The Rolling Stones, Out Of Our Heads
A sometimes clumsy transition from covers band to songwriters extraordinaire. Oh, and it birthed that "Satisfaction" song, too.
The Out of Our Heads headline reads: "From Whence 'Satisfaction 'Came," but truth is, there's so much more to recommend this 1965 album, their third in the UK in just one year, and their fourth in the US. And it gets even more complicated from there, as "(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction" is only available on the US version, one of numerous variations between the two packages due to timing and marketing. For instance: while the UK version got "Heart of Stone," a prominent early ballad, the US got "Play with Fire," a fine equivalent. Fairer trades rarely get made. (On the other hand, the US got "The Last Time" while the UK was stuck with "I'm Free," which is currently a banking anthem.)
Still, the bulk of Out of Our Heads is comprised of R&B covers, a familiar sight to any early Stones connoisseur. And while none are exceptional, they exhibit an exquisite taste for choice American R&B and blues, including Otis Redding's incredible plea "That's How Strong My Love Is," the Atlantic Records classic "Mercy Mercy" and the herky-jerked "Hitch Hike," enjoyable listens no matter who is playing them, with "Hitch Hike" being particularly Stones-appropriate.
Out of Our Heads also brings the oddball "Satisfaction" B-side "The Under Assistant West Coast Promo Man," one of the band's few meta songs (it was written about a particularly despised record label suit, an act that Spoon would mimic with their "Lafitte" couplet, available as the last two songs here). And then of course there is "Satisfaction" itself, as great a rock & roll song as ever was wrote, and the soundtrack to who knows how many early '60s lovers 'lanes. Don't miss this chance to hear the Stones at a key moment of their — and maybe even your! — conception.
