I was watching a youtube video where the Stones where followed through the course of their 69 tour, comparing 66 and 69 is like night and day, they transitioned from a pop act to something bluesy, dark and raw, any examples of other rock groups who changed their whole persona in such a short time?
Mick. Taylor.
He was the bomb, and helped make the best Stones albums.
Love Micks guitar on the song Time Waits for No One
Yeah, MT changed the whole identity of the stones in 69
Mick Taylor did not change the Stones’ IDENTITY. He had no IDENTITY in the band. The Stones IDENTITY, especially after Brian’s passing, has mostly been The Glimmer Twins. Mick Taylor brought a distinct sound to live shows, but his album output, even in the glory years, was fairly minimal for a lead guitarist. Many of the quintessential guitar moments on the Rushmore albums was Keith. Keith IS the rock n roll sound of the stones. Mick Taylor brought some blistering leads, at times meandering overplayed, to the Stones live output. But the album fingerprints belong to Mick Jagger and Keith Richards.
Look at Beatles photos from the same time span.
After sacking Brian Jones, I picture Keith smashing every sitar in sight and shouting "bugger all this, get me a honky tonk piano and a sax man."
Keep in mind that changing lead guitarists was key in their transition (though they were on the way before finding a replacement). But the Byrds went through a similar transition (from psychedelic to country) as did Kenny Rogers. Same with Eric Clapton; Graham Parsons and the Band completely changed the musical landscape in the late 60s/early 70s.
Now go listen to the Lemonhead's It's a Shame About Ray, Goo Goo Dolls' Dizzy Up the Girl, the Replacement's Don't Tell a Soul and the Cocteau Twins Heaven or Las Vegas.
Then listen to their first albums and prepare yourself for a shock.
The Yard Birds (if I remember correctly)became Led Zeppelin. Other bands that transitioned greatly were The Bee Gees and Fleetwood Mac.
Jimmy Page was the only member in common between Yardbirds and Zep.
You've brought a precise picture of those transitional years. And I can detect that you have a great taste in music when I see you mention The Replacements, The Cocteau Twins or the Lemonheads in the same sentence.
I know a thing or two about college rock.
Excellent playlist with some surprises such as the ska of The Lambrettas or Graduate, the fabulous John Foxx or a lot of hidden gems by top artists.
I dare to assume that you are not American and not in your twenties either?
Very much not in my 20s. I cut my musical teeth on college radio in the mid to late 80s, was at exactly the right age to appreciate the alternative revolution in the early 90s.
I am American though, I just worked in the industry through the 90s, so I got a lot more exposure to different groups than someone just listening to the radio did.
Gram Parsons.
The Grateful Dead with Pigpen was a mostly blues rock band that transformed into the psychedelic/exploratory rock > Americana/country with American Beauty and Workingmans Dead. Such a good band
It wasn’t a short time if you were paying attention to the drama in that timeline ‘66-‘69 …they almost went out of existence twice thanks to Fleet st and a vengeful police force 😳plus OD’s , girlfriends in Hospital or ,is Brian OK today? ABK and contract…lots went down
The Beatles. The Stones and Beatles were on the same trajectory course.
U2 definitely changed their persona between Joshua Tree and Achtung Baby (their two best albums in many peoples' opinions).
That trajectory wasn't rare. Bands went from playing the teen sock hop circuit to something more. The MC5 come to mind.
A lot of it was the nature of the 1960s... Bands could not stay stagnant. They had to change because the culture around them was changing so quickly. Bands at that time could not "milk a brand" for years on end because everything "dated" so quickly. For example, imagine the Beatles still riffing on the mood and structure of "I Want to Hold Your Hand" in 1968 -- they would have been seen as so passe and irrelevant. In the 1960s, the past died quickly.
That said, looking at it specifically, after the relative failure of "Satanic Majesties" LP, the departure of Andrew Loog Oldman from the Stones' orbit, and the fading of Brian Jones, the Stones were at a crossroads. They needed someone who could accent and mold their strengths. I think Jimmy Miller entering the picture cannot be underestimated.
Mick and Keith probably landed on a vague vision for the band, but Miller had a defined mission for the sound and structure of the band. He knew the band's real strengths were groove and rhythm, and he set about accenting that.
The band's creation of "Jumping Jack Flash" with Miller's input through production and arrangement was an unbelievable watershed moment. This single took a relatively floundering band and placed them on a rocket of reinvention. It tapped into the strength of each band member.
Everything that followed -- Beggar's Banquet, Mick Taylor joining the band, Let it Bleed, the major US tour in 1969 -- can be traced back to the effect that that single had on the band and its audience
The Who starting in 1968 are changing from a high energy pop group with a lot of snap, to one that improvises parts of the set. The long explorations of relax, My generation, Young Man Blues and Shakin All Over around this time are a new way of playing a set, possibly inspired by Hendrix.
Even watching the TAMI show in 64 where they are a proper professional pop group, the Stones have that loose live quality already. They're not as sharp as James Brown or the Phil Spector studio band that backs up the other acts. They're funky, they got swing. By 69 they've leaned into the swing really hard.
69 to 74 by far the best stones. Mick Taylor is the man