Beggars Banquet[LP]

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GREAT ALBUM

I’ve seen a few complaints that this vinyl anniversary edition did not come with a photograph book, an additional LP of outtakes, and two 7 inch singles in addition to what it already includes.This is not a Super Deluxe Edition and was not marketed as such. Also any set that contained all of those things would cost a couple hundred dollars.This is a remastered limited edition 50th anniversary release.There are no other editions. It it not broken down into tiers (standard, deluxe, super deluxe, collector’s edition etc.)This is what you get:For the FIRST TIME we get the original cover as well as the infamous intended cover which was used for the 2002 re-release. The presentation and packaging here is wonderful. The story behind the cover is almost as famous as the album itself.It is a gatefold.The album has been remastered. It sounds as good as the 2002 reissue which means it sounds fantastic!We also get a mono 12inch of Sympathy For the Devil with an awesome etching of the intended album cover on the other side.We get the flexidisc Mick Jagger interview that was included in the original Japanese release of this album and it is sealed in a 7inch wrap that contains the covers that were used for the album’s singles.It was 50 bucks when released. I got it for 39.80.There are remastered single lp vinyl albums out there that contain absolutely nothing else selling for 30 - 50 bucks.If you never bought the 2002 reissue and/or do not own this album on vinyl at all and are a Stones or rock fan - this is a no brainer.I bought the 2002 reissue and misplaced it. This was PERFECT.

Beggars Banquet is a great album, the Stones were at their peak when it was recorded in 1968. It remains one of my favorite Stones albums. "Street Fighting Man" and "Sympathy for the Devil" are still played on the radio. I own the 2002 remaster and the sound quality is good, however, the packaging is very cheap. The album deserves better. I also own the vinyl recording which I bought in 1975.All the songs were written by Mick Jagger and Keith Richards, except "Prodigal Son" by Robert Wilkins, which was written in 1929. Nearly all rhythm and lead guitar parts were recorded by Keith Richards. Brian Jones had become erratic due to his heavy drug use and died in 1969. Nicky Hopkins plays keyboards on eight of the ten tracks. Hopkins played with the Stones on all of their studio albums from "Between the Buttons" in 1967 through "Black and Blue" in 1975.Beggars Banquet was produced by Jimmy Miller, who worked with the Stones from 1968-1973. He recorded five albums and many classic singles. He played the opening cowbell on Honky Tonk Women. His sister Judith Miller was a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist for the New York Times. She spent time in prison for failing to reveal her sources."Jumping Jack Flash" was meant to have been included on the album. It was recorded during a two week period that also produced "Street Fighting Man," "Jigsaw Puzzle" and "Parachute Woman." The Stones rushed out "Flash" as a single because the record company knew it would be a hit. In the 1960s, The Beatles and the Stones often left hit singles off their albums.In 2003, Beggars Banquet was ranked at number 58 on Rolling Stone's list of the 500 greatest albums of all time.

In 1968, the extended Summer of Love was OVER. "Peace and love" was not happening; a violent reality was growing across the nation. In the more idealistic period, the Stones had released a series of excellent stylish and trendy albums, but 1968's "Beggars Banquet" is different. Did the change in atmosphere nudge them toward more basic music? Whatever the reason, this album features blends of rootsy rock, blues, folk and country, rather than arty or trendy pop-rock. And it shows that the Stones were still in the game, while charting their own course.The album's sound is very sharp; the guitar licks actually hurt my ears. I think the masterpiece of this album is the first track, "Sympathy For The Devil". The narrator is a polite (at first) and articulate character who introduces himself as "a man of wealth and taste". Things quickly get more serious. He tells us that he participated in many horrifying events: the crucifixion of Jesus Christ, the Russian Revolution, the blitzkrieg of World War II and the assassination of the Kennedys. He ends up warning us that if we ever meet him, we should have some courtesy, sympathy, and some taste, or else he will "lay your soul to waste". Musically, the track opens peacefully enough as an upbeat number with lively percussion, nice piano chords and rambling bass. Later we begin to hear slashing, blistering guitar licks, and the background shouts of "woo-woo!", at first sounding like good fun, after a while begin to seem provoking and slightly menacing. This track - music and lyrics - strikes me as a metaphor representing the "end of innocence" and the onset of chaos that the world was experiencing.5 of the 9 remaining tracks have strong blues influence, of varying shades. "No Expectations" is lazy blues, while "Parachute Woman" is more aggressive, with grating guitar. "Jigsaw Puzzle" is a bluesy mid-tempo song that meanders on, repeating the same chord pattern. "Stray Cat Blues" is bluesy rock, and "Salt Of The Earth" is light blues tinged with gospel. "Dear Doctor" is totally country, while "Factory Girl" is more like country-folk. "Prodigal Son", written by Robert Wilkins, is straight acoustic folk; it is a re-telling of the parable found in the New Testament, and it is the only song not composed by Jagger and Richards. "Street Fighting Man" is a practically flawless hard rock delight which announces the times perfectly: "Ev'rywhere I hear the sound of marching charging feet, boy/'Cause summer's here and the time is right for fighting in the street, boy". Definitely NOT the Summer of Love. Another thing to notice about the album's lyrics is that 4 songs ("No Expectations", "Parachute Woman", "Factory Girl" and "Stray Cat Blues") paint pictures of women who are far from being the classy specimens depicted in "Lady Jane" and "She's A Rainbow". In "Factory Girl", the guy is waiting for "a girl who's got curlers in her hair...Her zipper's broken down the back...she's got stains all down her dress"!