I've Got My Own Album to Do

by

Ronnie Wood

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This was made around the same time as Ron's future band The Rolling Stones cobbled together their last album with the man he would replace on guitar, Mick Taylor. That album, It's Only Rock n Roll, is a dark and rather below-par effort compared to the great Stones albums that preceded it. The truth is, with Taylor, Keith Richards and Mick Jagger all guesting on it, Ron's album is a better album than It's Only Rock n Roll, and in no small way another chapter in the Stones catalogue. In some ways, I've Got My Own Album to Do is the great forgotten Stones album, under Wood's direction.

A fine collection of songs with a real patchwork quilt of material. A few things should be pointed out about why this album is great: firstly, the players are top notch - not only the aforementioned Stones, but in Andy Newmark and Willie Weeks a world class rythm section, Ian McLagan and Rod Stewart from the Faces, among others, feature on the LP; secondly, the songs are strong, showing how good Ron really is, or was before his talent underwent subjugation in the Stones; and thirdly, the album has stood the test of time and reflects perfectly the good-time spirit that Ron is all about because the LP was clearly made in the name of fun and passion for music - it has a home studio feel to it, yet it's grunty and slick in parts too. A diverse album of different rock, funk, blues and even pop grooves.

Ron's voice aint bad either, and he uses Jagger and Stewatr's well-known voices sparingly, to his credit, bringing them in like lead instruments, or texturing them with his own wiry crow.

There's a cople of Jagger/Richards originals on this album, and they can be considered Rolling Stones songs (even if Charlie and Bil werent on them!) and one of them 'Sure the One You Need' is on the highlights of the album, just beautiful Chuck Berry rock that Keith and Ron churn out so well. 'Can You Feel the Fire?' and 'You Mystify Me' are excellent too. Overall, I cannot see a weak song on this album, and the jam or funk songs are more than mere filler tracks.

Rock on Ron. Maybe you should write more with the Stones