There are fourteen reasons to buy CDs again. The Rolling Stones, together with Universal, have announced a plan to remaster and reissue the band’s last fourteen albums (ie., the ones release from 1971-2005) with original packaging and track listings.
These rock and roll gems will be released in four batches, with the fun kicking off on May 4th when the band celebrates the early 70s with the re-releases of Sticky Fingers, Goat Head’s Soup, It’s Only Rock N’ Roll, and Black and Blue. Up next is the group’s middle period, which saw us through the late 70’s and mid-80’s, consisting of the albums Some Girls, Emotional Rescue, Tattoo You, and Undercover. Finally, on July 13th, the last thirteen years of the Stones’ musical odyssey are reissued with Dirty Work, Steel Wheels, Voodoo Lounge, Bridges to Babylon, and A Bigger Bang.
Now at this point, as Rolling Stone so wisely points out, we only have release dates for 13 of the 14 albums. Don’t worry says Universal. Considering Exile on Mainstreet is like one of rock’s most important albums, a bigger plan has been devised for a release later this year for the Stones’ double-LP. Details are still hush hush, but it’d be fair to expect something big.
That being said, the album will be included with the other 13 reissues in a “collector’s box”, which should prove for A Bigger Bang! – sorry I just had to do it. A digitial release is also in the fold.
For those wondering, former manager Allen Klein’s ABKCO Records owns the band’s 1960 catalog. There are currently no intentions to re-release these albums, primarily because they just were back in 2002.
In closing this piece up, it’d probably be appropriate to say something like: This retrospective will likely stir new interest in the Stones’ influence of four generations of musicians and give its fans the opportunity to rediscover why they are still regarded by many as the greatest Rock and Roll band on the planet. But that’s too easy, so why don’t we just watch a video instead…
Release Dates:
05/04 – Sticky Fingers, Goat’s Head Soup, It’s Only Rock and Roll, Black and Blue
06/08 – Some Girls, Emotional Rescue, Tattoo You, Undercover
07/13 – Dirty Work, Steel Wheels, Voodoo Lounge, Bridges to Babylon, A Bigger Bang
TBA – Exile on Mainstreet