Disco de The Rolling Stones: “More Hot Rocks (Big Hits and Fazed Cookies)”

I see that More Hot Rocks is getting knocked for not having enough radio hits on it. Well, I could go the rest of my life without hearing "Brown Sugar," "Satisfaction," or "Honky Tonk Women" ever again. If for some reason you are not sick of those songs yet, they are played on the radio every five minutes somewhere on your dial - you don't need to own them! You do, however, need More Hot Rocks. Whoever compiled this should get a knighthood. It is a wonderful mishmash of blues ("Good Times Bad Times"), psychedelia ("Dandelion," "2000 Light Years From Home"), tasty covers ("Not Fade Away," "Poison Ivy," "Fortune Teller") and what is, in my humble opinion, the all-time greatest Stones song, "The Last Time." AND it has "Sittin' On A Fence" - I mean, what's not to like here? This is the REAL real folk blues, a must for any Stones fan and a perfect introduction to their early period, which they never topped. Buy it now.

The first "Hot Rocks" collection was an impeccable barrage of big hits. "More Hot Rocks" is a collection of slightly more obscure but equally valid gems. Some of them aren't at all obscure to begin with. All the numbers on Disc One are a thrill, including the long underrated psychedelic singles "Dandelion" and "We Love You," which can be found nowhere else that I'm currently aware of. Disc Two includes an important "Beggar's Banquet" era B-side, "Child of the Moon." Disc Two closes with some spotty and very early material, but this whole shebang is worth it for the wonders it contains throughout.

The Rolling Stones' "Hot Rocks" is one of the all time great pop music/rock n' roll greatest hits collections. "More Hot Rocks (Big Hits and Fazed Cookies)" does not have the same musical firepower, but it "fills in the blanks" of "Hot Rocks." It provides a richer view of the music of the Rolling Stones from the beginning to 1971.

First off, the music from the Stones' psychedelic plunge is present here and not on "Hot Rocks." The CD includes the bon bon "We Love You," put out by the group after the famous arrests and jailings. Beginning with slammed jail doors, the music captures this era nicely. So, too, cuts off of "Their Satanic Majesties Request," "She's a Rainbow," "2000 Light Years from Home," and "Child of the Moon." This is not one of their best albums, but this does represent an interesting experiment, and the music is not bad for all that.

Second, we hear gems from the early years of the group. Buddy Holly's "Not Fade Away" is covered nicely; two grand oldies that might have been good enough for "Hot Rocks" are "The Last Time" and "I'm Free" and "Out of Time." It is also nice to see some bluesy songs included, such as "Good Times Bad Times." Some old-fashioned rockers: "Poison Ivy" and "Bye Bye Johnnie" and "Come On."

All in all, a great complement to "Hot Rocks." It provides a much more complete picture of the Rolling Stones' musical corpus from this time period.

This album is in no way inferior to "Hot Rocks." Even though it contains rarities and album tracks, it's full of early Stones magic and plenty of classics like Tell Me, Not Fade Away, The Last Time, Out Of Time and Lady Jane. It's particularly strong on the psychedelic side of the Stones with brilliant songs like Dandelion, We Love You, She's A Rainbow and 2000 Light Years From Home. On top of that, it contains their very first single Come On and some excellent covers of Muddy Waters and Chuck Berry compositions. This album has stood the test of time very well and is a masterpiece compared to most of today's mainstream rock music. Like Hot Rocks, it also deserves 7 stars.

More Hot Rocks suffers from the little brother syndrome. The first Hot Rocks release contained all the Stones classics, while this one has the band's lesser hits and album tracks. Obviously it is not as strong the first Hot Rocks compilation, but it does have some great material and makes for a nice compliment to the first set. The inclusion of several songs that were previously only released in England and two unreleased tracks make this set mandatory for any Stones completist.