Classic Albums - Exile On Main Street

Mick Jagger openly hates it. Upon it's 1972 release, critics panned it. It has not a single...well...single on it, yet this is by far the most celebrated Rolling Stones album in their quite impressive collection.

Avoiding the long dick of the law - namely, the Inland Revenue - The Stones were forced to leave England indefinitely in 1971. Not the end of the world for a filthy rich rock n' roll band, they just scarpered to the French Riviera and set about recording their next album while the suits took care of their tax issues. The result? Exile On Main Street.

From the opening jangle of "Rocks Off" to the slow fade of "Soul Survivor" this record is an almost perfect encapsulation of exactly what was going on in this band's lives at the time. Debauched, dirty, righteous, reflective...it's all here and performed with a blues swagger that you just don't see in bands anymore. This might have something to do with the fact that about 50 people were holed up in Keith Richards' mansion getting wasted and playing music in various rooms until all hours of the night while recording it. Almost every track sounds like the greatest party on the planet. Oh what I would give to have been there.

Although, such is the roughshod charm of this record, when you listen to it...you almost feel like you were. Almost.

Rolling Stones - Sweet Virginia