Rocks In The Attic #151: The Rolling Stones - ‘The Rolling Stones No.2’ (1965)

The first three Stones album are very similar - in that they’re basically a run through of the band’s favourite R&B covers. They manage to inject a bit more of themselves into this, their second attempt, and unlike their debut which only has one original song, this features three Jagger / Richards compositions.

I now can’t listen to Time Is On My Side without thinking of the song’s focus in the Denzel Washington film Fallen. It’s a great song, and takes on a strange, other-worldly feel from its use as an identifier of evil in the film. If Fallen was a truly bad film, I’d be annoyed at its inclusion, but it’s one of those popcorn movies that I’m always glad to watch when it shows on TV.

The Stones pretty much drift through their first album, and most of this one, before putting a foot wrong. Their version of Under The Boardwalk on the second side of ...No.2 really stands out as a misstep, with a weak sound that doesn’t suit the band. This probably comes from an attempt to ape The Drifters’ version as closely as possible, but to me it sounds as wrong as The Beatles’ version of Gerry & The Pacemakers’ How Do You Do It?

Hit: Time Is On My Side

Hidden Gem: I Can’t Be Satisfied

Rocks In The Attic #148: Peter Frampton - ‘I’m In You’ (1977)

This is a pretty star-studded recording - Stevie Wonder, Mick Jagger and Ringo Starr all pop on this album in various guises. I guess when you release a successful album like Frampton Comes Alive!, your next album is always going to attract attention from certain quarters.

Frampton Comes Alive! was one of the first records I ‘borrowed’ from my Dad’s collection - and like most people, I know that album much better than his studio albums.

It seems that ...Alive! was Frampton’s peak - and all that remained for his solo career was a slippery slope downhill. The cover of this album says it all - his career is no longer aimed at fans of Humble Pie and classic rock in general; it’s now aimed at the bedroom walls of pubescent teenage girls.

Hit: Signed, Sealed, Delivered (I’m Yours)

Hidden Gem: Won’t You Be My Friend