The Rolling Stones - Dirty Work

Not Bad For A Distracted Effort

Though Mick was absent from much of the sessions to work on his own solo album and Keith and Ronnie did the bulk of the work, Dirty Work is quite underrated. Sure, the synthesizer sounds extremely date it, but "Fight" is raw and memorable, "Too Rude" is a lovely Keith/Jimmy Cliff duet, Keith's "Sleep Tonight" is a warm invitation to wintertime clinical depression, and "Harlem Shuffle" of course glides along nicely and was a U.S. #4. It sounds as if they could have been on the verge of integrating the '80s sound to the Stones brand of grittiness if they hadn't been at each others throats, disbanded for three years, and truly gone "Back To Zero." November 12, 2008

Headed for the heartbreak, headed for the blues...

`Dirty Work' is my least favorite Stones album ever and it's not even close. And I actually like it better then when it first came out! The whole thing just sounds forced which when you read the history of the recording that seems to be the case exactly. Mick Jagger sounds like he couldn't be bothered and his lyrics and vocals just plain suck. Keith and Ronnie soldiered on and in the past that seemed to work but the songs just aren't good enough. One good decision that Mick made was not to tour behind the album which in hindsight was genius. There are good songs and after a couple of plays you can get into them but then you have to brainwash yourself into forgetting the band's immense legacy which of course is impossible. "One Hit" is a good song; probably the best but wouldn't be filler on `Some Girls'. "Harlem Shuffle" is a joke and an embarrassment as a single release. I like "Too Rude" and "Sleep Tonight" both sung by Keith who begins to sing on more than one cut per album which would continue into the present. "Dirty Work" and "Had It with You" aren't terrible but God....again Mick is the problem! Avoid `Dirty Work' unless you are a Stones completist, even `Emotional Rescue' is classic compared to the album that almost broke up the band. September 16, 2008

Weak effort from a great band.

This is one of the weakest Stones' albums. SLEEP TONIGHT & DIRTY WORK are classic Stones songs, but the rest is mediocre at best. ONE HIT (TO THE BODY) and HARLEM SHUFFLE are memorable.
August 20, 2008

Good, But Weak By Stones Standards

This was one of my most eagerly anticipated album releases of my lifetime. Like all 8 studio albums that came out after `78's Some Girls, the critics called it "the best album since Some Girls". Not only that, it was to be "Keith's album" which supposedly infers there would be no off the track failed trendy Pop experiments by Jagger. I also loved the album cover with the classic, too cool posing and showing off their wealth, aloof image of the band.

Then I played the album and it opens with the thunderous monster `One Hit to the Body', the best opening Stones song in 14 years since Exile's `Rocks Off' and what would be the best Stones song of the entire `80s. It also has a (too short) solo by guitar legend Jimmy Page. I was blown away by this track! This was going to be one of the greatest Stones albums ever!

Unfortunately, from there it was all down hill. Don't get me wrong, the rest of the songs are good songs, but not by Stones standards. Not only that, the dreaded filler creeps into the album. This was not one of the great Stones albums and in fact is barely better than the disappointing 1983 album, Undercover, that preceded it. I should have known better. Jagger and Richards were openly feuding and stooping to name calling in the press, there would be no tour, Jagger said Wood was "in no condition to tour", Jagger was going through a mid-life crisis in which he needed to prove to himself that he could be just as big as a solo artist without Richards. As it turns out, Jagger showed up with only 1 song - `Winning Ugly' and was holding out the best songs (Shoot Off Your Mouth, Party Doll, and Primitive Cool) for his next solo record. To his credit, when he was in the studio, Jagger did "sing his bleep off" according to Richards. But his singing was almost too over the top, too angry and forced sounding. Just listen to songs such as `Fight' and `Hold back' and feel the rage. It sounds like Jagger is trying too hard to make up for the guilt he felt for not contributing to the song writing. Harlem Shuffle is great cover but face it, it was already a good song and guys with the talent of the Stones can make it even better in their sleep. Jagger's one song Winning Ugly is good, but then you run into filler in the second half of the album with the pretentious "Back to Zero" and the overrated monotone "Had it with You".

The album reached number 4 in the charts, tied with Undercover for the Stones worst chart showing since Beggar's Banquet topped out at number 5 in '68. The single "Harlem Shuffle" was a top 5 hit and "One Hit" was a top 30 song with a great video that Jagger calls the "fight video" in which the director asked the Glimmer Twins to put some of that anger towards each other into the video. The 4 albums that followed all fared much better. Years latter Jagger would accept blame for the band's failure by saying "The lyrics were just not good enough and the guitar riffs just weren't there". In summary, a good album, albeit weak by Stones standards and with one all time classic song "One Hit to the Body". Overall Grade: B-

Other Stones album ratings

1) Some Girls (1978) A+
2) Let It Bleed (1969) A+
3) Sticky Fingers (1971) A+
4) Exile on Main Street (1972) A+
5) Voodoo Lounge (1994) A
6) Beggar's Banquet (1968) A
7) Black and Blue (1976) A
8) It's Only Rock `N Roll (1974) A
9) Bridges to Babylon (1997) A-
10) Out of Their Heads (1965) A-
11) Goat's Head Soup (1973) A-
12) Aftermath (1966) A-
13) A Bigger Bang B+ (2005)
14) Between the Buttons (1967) B+
15) Tattoo You (1981) B+
16) Now! (1964) B+
17) Emotional Rescue (1980) B
18) Steel Wheels (1989) B
19) Dirty Work (1986) B-
20) Undercover (1983) B-
21) England's Newest Hit Makers (1963)B-
22) December's Children (1965) B-
23) 12 X 5 (1964) B-
24) Their Satanic Majesties Request (1967) C
July 5, 2008

Rolling Stones CD

One of the best CDS'I own by This Group! They still have what it takes to get people of all ages to rock, get up and move! Their music is timeless! June 3, 2008

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