100 Favorite Rolling Stones Songs

100 Favorite Rolling Stones Songs

It has been over eight years since I ranked the material from a particular artist, this latest venture therefor being long overdue.  Having gotten The Beatles, Led Zeppelin, Queen, and Kiss out of the way, next up is England's newest hit makers, the often described greatest rock and roll band of all time, (and as John Lennon would say, "Your hosts for this evening..."), The Rolling Stones.

 

Everyone reading this, (plus trillions of other people who never will), have obviously heard of The Rolling Stones and ergo hardly need an introductory history lesson on them.  That being said, here is one anyway.  On top of consistently maintaining legendary status for their lingering influence having come up shortly after The Beatles emergence in the mainstream, (thus being the next biggest fellow English group to usher in the British Invasion), the Stones may be the longest running of any such band ever.  Having stayed active for over six decades, some members have left, some have died, some records are more revered than others, and some eras were more prolific and consistently brilliant than others.  Their humble beginnings as a blues/early rock 'n roll/R&B combo established a lingering focal point, even as they quickly morphed into a more eclectic outfit, Keith Richards and Mick Jagger becoming formidable songwriters who tapped into everything from pop music, to country, to psychedelia, to reggae, to disco, to punk throughout their many years.

 

They also dabbled in hilariously loud and bad 80s attire, as did many.

As should go without saying but shall be said anyway, this list is a personal ranking and is not beholden to any public discourse.  I have my own favorites, and there are certain songs here that will be obvious and are enormously popular even amongst non-Stones cultists.  There will also be glaring omissions of other household name songs.  Warning up front and per example, "Satisfaction" is not on here since A) it defines the term "overplayed" and B ) I agree with its author Keith Richards in never being a fan of it to begin with.  I also did not put "We Will Rock Your" or "We Are the Champions" on my 100 Favorite Queens Songs list for similar reasons, namely that Keith is not wild about them either, (said statement needs verification).

 

What is here though covers each era of the band, though like many people, I too am partial to their late 1960s-early 70s run of flawless material.  Beginning with Beggar's Banquet through their masterpiece Exile on Main Street, The Rolling Stones were just delivering some of the most amazing music possible, and these songs take up a significant majority, (as well as the upper spots), of what is here.  That said, there were standouts from their earliest records all the way up until their most recent at this writing and first since Charlie Watts' passing, 2023's Hackney Diamonds.  Every studio album is represented sans their 2016 blues cover release Blue & Lonesome, (which is still damn good mind you), as I primarily focused on the band's original compositions, though there are exceptions to this preference.  Anyway, enough of this gay banter, and as Mr. Burns would say, "Have The Rolling Stones killed!".  Oh, wait, that's no good.  I mean, as Keith would say, "I've never had a problem with drugs. I've had problems with the police."  Haven't we all Keith, haven't we all.