It's Only Rock'n Roll
Encyclopedia
It's Only Rock 'n Roll is the 12th British and 14th American studio album by The Rolling Stones
, released in 1974. It would be the last Rolling Stones album for guitarist Mick Taylor
and the songwriting and recording of the album's title track would have a connection to Taylor's eventual replacement, Ronnie Wood. The album has a more firm rock
sound than the band's previous album, the more funk and soul
-inspired Goats Head Soup
. The album reached #1 in the United States and #2 in the United Kingdom.
, Germany
's Musicland Studios
. According to guitarist Keith Richards
, "We were really hot (off the road) and ready just to play some new material."
's "Drift Away
", Shirley & Company
's "Shame, Shame, Shame
", and The Temptations
' "Ain't Too Proud to Beg
". Soon the band began working off riffs by Richards and new ideas by Mick Jagger
and the original concept was scrapped in favour of an album with all-new material. The cover of "Ain't Too Proud to Beg" would be the only recording to make the cut, while the "Drift Away" cover is a popular bootleg
.
It's Only Rock 'n Roll would mark the Stones' first effort in the producer's chair since Their Satanic Majesties Request
, and the first for Jagger and Richards under their pseudonym "The Glimmer Twins". On the choice to produce, Richards said at the time:
Starting with this release, all future Rolling Stones albums would either be produced by them or in collaboration with an outside producer.
Most of the album's backing tracks were recorded first at Musicland, with Jagger's vocals recorded after. Richards said, "[Jagger] often comes up with his best stuff alone in the studio with just an engineer."
The song "Luxury" (early version named "Living in the Heart of Love") would show the band's growing interest in reggae
music, while "Till the Next Goodbye
" and "If You Really Want to Be My Friend" would continue the band's immersion into ballad
s. Seven of the album's ten songs crack the four-minute mark, a quality that would come to be disparaged during the rising punk rock
scene of the late 1970s.
Ronnie Wood, a longtime acquaintance of the band, began to get closer to the Rolling Stones during these sessions after he invited Mick Taylor to play on his debut album, I've Got My Own Album to Do
. Taylor spent some time recording and hanging out at Wood's house The Wick
. By chance, Richards was asked one night by Wood's wife at the time, Krissy, to join them at the guitarist's home. While there, Richards recorded some tracks with Wood and quickly developed a close friendship, with Richards going as far as moving into Wood's guest room. Jagger soon entered the mix and it was here that the album's lead single and title track, "It's Only Rock 'n Roll (But I Like It)", was first recorded. Wood worked closely on the track with Jagger, who subsequently took the song and title for their album. The released version of this song features Wood on twelve-string acoustic guitar.
It's Only Rock 'n Roll would be Mick Taylor's last album with the Rolling Stones, and he played on just seven of the ten tracks. Similar to receiving no writing credits on the Stone's previous album, Goats Head Soup
, Taylor reportedly had made songwriting contributions to "Till the Next Goodbye" and "Time Waits for No One
", but on the album jacket, all original songs were credited to Jagger/Richards. Taylor said in 1997:
Taylor's statement contradicts Jagger's earlier comment concerning the album. Jagger stated in a 1995 Rolling Stone
interview about "Time Waits for No One
" that Taylor "maybe threw in a couple of chords."
Alongside the usual outside contributors, namely Billy Preston
, Nicky Hopkins
and unofficial member Ian Stewart
, Ray Cooper
would act as percussionist for the album. Several songs were finished songs and overdubs and mixing were performed at Jagger's home, Stargroves
, in the early summer of 1974.
, was released as the second single in the US only, where it also became a top 20 hit. Its parent album appeared in October with brisk initial sales, reaching number two in the UK (breaking a string of number-one albums that stretched back to 1969's Let It Bleed
) and number one in the US, where it eventually went platinum.
Reviews were largely positive, with Jon Landau
saying in Rolling Stone
, "It's Only Rock 'n Roll [is] one of the most intriguing and mysterious, as well as the darkest, of all Rolling Stones records." However rock critic Lester Bangs
disparaged the album in The Village Voice
, much like Goats Head Soup, saying, "The Stones have become oblique in their old age, which is just another word for perverse except that perverse is the corniest concept extant as they realized at inception... Soup was friendly and safe. I want the edge and this album doesn't reassure me that I'll get it, what a curious situation to be stuck in, but maybe that's the beauty of the Stones, hah, hah, kid? This album is false. Numb. But it cuts like a dull blade. Are they doing the cutting, or are we?"
Author James Hector added that It's Only Rock 'n Roll was a definitive turning point for the band. "The album marked the band's decisive entry into a comfortable living as rock's elder statesmen. From this point on, their youth culture importance vanished, and there would be few musical surprises in the future." Hector concluded with "On It's Only Rock 'n Roll, the band had become what they imagined their mass audience desired them to be. They were wrong."
Instead of immediately touring to promote the album, the band decided to head back into the Munich studios to record the next album, to Mick Taylor's disappointment and subsequent resignation from the band. A tour didn't happen until the following summer in the US, the "Tour of the Americas '75
", with future member Ronnie Wood taking Taylor's place on guitar.
In order to promote the album, music videos were filmed for several of the songs. The most commonly seen video from the album was the video for "It's Only Rock 'n Roll (But I Like It)", featuring the band (in sailor suits) playing in a tent, which gradually fills with soap bubbles. Videos were also filmed for "Ain't Too Proud to Beg" and "Till The Next Goodbye".
Two different versions of "Luxury" exist. A shorter version of 4:30 is included on the early CD version from 1986, while the version of 5:01 was originally released on vinyl in Europe, and on the 1994 and 2009 CD remasters.
One of the Rolling Stones' largest fan clubs goes by the name "It's Only Rock 'n Roll", though its members typically refer to it as "IORR".
In 1994, It's Only Rock 'n Roll was remastered and reissued by Virgin Records
, in 2009 by Universal Music, and once more in 2011 by Universal Music Enterprises
in a Japanese only SHM
-SACD
version.
, except where noted.
Additional personnel
Singles
The Rolling Stones
The Rolling Stones are an English rock band, formed in London in April 1962 by Brian Jones , Ian Stewart , Mick Jagger , and Keith Richards . Bassist Bill Wyman and drummer Charlie Watts completed the early line-up...
, released in 1974. It would be the last Rolling Stones album for guitarist Mick Taylor
Mick Taylor
Michael Kevin "Mick" Taylor is an English musician, best known as a former member of John Mayall's Bluesbreakers and The Rolling Stones...
and the songwriting and recording of the album's title track would have a connection to Taylor's eventual replacement, Ronnie Wood. The album has a more firm rock
Rock music
Rock music is a genre of popular music that developed during and after the 1960s, particularly in the United Kingdom and the United States. It has its roots in 1940s and 1950s rock and roll, itself heavily influenced by rhythm and blues and country music...
sound than the band's previous album, the more funk and soul
Soul music
Soul music is a music genre originating in the United States combining elements of gospel music and rhythm and blues. According to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, soul is "music that arose out of the black experience in America through the transmutation of gospel and rhythm & blues into a form of...
-inspired Goats Head Soup
Goats Head Soup
Goats Head Soup is the 11th British and 13th American studio album by The Rolling Stones, released in 1973. It featured the song "Angie", which went to #1 as a single in the US and UK.-Recording:...
. The album reached #1 in the United States and #2 in the United Kingdom.
History
Work began on It's Only Rock 'n Roll following The Rolling Stones' fall 1973 European tour. Production began in November at MunichMunich
Munich The city's motto is "" . Before 2006, it was "Weltstadt mit Herz" . Its native name, , is derived from the Old High German Munichen, meaning "by the monks' place". The city's name derives from the monks of the Benedictine order who founded the city; hence the monk depicted on the city's coat...
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
's Musicland Studios
Musicland Studios
Musicland Studios was a recording studio located in Munich, Germany. It was established by Italian record producer, songwriter and performer Giorgio Moroder in the late 1960s...
. According to guitarist Keith Richards
Keith Richards
Keith Richards is an English musician, songwriter, and founding member of the Rolling Stones. Rolling Stone magazine said Richards had created "rock's greatest single body of riffs", and placed him as the "10th greatest guitarist of all time." Fourteen songs written by Richards and songwriting...
, "We were really hot (off the road) and ready just to play some new material."
Recording
The album was at first developed as a half-live, half-studio production with one side of the album featuring live performances from The Stones' European tour while the other side would be composed of newly recorded cover versions of the band's favourite R&B songs. Covers recorded included a take of Dobie GrayDobie Gray
Dobie Gray is an African American singer and songwriter, whose musical career has spanned soul, country, pop and musical theater...
's "Drift Away
Drift Away
"Drift Away" is a song written by Mentor Williams and originally recorded by John Henry Kurtz on his 1972 album Reunion. In 1973 the song became Dobie Gray's biggest hit, peaking at number five on the Billboard Hot 100, though it did not enter the charts in the United Kingdom.This song is also a...
", Shirley & Company
Shirley & Company
Shirley & Company was an American disco group, consisting of Shirley Goodman , Jesus Alvarez, Walter Morris, Bernadette Randle, Seldon Powell, Jonathan Williams and Clarence Oliver....
's "Shame, Shame, Shame
Shame, Shame, Shame (Shirley & Company song)
"Shame, Shame, Shame" is a 1974 hit song written by Sylvia Robinson and performed by American disco band Shirley & Company. The single hit number one on the soul singles chart for one week, and number one on the disco/dance charts for four weeks.The track was one of the first international disco...
", and The Temptations
The Temptations
The Temptations is an American vocal group having achieved fame as one of the most successful acts to record for Motown Records. The group's repertoire has included, at various times during its five-decade career, R&B, doo-wop, funk, disco, soul, and adult contemporary music.Formed in Detroit,...
' "Ain't Too Proud to Beg
Ain't Too Proud to Beg
"Ain't Too Proud to Beg" is a 1966 song and hit single by The Temptations for Motown Records' Gordy label, produced by Norman Whitfield and written by Whitfield and Edward Holland, Jr. The song peaked at number 13 on the Billboard Pop Chart, and was a number-one hit on the Billboard R&B charts for...
". Soon the band began working off riffs by Richards and new ideas by Mick Jagger
Mick Jagger
Sir Michael Philip "Mick" Jagger is an English musician, singer and songwriter, best known as the lead vocalist and a founding member of The Rolling Stones....
and the original concept was scrapped in favour of an album with all-new material. The cover of "Ain't Too Proud to Beg" would be the only recording to make the cut, while the "Drift Away" cover is a popular bootleg
Bootleg recording
A bootleg recording is an audio or video recording of a performance that was not officially released by the artist or under other legal authority. The process of making and distributing such recordings is known as bootlegging...
.
It's Only Rock 'n Roll would mark the Stones' first effort in the producer's chair since Their Satanic Majesties Request
Their Satanic Majesties Request
Their Satanic Majesties Request is the sixth British and eighth American studio album by The Rolling Stones, released on 8 December 1967 by Decca Records in the United Kingdom and the following day in the United States by London Records...
, and the first for Jagger and Richards under their pseudonym "The Glimmer Twins". On the choice to produce, Richards said at the time:
"I think we'd come to a point with Jimmy (Miller) where the contribution level had dropped because it'd got to be a habit, a way of life, for Jimmy to do one Stones album a year. He'd got over the initial sort of excitement which you can feel on Beggars BanquetBeggars Banquet- Personnel :The Rolling Stones* Mick Jagger – lead and backing vocals, harmonica on "Parachute Woman"* Keith Richards – acoustic and electric guitar, bass guitar on "Sympathy for the Devil" and "Street Fighting Man", backing vocals, lead vocals on opening of "Salt of the Earth"* Brian...
and Let It BleedLet It BleedLet It Bleed is the eighth British and tenth American album by English rock band The Rolling Stones, released in December 1969 by Decca Records in the United Kingdom and London Records in the United States...
. Also, Mick and I felt that we wanted to try and do it ourselves because we really felt we knew much more about techniques and recording and had our own ideas of how we wanted things to go. Goats Head Soup hadn't turned out as we wanted to - not blaming Jimmy or anything like that... But it was obvious that it was time for a change in that particular part of the process of making records."
Starting with this release, all future Rolling Stones albums would either be produced by them or in collaboration with an outside producer.
Most of the album's backing tracks were recorded first at Musicland, with Jagger's vocals recorded after. Richards said, "[Jagger] often comes up with his best stuff alone in the studio with just an engineer."
The song "Luxury" (early version named "Living in the Heart of Love") would show the band's growing interest in reggae
Reggae
Reggae is a music genre first developed in Jamaica in the late 1960s. While sometimes used in a broader sense to refer to most types of Jamaican music, the term reggae more properly denotes a particular music style that originated following on the development of ska and rocksteady.Reggae is based...
music, while "Till the Next Goodbye
Till the Next Goodbye
"Till the Next Goodbye" is a song by rock-and-roll band the Rolling Stones, featured on its 1974 album It's Only Rock 'n' Roll.Credited to Mick Jagger and Keith Richards, and uncredited to Mick Taylor, recording on "Till the Next Goodbye" began at Munich's Musicland Studios in November 1973...
" and "If You Really Want to Be My Friend" would continue the band's immersion into ballad
Ballad
A ballad is a form of verse, often a narrative set to music. Ballads were particularly characteristic of British and Irish popular poetry and song from the later medieval period until the 19th century and used extensively across Europe and later the Americas, Australia and North Africa. Many...
s. Seven of the album's ten songs crack the four-minute mark, a quality that would come to be disparaged during the rising punk rock
Punk rock
Punk rock is a rock music genre that developed between 1974 and 1976 in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Rooted in garage rock and other forms of what is now known as protopunk music, punk rock bands eschewed perceived excesses of mainstream 1970s rock...
scene of the late 1970s.
Ronnie Wood, a longtime acquaintance of the band, began to get closer to the Rolling Stones during these sessions after he invited Mick Taylor to play on his debut album, I've Got My Own Album to Do
I've Got My Own Album to Do
I've Got My Own Album to Do is the first solo album of Ronnie Wood. It reached #27 on UK's New Musical Express chart. The title was a dig at Rod Stewart as he was more focused with his solo albums than with The Faces.-Track listing:...
. Taylor spent some time recording and hanging out at Wood's house The Wick
The Wick
The Wick is a house in Richmond, Greater London, located at the corner of Nightingale Lane and Richmond Hill in Surrey. The house was at one time owned by actor Sir John Mills who used it as his family home for many years. Ronnie Wood of The Rolling Stones bought the house from Mills...
. By chance, Richards was asked one night by Wood's wife at the time, Krissy, to join them at the guitarist's home. While there, Richards recorded some tracks with Wood and quickly developed a close friendship, with Richards going as far as moving into Wood's guest room. Jagger soon entered the mix and it was here that the album's lead single and title track, "It's Only Rock 'n Roll (But I Like It)", was first recorded. Wood worked closely on the track with Jagger, who subsequently took the song and title for their album. The released version of this song features Wood on twelve-string acoustic guitar.
It's Only Rock 'n Roll would be Mick Taylor's last album with the Rolling Stones, and he played on just seven of the ten tracks. Similar to receiving no writing credits on the Stone's previous album, Goats Head Soup
Goats Head Soup
Goats Head Soup is the 11th British and 13th American studio album by The Rolling Stones, released in 1973. It featured the song "Angie", which went to #1 as a single in the US and UK.-Recording:...
, Taylor reportedly had made songwriting contributions to "Till the Next Goodbye" and "Time Waits for No One
Time Waits for No One (song)
"Time Waits for No One" is a song by British rock and roll band the Rolling Stones from its 1974 album It's Only Rock 'n' Roll. It was the first song recorded for the album....
", but on the album jacket, all original songs were credited to Jagger/Richards. Taylor said in 1997:
"I did have a falling out with Mick Jagger over some songs I felt I should have been credited with co-writing on It's Only Rock 'n Roll. We were quite close friends and co-operated quite closely on getting that album made. By that time Mick and Keith weren't really working together as a team so I'd spend a lot of time in the studio.""
Taylor's statement contradicts Jagger's earlier comment concerning the album. Jagger stated in a 1995 Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone is a US-based magazine devoted to music, liberal politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J...
interview about "Time Waits for No One
Time Waits for No One (song)
"Time Waits for No One" is a song by British rock and roll band the Rolling Stones from its 1974 album It's Only Rock 'n' Roll. It was the first song recorded for the album....
" that Taylor "maybe threw in a couple of chords."
Alongside the usual outside contributors, namely Billy Preston
Billy Preston
William Everett "Billy" Preston was a musician who gained notoriety and fame, first as a session musician for the likes of Sam Cooke, Ray Charles and The Beatles, and later finding fame as a solo artist with hits such as "Space Race", "Will It Go Round in Circles" and "Nothing from...
, Nicky Hopkins
Nicky Hopkins
Nicholas Christian "Nicky" Hopkins was an English pianist and organist.He recorded and performed on noted British and American popular music recordings of the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s as a session musician....
and unofficial member Ian Stewart
Ian Stewart (musician)
Ian Andrew Robert Stewart was a Scottish keyboardist, co-founder of The Rolling Stones and inductee to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame...
, Ray Cooper
Ray Cooper
Ray Cooper is an English musician. He is a session and road-tour percussionist, and occasional actor, who has worked with several musically diverse bands and artists including George Harrison, Billy Joel, Eric Clapton, and Elton John. Cooper is commonly regarded by music fans, critics and fellow...
would act as percussionist for the album. Several songs were finished songs and overdubs and mixing were performed at Jagger's home, Stargroves
Stargroves
Stargroves is a manor house and associated estate at East Woodhay in the English county of Hampshire. It best known for being the home of Mick Jagger during the 1970s and a recording venue for The Rolling Stones and various other rock bands.-History:...
, in the early summer of 1974.
Release and aftermath
In July, the lead single, "It's Only Rock 'n Roll (But I Like It)", was released, and despite the familiar sound, it surprised many by failing to reach the top 10 in the US (although it did reach the top 10 in the UK). With its sing-along chorus, it has become a staple at Rolling Stones concerts. The B-side "Through the Lonely Nights" dates back to the previous year's Goat's Head Soup sessions. A cover of "Ain't Too Proud to Beg", originally a 1966 hit by The TemptationsThe Temptations
The Temptations is an American vocal group having achieved fame as one of the most successful acts to record for Motown Records. The group's repertoire has included, at various times during its five-decade career, R&B, doo-wop, funk, disco, soul, and adult contemporary music.Formed in Detroit,...
, was released as the second single in the US only, where it also became a top 20 hit. Its parent album appeared in October with brisk initial sales, reaching number two in the UK (breaking a string of number-one albums that stretched back to 1969's Let It Bleed
Let It Bleed
Let It Bleed is the eighth British and tenth American album by English rock band The Rolling Stones, released in December 1969 by Decca Records in the United Kingdom and London Records in the United States...
) and number one in the US, where it eventually went platinum.
Reviews were largely positive, with Jon Landau
Jon Landau
Jon Landau is an American music critic, manager and record producer, most known for his association in all three capacities with Bruce Springsteen.He is currently the head of the nominating committee for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame....
saying in Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone is a US-based magazine devoted to music, liberal politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J...
, "It's Only Rock 'n Roll [is] one of the most intriguing and mysterious, as well as the darkest, of all Rolling Stones records." However rock critic Lester Bangs
Lester Bangs
Leslie Conway "Lester" Bangs was an American music journalist, author and musician. He wrote for Creem and Rolling Stone magazines, and was known for his leading influence in rock 'n' roll criticism....
disparaged the album in The Village Voice
The Village Voice
The Village Voice is a free weekly newspaper and news and features website in New York City that features investigative articles, analysis of current affairs and culture, arts and music coverage, and events listings for New York City...
, much like Goats Head Soup, saying, "The Stones have become oblique in their old age, which is just another word for perverse except that perverse is the corniest concept extant as they realized at inception... Soup was friendly and safe. I want the edge and this album doesn't reassure me that I'll get it, what a curious situation to be stuck in, but maybe that's the beauty of the Stones, hah, hah, kid? This album is false. Numb. But it cuts like a dull blade. Are they doing the cutting, or are we?"
Author James Hector added that It's Only Rock 'n Roll was a definitive turning point for the band. "The album marked the band's decisive entry into a comfortable living as rock's elder statesmen. From this point on, their youth culture importance vanished, and there would be few musical surprises in the future." Hector concluded with "On It's Only Rock 'n Roll, the band had become what they imagined their mass audience desired them to be. They were wrong."
Instead of immediately touring to promote the album, the band decided to head back into the Munich studios to record the next album, to Mick Taylor's disappointment and subsequent resignation from the band. A tour didn't happen until the following summer in the US, the "Tour of the Americas '75
Rolling Stones Tour of the Americas '75
The Rolling Stones' Tour of the Americas '75 was a 1975 concert tour originally intended to reach both North and South America. The plans for concerts in Central and South American never solidifed, however, and the tour covered only the United States and Canada.-History:This was the Stones first...
", with future member Ronnie Wood taking Taylor's place on guitar.
In order to promote the album, music videos were filmed for several of the songs. The most commonly seen video from the album was the video for "It's Only Rock 'n Roll (But I Like It)", featuring the band (in sailor suits) playing in a tent, which gradually fills with soap bubbles. Videos were also filmed for "Ain't Too Proud to Beg" and "Till The Next Goodbye".
Two different versions of "Luxury" exist. A shorter version of 4:30 is included on the early CD version from 1986, while the version of 5:01 was originally released on vinyl in Europe, and on the 1994 and 2009 CD remasters.
One of the Rolling Stones' largest fan clubs goes by the name "It's Only Rock 'n Roll", though its members typically refer to it as "IORR".
In 1994, It's Only Rock 'n Roll was remastered and reissued by Virgin Records
Virgin Records
Virgin Records is a British record label founded by English entrepreneur Richard Branson, Simon Draper, and Nik Powell in 1972. The company grew to be a worldwide music phenomenon, with platinum performers such as Roy Orbison, Devo, Genesis, Keith Richards, Janet Jackson, Culture Club, Lenny...
, in 2009 by Universal Music, and once more in 2011 by Universal Music Enterprises
Universal Music Enterprises
Universal Music Enterprises, a.k.a. UMe is the catalogue division of Universal Music Group. It includes Hip-O Records, Universal Chronicles and UM3 ....
in a Japanese only SHM
SHM
SHM may stand for:*Simple harmonic motion, a concept in physics*Shared memory, in computer science*Nanki-Shirahama Airport, IATA airport code*Structural health monitoring*Super highway mode a hypermiling technique...
-SACD
Super Audio CD
Super Audio CD is a high-resolution, read-only optical disc for audio storage. Sony and Philips Electronics jointly developed the technology, and publicized it in 1999. It is designated as the Scarlet Book standard. Sony and Philips previously collaborated to define the Compact Disc standard...
version.
Track listing
All songs by Mick Jagger and Keith RichardsJagger/Richards
The songwriting partnership of Mick Jagger and Keith Richards, known as Jagger/Richards , is a musical collaboration whose output has produced the majority of the catalogue of The Rolling Stones....
, except where noted.
Personnel
The Rolling Stones- Mick JaggerMick JaggerSir Michael Philip "Mick" Jagger is an English musician, singer and songwriter, best known as the lead vocalist and a founding member of The Rolling Stones....
– leadLead vocalistThe lead vocalist is the member of a band who sings the main vocal portions of a song. They may also play one or more instruments. Lead vocalists are sometimes referred to as the frontman or frontwoman, and as such, are usually considered to be the "leader" of the groups they perform in, often the...
and backing vocals, guitarGuitarThe guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with... - Keith RichardsKeith RichardsKeith Richards is an English musician, songwriter, and founding member of the Rolling Stones. Rolling Stone magazine said Richards had created "rock's greatest single body of riffs", and placed him as the "10th greatest guitarist of all time." Fourteen songs written by Richards and songwriting...
– electricElectric guitarAn electric guitar is a guitar that uses the principle of direct electromagnetic induction to convert vibrations of its metal strings into electric audio signals. The signal generated by an electric guitar is too weak to drive a loudspeaker, so it is amplified before sending it to a loudspeaker...
and acoustic guitarAcoustic guitarAn acoustic guitar is a guitar that uses only an acoustic sound board. The air in this cavity resonates with the vibrational modes of the string and at low frequencies, which depend on the size of the box, the chamber acts like a Helmholtz resonator, increasing or decreasing the volume of the sound...
, backing vocals, bass guitarBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick.... - Mick TaylorMick TaylorMichael Kevin "Mick" Taylor is an English musician, best known as a former member of John Mayall's Bluesbreakers and The Rolling Stones...
– electric, acoustic and slide guitarSlide guitarSlide guitar or bottleneck guitar is a particular method or technique for playing the guitar. The term slide refers to the motion of the slide against the strings, while bottleneck refers to the original material of choice for such slides: the necks of glass bottles...
, backing vocals, synthesizerSynthesizerA synthesizer is an electronic instrument capable of producing sounds by generating electrical signals of different frequencies. These electrical signals are played through a loudspeaker or set of headphones...
, congas, bass guitar - Charlie WattsCharlie WattsCharles Robert "Charlie" Watts is an English drummer, best known as a member of The Rolling Stones. He is also the leader of a jazz band, a record producer, commercial artist, and horse breeder.-Early life:...
– drumsDrum kitA drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person .... - Bill WymanBill WymanBill Wyman is an English musician best known as the bass guitarist for the English rock and roll band the Rolling Stones from 1962 until 1992. Since 1997, he has recorded and toured with his own band, Bill Wyman's Rhythm Kings...
– bass guitar*, synthesizer
Additional personnel
- Nicky HopkinsNicky HopkinsNicholas Christian "Nicky" Hopkins was an English pianist and organist.He recorded and performed on noted British and American popular music recordings of the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s as a session musician....
– pianoPianoThe piano is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. It is one of the most popular instruments in the world. Widely used in classical and jazz music for solo performances, ensemble use, chamber music and accompaniment, the piano is also very popular as an aid to composing and rehearsal...
on "Till the Next Goodbye", "Time Waits for No One", "Luxury", "If You Really Want to Be My Friend", and "Fingerprint File" - Billy PrestonBilly PrestonWilliam Everett "Billy" Preston was a musician who gained notoriety and fame, first as a session musician for the likes of Sam Cooke, Ray Charles and The Beatles, and later finding fame as a solo artist with hits such as "Space Race", "Will It Go Round in Circles" and "Nothing from...
– piano, clavinetClavinetA Clavinet is an electrically amplified keyboard instrument manufactured by the Hohner company. It is essentially an electronically amplified clavichord, analogous to an electric guitar. Its distinctive bright staccato sound has appeared particularly in funk, disco, rock, and reggae songs.Various...
on "If You Can't Rock Me", "Ain't Too Proud to Beg" and "Fingerprint File" - Ian StewartIan Stewart (musician)Ian Andrew Robert Stewart was a Scottish keyboardist, co-founder of The Rolling Stones and inductee to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame...
– piano on "It's Only Rock 'n Roll", "Dance Little Sister" and "Short and Curlies" - Ray CooperRay CooperRay Cooper is an English musician. He is a session and road-tour percussionist, and occasional actor, who has worked with several musically diverse bands and artists including George Harrison, Billy Joel, Eric Clapton, and Elton John. Cooper is commonly regarded by music fans, critics and fellow...
– percussionPercussion instrumentA percussion instrument is any object which produces a sound when hit with an implement or when it is shaken, rubbed, scraped, or otherwise acted upon in a way that sets the object into vibration... - Blue MagicBlue Magic (band)Blue Magic is an American soul music group, one of the most popular Philadelphia soul groups of the 1970s. Founded in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1972, they were originally composed of lead Ted Mills, Vernon Sawyer, Wendell Sawyer, Keith Beaton, and Richard Pratt...
– backing vocals on "If You Really Want to Be My Friend" - Charlie Jolly – tablaTablaThe tabla is a popular Indian percussion instrument used in Hindustani classical music and in popular and devotional music of the Indian subcontinent. The instrument consists of a pair of hand drums of contrasting sizes and timbres...
on "Fingerprint File" - Ed Leach – cowbell on "Ain't Too Proud to Beg"
- Basic track on "It's Only Rock 'n Roll (But I Like It)":
- Kenney JonesKenney JonesKenneth Thomas "Kenney" Jones is a veteran English rock drummer best known for his work in Small Faces, Faces, and The Who.-Small Faces to the Faces:...
– drums - Willie WeeksWillie WeeksWillie Weeks is an American bass guitarist. He has gained fame performing with famous musicians in a wide variety of genres. He has been one of the most in-demand session musicians throughout his career. Weeks has also gained notoriety touring with many of rock's heavyweights throughout his career...
– bass guitar - David BowieDavid BowieDavid Bowie is an English musician, actor, record producer and arranger. A major figure for over four decades in the world of popular music, Bowie is widely regarded as an innovator, particularly for his work in the 1970s...
– backing vocals - Ronnie Wood – twelve-string acoustic guitar and backing vocals
- Recording engineer – Andy JohnsAndy JohnsAndy Johns is an engineer and producer who worked on well-known rock albums such as Led Zeppelin's IV and The Rolling Stones' Exile on Main Street. His sound is exemplified by Free's album Highway, which he engineered and produced....
and Keith HarwoodKeith HarwoodKeith Harwood was a recording engineer, most notable for his work at Olympic Studios with such musicians as David Bowie: , the Pretty Things and Ron Wood. Harwood collaborated on engineering the Rolling Stones albums It's Only Rock 'n' Roll and Black and Blue with brothers Andy and Glyn Johns,... - Overdub engineer;– George Chkiants
- Mixing engineer;– Keith Harwood, "Fingerprint File" mixed by Glyn JohnsGlyn JohnsGlyn Johns is a musician, recording engineer and record producer.-Career:He has worked with such artists as Bob Dylan, The Beatles, The Easybeats, The Band, The Rolling Stones, The Who, Led Zeppelin, Eagles, Eric Clapton, The Clash, The Steve Miller Band, Small Faces, Spooky Tooth, The Ozark...
- Designed and painted by Guy PeellaertGuy PeellaertGuy Peellaert was a Belgian artist, painter, illustrator, comic artist and photographer, most famous for the book Rock Dreams, and his album covers for rock artists like David Bowie and The Rolling Stones ...
Chart positions
Album| Year | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|
| 1974 | UK Top 50 Albums | 2 |
| Billboard Pop Albums | 1 |
Singles
| Year | Single | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1974 | "It's Only Rock 'n Roll" | UK Top 50 Singles | 10 |
| The Billboard Hot 100 | 16 | ||
| "Through the Lonely Nights" B-side of "It's Only Rock 'n Roll" |
Mainstream Rock Tracks | 50 | |
| "Ain't Too Proud to Beg" | The Billboard Hot 100 | 17 |
Certifications
| Country | Provider | Certification Music recording sales certification Music recording sales certification is a system of certifying that a music recording has shipped or sold a certain number of copies, where the threshold quantity varies by type and by nation or territory .Almost all countries follow variations of the RIAA certification categories,... (sales thresholds) |
|---|---|---|
| United States | RIAA Recording Industry Association of America The Recording Industry Association of America is a trade organization that represents the recording industry distributors in the United States... |
Platinum |
| France | SNEP Syndicat National de l'Edition Phonographique The Syndicat national de l'édition phonographique is the inter-professional organization which protects the interests of the French record industry... |
Gold |
| United Kingdom | BPI British Phonographic Industry The British Phonographic Industry is the British record industry's trade association.-Structure:Its membership comprises hundreds of music companies including all four "major" record companies , associate members such as manufacturers and distributors, and hundreds of independent music companies... |
Gold |