Posted by Syph on July 19, 2000 at 12:42:34:
I think, besides Mick and Keith's Harmonies, that the other key to them having such great and consistantly great music is the 20 second theory. Every 15-20 seconds, give the listener something new to listen to. If you listen closely - even though verses or choruses APPEAR to be the same, there is usually a little something different that sonically refreshes the listener. Even subconsciously. To prove that point and to also get to my third key to the Stones song success - It's Only Rock and Roll, the song. One of the HEAVIEST songs sonically in the Stones catalog - Yet for a whole verse, this heavy song is CARRIED by an acoustic guitar. Song starts, heavy guitar and beat supplied, little flourishes "buddalow buddalow" between Mick's initial words that won't be repeated for the remainder of the song, acoustic guitar throughout - but at that ONE verse, the electric drops out leaving a bare bones acoustic with Charlie. It occurs without missing a beat yet gives the listener something "new" to listen to. It's subtle but works for almost every song, especially the hits, that the Stones have done. Think of the codas in Tumbling Dice, Can't You Hear Me Knocking, 100 years etc. The Stones ALWAYS give you something new every 15 to 20 seconds in a song - even songs that are verse chorus verse. This is something that preprogrammed music cannot do and is almost the antithesis of. Hence the loss of interesting music in today's marketplace. The lost form of weaving includes this 15-20 second theory and in my opinion has carried the Stones for 40 years. Go ahead and get up from your desks now, class dismissed, read chapters 8-9 for tommorrow.
Dr.Syph