette began teasing song titles, accompanied by the band’s iconic tongue and lips logo; the group posted new artwork and other promotional material across their social media platforms. On Sept. 2nd, a new single, “Angry,” was born, accompanied by a music video in which the band sings to actress Sydney Sweeny from billboards displaying them across the decades. The album was officially announced two days later.
Fans of all ages were abuzz with excitement for the next month. On Oct. 20, 2023, Hackney Diamonds was released, cheekily titled after the east London slang for “broken glass.” The enthusiasm was palpable- and well deserved. This was big. While the Stones had released a studio album in 2016 titled Blue & Lonesome, the tracklisting was comprised of blues covers, meaning its status as a full Stones work was impossible. Their last album of original material was A Bigger Bang all the way back in 2005, making Hackney Diamonds the band’s first in eighteen years, the first in my lifetime and the first following the death of drummer Charlie Watts in 2021.
The loss was tough for both the group and fans alike. Personally, Watts had always been my favorite member. He was the calm, level-headed man in a rock ‘n’ roll band with a wild mythology behind them. How cool did a guy have to be to stand being in a band with Mick Jagger and Keith Richards for nearly sixty years? He was there for the music, and I always respected that.
“There would have been a Rolling Stones without Charlie Watts,” said Richards after the death of his bandmate. “But without Charlie Watts, there wouldn’t have been the Rolling Stones. He was one of the warmest guys I ever, ever met, just so tolerant of other people. He would actually stop me from murdering people. When I just thought of his name, I started to weep. Thanks for bringing me to tears.”
The Rolling Stones continued to tour following Watts’ death, though the band was distinctly lacking any new material to accompany them- a fact that was starting to make Jagger antsy. It was the singer who began pushing deadlines, encouraging his bandmates to create a firm schedule for a new release and regaining what he called “a sense of urgency” in the process.
Recording sessions were overseen by a similar drive. “We would do like four or five takes,” Jagger said. “So no one had time to really think, ‘Well, was this a good song? Should we be doing this song?’ Because I get introspective, you know. Is this song as good as the other one? Is this song like another one I’ve done? You can figure that out later. Let’s keep moving.”
Enter Hackney Diamonds, an album that is unmistakably Stones and unabashedly rock and roll.
The band itself now consists of Mick Jagger and Keith Richards (the last original members), Ronnie Wood (who joined the band in 1975) and Steve Jordan, replacing Watts on the drums. To help them with their endeavors, they welcome a star-studded lineup of guest musicians- Paul McCartney (bass on “Bite My Head Off”), Elton John (piano on “Get Close” and “Live By The Sword”), Lady Gaga (vocals on “Sweet Sounds of Heaven”) and Stevie Wonder (keyboard and piano on “Sweet Sounds of Heaven”), as well as pre-recorded contributions from Watts prior to his death and bass from former Stones bassist Bill Wyman, marking his first return to the band since he stepped away in 1993.
As far as many critics are concerned, Hackney Diamonds is the Stones’ best project in decades. Tim Cumming of The Arts Desk called the album “45 concentrated minutes of peak-level Rolling Stones… it feels like, for the first time in a long time, Mick and Keith are on the same mission.” Classic Rock’s Ian Fortnam gave it a near-perfect score and wrote that the band “[hasn’t] delivered an album this quintessentially Stonesy in 40 years.”
But with gushing reviews like this, it’s easy to feel intimidated by the size of it all. Admittedly, even I held off my first listen to let some of the hype die down, scared of being disappointed in something that had been so highly raved over. The Rolling Stones are a colossal band, they’re one of my favorites, and this album was supposedly a landmark. What if it didn’t live up to the hype?
So, at the end of the day, is Hackney Diamonds really the triumph everyone says it is?
I’ll answer that question now: yes.
Here’s the thing- when all your favorite musicians’ ages start to tick past 70, past 80, God forbid they die, you come to two realizations in life. One, it becomes a game of “see them in concert before they die” because mortality is a cruel thing (I was lucky enough to see the Stones in 2019 before Watts passed); and two, as you listen to the discographies of the time gone by and the newer releases, you’ll find that the craft either degrades or gets better with age.
The Rolling Stones, certainly, receive the latter stamp of approval. They are a band that refuses to mellow out, never sinking into the stereotypical image of 80-year-old men, still kicking out power and sound and dominating the stage better than most people a quarter of their age can. The Rolling Stones are rock and roll, and this album proves it.
Overall, Hackney Diamonds provides a lovely “retro” feel without feeling like a cheap attempt at nostalgia. Instead, it’s a genuine part of a larger legacy; the echoes of the past working to elevate the work instead of overwhelming it and bogging it down. They manage to evoke their classic, trademark sounds while paying tribute to their history. It’s an exciting work for fans of all generations.
Of course, never one to be outdone, the standout piece of this effect is Jagger.
“Listen to his vocals, man,” Andrew Watt, producer of Hackney Diamonds, told The Guardian. “There’s no difference between 18 and 80.”
And it’s true- Jagger’s incredible vocal talent shines through on this album, capable of transporting the listener all across the band’s history from the bluesy groove of Some Girls to the voice-cracking, spine-chilling soul of Let It Bleed. Hackney Diamonds is like stepping into a time machine, traveling all across time and sound, and- in the end- realizing how distinctly the Rolling Stones have come into their own.
The album opens with the showcase single “Angry,” punching right into the action with a song that demonstrates both a modern and classic feel. This is carried strongly into the follow-up, “Get Close” with a shuffling drum beat and the drawn-out allure Jagger’s vocals are so known for. The tone momentarily shifts for “Depending On You,” a slow country ballad done in classic Stones-country style, its emotional appeal a welcoming surprise. This melancholy won’t be around for long, though.
The listener is pulled right back into full gear with “Bite My Head Off” a number that is so shockingly energetic one could argue it gears toward punk more than anything. The surprise appearance from Beatle Paul McCartney is surely a welcome one as he lays down an animated bassline, adding to sheer fun and chaos that the track has already spent its time building up. It’s pure rebellion, pure rock ‘n’ roll and one of the best the album has to offer. “Whole Wide World” keeps this upbeat tone, though a bit more controlled, as it serves an optimistic and confident appeal to keep carrying on even when life gets rough- even Street-Fighting-Man-rough.
After this period of heaviness, the band eases you back in with “Dreamy Skies” the performance which, without a doubt, surprised me the most. I would be the first to admit I am not the biggest country fan, and yet the Stones, to me, do it perfectly. I found this to be one of my favorite tracks on the whole album; smooth and relaxed, with a slide guitar from Wood that ties it all together (I’m always a sucker for a good slide guitar). It feels very reminiscent of “Wild Horses” and “Sweet Virginia,” both of which rank among my favorite Stones songs, while still being able to hold its own. It’s the classic feel that will surely draw fans into it.
“Mess It Up,” the first of two numbers to feature Watts on drums, starts out with a sound surprisingly similar to that of the mid-sixties Stones before shifting into a modern groove in maybe the best example of “time traveling” on the album. The next one, however, “Live By The Sword,” is another one of the standouts from the album. Steve Jordan’s performance on the album is amazing and he suits the group well, but it’s Watts’ jazzy shuffle on the drums in this number that is so unmistakably his. Wyman’s appearance on bass guitar adds to this already emotional nostalgia, serving to completely reunite the classic l975-1993 lineup. Nor can Elton John’s performance be forgotten, his keys serving to add his own touches to the dirty, rough and real feeling of this track. “Driving Me Too Hard” sees Jordan return to the drums and has more of that alluring feel, a vibe similar to a track off of Some Girls.
While Jagger may be the “standout” vocalist on this record, Richards proves he still has that clasisc rock in him on “Tell Me Straight,” a fantastic feature with a great emotional feel and a genuine message. The vocal harmonies between Jagger and Richards sound like a long-overdue reuniting of the Glimmer Twins on the same track.
Then comes- what is in my humble opinion- the best song on the album. “Sweet Sounds of Heaven” served as the album’s second single and an ode to the salvation music provides listeners. Stevie Wonder’s keys are sweet and jazzy, mixing with the instrumentation fabulously while providing his own unmistakable touch to the track. Lady Gaga gives a stunning vocal performance as the song’s guest singer. Her voice and Jagger’s complement each other in the exuberant, rising praise of music that makes up the album’s emotional climax. It’s a sound that is as pure and classic as its message, spanning every sound from the late sixties era of Let It Bleed to the early seventies feel of Exile On Main Street, the golden age of the Rolling Stones. If there was one song on the album I had to choose that was pure Stones, it would be this one.
The album closes with a cover of Muddy Water’s “Rollin’ Stone,” aptly renamed to “Rolling Stone Blues,” and those who know their lore know the full circle moment this song creates. Jagger and Richards first met as teenagers when they bonded over their love of The Best of Muddy Waters record Jagger happened to be carrying; “Rollin’ Stone” is the song that gave the band it’s name when founding member Brian Jones glanced the same album’s cover as he was forced to come up with one on the spot. In under three minutes, the band pays a perfect tribute to the blues that brought them together as youth and kept them going for over sixties years- highs, lows and all. As Richards says, it has the potential to be “a perfect way to end your recording legacy.”
However, the album seems like anything but an ending.
Jagger certainly doesn’t think Hackney Diamonds will be “the last Rolling Stones album” as he told The New York Times, going on to confirm that the band already has a follow-up in the works. “We’ve got almost three-quarters through the next one.”
His bandmates are supporting this fever with their own. “Making music is still quite exciting for me,” says Richards. “I hadn’t realized how long it was since our last album… it’s funny how time flies, man, but I’m enjoying the process of releasing a new record and seeing what happens.”
This album very well may be far from the end of the band. Regardless, it stands as a staple of band’s power and enduring appeal. Hackney Diamonds brings together generations of iconic Stones sound and reunites the band for a few more fantastic numbers. If nothing else, it’s the perfect send-off for Charlie Watts and a reminder of all the Rolling Stones are- and if certainly makes us excited for more.
