Hackney Diamonds (2CD Live Edition)＜限定盤＞

全世界で100万枚を越えるセールス!
ザ・ローリング・ストーンズの大ヒット・最新アルバム『Hackney Diamonds』に、10月19日開催のサプライズ・ライヴが収録された限定盤2CDライヴ・エディション登場!ザ・ローリング・ストーンズは新作アルバム『Hackney Diamonds』の発売前夜となる2023年10月19日に、アメリカ・ニューヨークにある少人数のクラブ「Racket NYC」にてサプライズ・ライヴを約500人の観客の前で行い、新作から4曲の初ライヴ演奏を披露。その4曲を含む全演奏がCD2に収録されたHackney Diamonds (2CD Live Edition)。

Sometime after the Rolling Stones wrapped up their 2022 tour -- the second they completed since the 2021 death of their drummer Charlie Watts -- Mick Jagger decided the band had spent enough time working on their first record of original material since 2005s A Bigger Bang. Jagger gave Keith Richards, the only other surviving founding member of the Stones left in the band, a deadline of Valentines Day 2023 for wrapping up the sessions that had been dragging on for years. The ultimatum worked: by October of that year, the Stones released Hackney Diamonds, their first collection of new songs in 18 years. The album doesnt entirely consist of material the Stones cut early in 2023 -- two tracks feature Charlie Watts, including "Live by the Sword," which has original bassist Bill Wyman guesting on a Stones record for the first time in 30 years -- yet it bears the unmistakable imprint of a record delivered on a deadline. Theres little hesitation, no thoughtful pondering here: Hackney Diamonds just barrels ahead with a clean efficiency. Although theyre largely working with a new producer -- Andrew Watt, who came recommended by Paul McCartney -- the Rolling Stones dont attempt new tricks anywhere on Hackney Diamonds, save maybe "Whole Wide World," whose bizarre neo-new wave vibe gets odder thanks to Jagger singing in an exaggerated cockney accent. Even that is a slight nod to the bands mall-rat rock of the early 80s, one of many different guises the Rolling Stones adopt over the course of Hackney Diamonds. While a good portion of the record is devoted to straight-ahead rock & roll, they also find space for ragged country ("Dreamy Skies") and acoustic blues ("Rolling Stone Blues"), not to mention "Sweet Sounds of Heaven," a showstopping ballad featuring Lady Gaga. That track is a good indication of how Hackney Diamonds plays. At first, it seems like a solid evocation of "Beast of Burden," but its a slow burn, a song that sounds stronger with each repeated listen. So is of the rest of Hackney Diamonds. Because it has no grand conceptual hook and because the Stones so thoroughly integrate their superstar guests -- not only are Gaga and Wyman here but so are Stevie Wonder, Elton John, and McCartney -- it doesnt overwhelm upon an initial listen the way the lengthy Voodoo Lounge or A Bigger Bang do; that small scale is its strength. At its heart, its nothing more than the Rolling Stones knocking out some good Rolling Stones songs, which seems like a minor miracle after such a long wait. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine

全曲をブルースのカヴァーで固めた前作『Blue & Lonesome』(2016年)から7年ぶりのアルバム。逝去したチャーリー・ワッツの演奏も含むほか、ポール・マッカートニーやエルトン・ジョン、元メンバーのビル・ワイマンが客演。レディ・ガガとスティーヴィー・ワンダーを招いた"Sweet Sounds Of Heaven"が70年代後半ぐらいの雰囲気で素晴らしい。そのようにバンド自身が描いてきたさまざまな音風景も改めて出し入れされていて、そのあたりは共同プロデュースを務めるアンドリュー・ワットの俯瞰的なセンスなのかもしれない。不穏なタイトルも気になりつつ、想像以上の気合に嬉しくなる快作だ。
bounce (C)大原かおり