CMN Vibes: The Most Underrated Rolling Stones Songs

I’ve been waiting by my computer screen since 8:30 AM.

Not for the continuous Cyber Monday sales, not for the final exam study guides that my professors will be posting, and not to escape the sheer boredom of being trapped in lecture halls.

At 10:00 AM this morning, tickets for The Rolling Stones US Tour went on sale, and according to Ticketmaster, there are about 2,000 people in front of me in a virtual line to at least look at the ticket prices.

So, I’m still waiting.

But Nicole, you’re probably thinking to yourself, you’ve already seen the Stones in Europe from the front row, and you’ve already bragged to us all about how Mick Jagger may or may not have glanced down at you, as you clung to the barricade and cried your eyes out like an emotionally disturbed child!

Right you are, dear reader! But I might as well see them on the home front here in America. You know, to report on a big ticket stadium show with a crowd that I’m expecting to be similar to that of the Daytona 500, but with Stones merchandise and overpriced tallboys of Bud Light.

So, in the grand spirit of being bored by my computer, staring at the slowly dwindling line of ticket buyers, I’ve comprised a playlist of some of the most underrated songs in the Stones’ catalog.

Here are the must listens, along with some fun facts you can use to impress people at craft beer establishments and your local record store:

“She’s a Rainbow” was a top 25  single from 1967’s Their Satanic Majesties Request, which was the group’s psychedelic response to the Beatles’ Sgt. Pepper’s.

“Dance Pt. 1” is a disco infused romp from 1980’s Emotional Rescue.

From 1973’s Goat’s Head Soup, we have “Star Star,” which was originally titled “Starfucker” — a title that was frowned upon for obvious reasons. It’s both misogynistic and obscene, but I’ll be damned if isn’t an incredible song,  — and surprisingly, one of my favorites, even as a staunch, raging feminist — catching Keith Richards showcasing his finest guitar riffing technique.

I couldn’t put all of the tracks off of Black and Blue on this playlist, but hear me out when I say that the entire album is incredibly undervalued (if not for Some Girls, B&B would’ve been more important in the Stones’ discography, but c’est la vie). I settled for “Memory Motel” and “Hand of Fate” from the 1976 release.

So, enjoy, and if you need me, I’ll be camping out in front of my laptop for the rest of the day, credit card in hand, persevering in the face of Ticketmaster’s ridiculous policies.