October has turned out to be my favorite month of 2023: a revival of my favorite TV show debuted on the twelfth, new studio albums from two of my favorite bands came out on the twentieth, and a fresh installment of my favorite video game series dropped out the same day. Indulge me, if you would, because I’m going to review each of them over the coming days.
The Rolling Stones need no introduction. Hackney Diamonds is the legendary band’s first album of original material since 2005 and their first since the death of drummer Charlie Watts. His hand-picked successor, Steve Jordan, rounds out the core trio of Mick Jagger, Keith Richards, and Ronnie Wood.
There’s no getting around the fact that the Stones are old. They’ve been a punchline for thirty years, but Hackney Diamonds flips off the naysayers. The gang might be pushing eighty, but you wouldn’t know it: Hackney Diamonds rocks.
The album leads off with “Angry.” Jagger’s sneering count-off guides Jordan’s drums into a defiant guitar riff, and the song gets down to business as Keith Richards’ bass burbles ominously at the bottom of the mix. “Angry” won’t fool anyone into thinking this is the Stones of the 70s, but it’s arguably the band’s best lead single since “Mixed Emotions,” in 1989.
From there, the Glimmer Twins and producer Andrew Watt lead a who’s-who of guest stars like Elton John, Paul McCartney, Lady Gaga, and Stevie Wonder through a trip into the band’s history. I hear parts of deep cuts like “Live With Me” and “Loving Cup” on “Depending On You,” while “Whole Wide World” and “Get Close” channel parts of “Shattered” and “All Down The Line.”
Steve Jordan is a convincing replacement for Charlie Watts, but Watts’ distinctive thwack and idiosyncratic fills come into play at the onset of “Mess It Up” and “Live By The Sword.” The pair are mid-album standouts. “Mess It Up” polarizes rabid fans, but it could have been a hit single off Some Girls. Ronnie Wood’s choppy funk guitar is all over it.
Retired Stones bassist Bill Wyman pops in for “Live By The Sword,” which puts the famous push-and-pull of the band’s first rhythm section front and center. Elton John even shows up to add some raucous piano! By my measure, “Sword” is the Stones at their sleazy best.
Things explode into full gospel insanity on the penultimate track, “Sweet Sounds of Heaven.” Lady Gaga and Stevie Wonder support the boys as the song builds to a dramatic crescendo. It feels like there’s nothing more to be said until Jordan picks the beat up and ushers the crew into a second act. Holy hell, what an act it is!
Hackney’s final track features Mick and Keith all blue and lonesome, riffing on a stripped-down version of Muddy Waters’ “Rolling Stone Blues.”
Hackney Diamonds proves nothing can stop the Rolling Stones as they march into uncharted longevity. Purists may chafe at its modern production, but Diamonds is a worthy entry into the pantheon of Stones classics. It gets eight out of ten stars from me!
Hackney Diamonds’ cover art is copyrighted material, the use of which has not been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. The image of the cover is used solely to identify the album in the context of critical commentary. This should constitute a “fair use” referenced and provided for in section 107 of the US Copyright Law.
I am amazed at how long the Rolling Stones have stuck together. It has not been often in music history that you have seen a group stay together so long with so many of the key original players.