Voodoo Lounge confirmed that the Stones could age gracefully, but it never sounded modern; it sounded classicist.
With its successor, Bridges to Babylon, Mick Jagger was determined to bring the Rolling Stones into the '90s, albeit tentatively, and hired hip collaborators like the Dust Brothers (Beck, Beastie Boys) and Danny Saber (Black Grape) to give the veteran group an edge on their explorations of drum loops and samples.
Of course, the Stones are the Stones, and no production is going to erase that, but the group is smart enough -- or Keith Richards is stubborn enough -- to work within its limitations and to have producer Don Was act as executive producer.
As a result, Bridges to Babylon sounds like the Stones without sounding tired.
The band is tight and energetic, and there's just enough flair to the sultry "Anybody Seen My Baby?," the menacing "Gunface," and the low-key, sleazy "Might as Well Get Juiced" to make them sound contemporary.
But the real key to the success of Bridges to Babylon is the solid, craftsmanlike songwriting.
While there aren't any stunners on the album, nothing is bad, with rockers like "Flip the Switch" and "Low Down" sounding as convincing as ballads like "Already Over Me." And, as always, Keith contributes three winners -- including the reggae workout "You Don't Have to Mean It" and the slow-burning "How Can I Stop" -- that cap off another fine latter-day Stones record.
| Title/Composers | Performer | Listen | Time | Size | Size | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Flip the SwitchMick Jagger, Keith Richards | The Rolling Stones | Play | 03:27 | 7 MB | 26 MB |
| 2 | Anybody Seen My Baby?Mick Jagger, Ben Mink, Keith Richards, k.d. lang | The Rolling Stones | Play | 04:31 | 10 MB | 33 MB |
| 3 | Low DownMick Jagger, Keith Richards | The Rolling Stones | Play | 04:26 | 10 MB | 34 MB |
| 4 | Already Over MeMick Jagger, Keith Richards | The Rolling Stones | Play | 05:24 | 12 MB | 36 MB |
| 5 | GunfaceMick Jagger, Keith Richards | The Rolling Stones | Play | 05:02 | 11 MB | 36 MB |
| 6 | You Don't Have to Mean ItMick Jagger, Keith Richards | The Rolling Stones | Play | 03:44 | 8 MB | 25 MB |
| 7 | Out of ControlMick Jagger, Keith Richards | The Rolling Stones | Play | 04:43 | 10 MB | 32 MB |
| 8 | Saint of MeMick Jagger, Keith Richards | The Rolling Stones | Play | 05:14 | 12 MB | 36 MB |
| 9 | Might as Well Get JuicedMick Jagger, Keith Richards | The Rolling Stones | Play | 05:23 | 12 MB | 39 MB |
| 10 | Always SufferingMick Jagger, Keith Richards | The Rolling Stones | Play | 04:43 | 10 MB | 32 MB |
| 11 | Too TightMick Jagger, Keith Richards | The Rolling Stones | Play | 03:37 | 8 MB | 26 MB |
| 12 | Thief in the NightPierre de Beauport, Mick Jagger, Keith Richards | The Rolling Stones | Play | 05:15 | 12 MB | 37 MB |
| 13 | How Can I StopMick Jagger, Keith Richards | The Rolling Stones | Play | 06:54 | 15 MB | 41 MB |
| 62 mins | 143 MB | |||||
| 62 mins | 440 MB | |||||
| Artist | Job | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Allan Ayers | Illustrations |
| 2 | Robi Banerji | Assistant, Mixing Assistant |
| 3 | Dan Bosworth | Engineer |
| 4 | Ron Boustead | Digital Editing |
| 5 | Stuart Brawley | Assistant, Mixing Assistant |
| 6 | Blondie Chaplin | Bass, Maracas, Piano, Shaker, Tambourine, Vocals (Background) |
| 7 | Ed Cherney | Engineer, Mixing |
| 8 | Bob Clearmountain | Mixing |
| 9 | Clinton Clifford | Organ (Hammond), Piano |
| 10 | Pierre de Beauport | 6-String Bass, Bass, Composer, Fender Rhodes, Mixing, Producer, Wurlitzer |
| 11 | The Dust Brothers | Engineer, Producer |
| 12 | Mike Ellis | Studio Assistant |
| 13 | Bernard Fowler | Guest Artist, Vocals (Background) |
| 14 | Rob Fraboni | Engineer, Mixing, Producer |
| 15 | Ryan Freeland | Assistant, Mixing Assistant |
| 16 | George Fullan | Assistant, Mixing Assistant |
| 17 | Wally Gagel | Mixing |
| 18 | The Glimmer Twins | Executive Producer, Producer |
| 19 | Charles Gooden | Assistant Engineer |
| 20 | Gerard Howland | Illustrations |
| 21 | Mick Jagger | Composer, Guitar (Acoustic), Guitar (Electric), Harmonica, Keyboards, Shaker, Vocals, Wah Wah Guitar |
| 22 | Darryl Jones | Bass, Vocals (Background) |
| 23 | Jim Keltner | Percussion, Shaker, Vocals (Background) |
| 24 | k.d. lang | Composer |
| 25 | Darrell Leonard | Trumpet |
| 26 | Tom Lord-Alge | Mixing |
| 27 | Richard Lowe | Mixing |
| 28 | Chuch Magee | Technical Support |
| 29 | Stephen Marcussen | Mastering |
| 30 | Francis Mayer | Images |
| 31 | Ben Mink | Composer |
| 32 | Jamie Muhoberac | Bass, Keyboards |
| 33 | Kevin Murphy | Illustrations |
| 34 | Meshell Ndegeocello | Bass, Guest Artist |
| 35 | Billy Preston | Guest Artist, Organ (Hammond) |
| 36 | Jason Rankins | Studio Assistant |
| 37 | Mauricio Riagorri | Assistant, Mixing Assistant |
| 38 | Keith Richards | Composer, Guitar, Guitar (Acoustic), Guitar (Electric), Handclapping, Hands, Piano, Vocals, Vocals (Background) |
| 39 | The Rolling Stones | Primary Artist |
| 40 | Dave Rouze | Technical Support |
| 41 | Danny Saber | Bass, Clavinet, Guitar, Keyboards, Mixing, Producer |
| 42 | Al Sanderson | Assistant Engineer, Mixing Assistant |
| 43 | Alan Sanderson | Assistant Engineer |
| 44 | Jeff Sarli | Bass, Bass (Acoustic) |
| 45 | Jim Scott | Engineer |
| 46 | Wayne Shorter | Guest Artist, Sax (Soprano) |
| 47 | John Sorenson | Assistant Engineer, Mixing |
| 48 | Joe Sublett | Sax (Baritone), Saxophone |
| 49 | Benmont Tench | Keyboards, Organ (Hammond), Piano, Vocals (Background) |
| 50 | Max Vadukul | Photography |
| 51 | John X. Volaitis | Engineer, Mixing |
| 52 | Waddy Wachtel | Guitar, Guitar (Acoustic), Guitar (Electric), Vocals (Background) |
| 53 | Don Was | Bass, Executive Producer, Guest Artist, Keyboards, Producer, Wurlitzer |
| 54 | Charlie Watts | Drums |
| 55 | Stewart Whitmore | Mastering |
| 56 | Doug Wimbish | Bass, Vocals (Background) |
| 57 | Ron Wood | Dobro, Guitar, Guitar (Bass), Guitar (Electric), Pedal Steel, Slide Guitar |
| Quality | Format | Encoding | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| Standard | MP3 | 320kps 44.1kHz | MP3 is an audio coding format which uses a form of lossy data compression. The highest bitrate of this format is 320kbps (kbit/s). MP3 Digital audio takes less amount of space (up to 90% reduction in size) and the quality is not as good as the original one. |
| CD Quality | FLAC | 16bit 44.1kHz | FLAC is an audio coding format which uses lossless compression. Digital audio in FLAC format has a smaller size and retains the same quality of the original Compact Disc (CD). |