Customer Reviews

Undercover

5 star:		(15)
4 star:		(23)
3 star:		(12)
2 star:		(5)
1 star:		(7)

 

 

Put this in perspective:

A.1979's Emotional Rescue was pretty much made up of Some Girls outtakes

B.1981's excellent Tattoo You was in reality an odds and sods release made up of half forgotten gems recorded throughout the 70's, rescued from the vaults and polished up.

C.1982's Still Life was the ragged glory live album documenting the 81-82 tour which was probably the most hyped rock extravaganza in history and re-positioned the Stones as arguably the most loved band in the world

D.In '85 Mick would go solo with She's The Boss

E.1986 brought arguably the lamest album in the Stones cannon, Dirty Work

So that leaves us to consider Undercover, the first batch of newly written tracks since 1978's Some Girls (although Too Tough had been hanging around in the vaults since the mid `70's). This was also the first studio release since the universally praised glory of Tattoo You and the '81 tour. Interestingly, the band did not go out of their way to replicate the classic rock sound of Tattoo You but instead tried to re-invent themselves for the 80's, exploring some new and "Modern' sounds. Thankfully, it was a little too early in the Miami Vice decade for the "Modern" production techniques of the era to doom this record to sounding embarrassingly dated (see She's The Boss and Dirty Work for examples of this kind of unfortunate excess). Some of the highlights:

1.Undercover of the Night: Title track, first single and centerpiece. Definitely the sound of the Stones re-inventing themselves for the 80's. Phased guitars, jungle rhythms and vaguely politically-themed lyrics suggesting the Central American bloodshed dominating the headlines at the time. This song is very catchy, quite rocking, not embarrassing or dated and earns the band points for trying something new and not just phoning in their performance. The band has been known to pull this one out for live performances over the years and is a welcome addition to their concerts.

2.She Was Hot: Fun, lusty rocker that is good without being great. A little overproduced, this song would have benefited from a more raw production style. This one screams for inclusion in their live set, where it would potentially come into its own as a barn burner ala Respectable or Rip This Joint.

3.Wanna Hold You: A decent rocker but not one of Keith's greatest songs; not bad either. I'd like to see Keith trot this one out for their next tour.

4.Too Much Blood: The most `80's song here but in a good way. This is really a Mick song (the bizarre violence story lyrics recorded when he was drunk) with a guitar tech playing the main riff. Definitely intended for the dance floor, this track works and is considered by some Stones freaks as the best song on the record. Surprisingly, this still sounds fresh and not dated although it certainly is of its era.

5.Pretty Beat Up: This has become my favorite track on the album. Don't believe the Jagger / Richards / Wood credits, this is a Ronnie song that those greedy bastids tacked their names onto. A totally cool 80's dance funk groover that manages to swing and rock at the same time, put this song on loud at your next blowout and watch your guests go nuts. Ronnie has been known to play this live in his solo sets and this is another one that just begs to be played live by the Stones. This is one of the great unappreciated Stones songs, ripe for rediscovery.

6.Too Tough: This simple rocker has got classic status in its blood but never quite gels. It reminds me of Silver Train, a good song that you just know has greatness in it but never quite arrives. As a side note, a great Portland, OR bar band of the 80's and early 90's, The Batz, used to include this in their set and really made it come to life.

Nothing really wrong with the rest of the tracks on this album but I think of them as second tier in comparison to the former. As a matter of fact, if these last ones had been saved for Dirty Work, they would have been the highlights of that lackluster record.

7. Tie You Up (the pain of love): A grinding, riffing groove-rocker. Okay.

8. Feel On Baby: Another groover with a whiff of the jungle

9. All The Way Down: The most Tattoo You-feeling track on the album. A generic rocker in the vein of Neighbors

10. It Must Be Hell: A mid-tempo riff rocker, nothing to get too excited about.

It's a testament to what the Rolling Stones have accomplished in the past 35 years when an album of this quality can only achieve 3 or 4 stars when compared their best. However, if you've been turned off by reviews that dismiss it as merely an "80's Stones album that should be avoided", please reconsider. If it doesn't match up to late 60's, early 70's Stones albums, then so be it. Not much does. You want some basic hard rocking music? Buy this album.

The trilogy, "Beggars", "Bleed", and "Sticky" are albums that you play from start to finish because to do otherwise would be somehow sacrilegious. Put on Undercover and hit "Random" and turn up the volume. I defy you to listen and not move your hips or drum the air at some point. This is more a collection of random high-quality tunes versus a coherent album. You will hear a lot of music faintly reminiscent of "Exile on Main St." on this cd... but like the album packaging, it's got that 80's glossy feel to it. If they missed the mark it's because the sound is too clean, too polished. While the lyrics are dark, they don't completely pull you in because they are served up in a very slick manner. The glossy production causes Mick to come off sounding downright mean, versus simply nasty and a little vulnerable, like we're used to. But we must stop comparisons with the Stones' best. These tunes simply rock! Worried that it will be uninspired and bland? Hardly!!!

Buy this album and play it on Random and play it LOUD. You'll think you've just bought a "new" Stones cd, even though this one is rapidly approaching 20 years old. After a few listens you'll wonder why you don't hear more of these songs played on the radio or by the band in concert. The only reason is because of what they've produced elsewhere. This cd is a dark, forgotten joy that just never gets the credit it deserves.

I can't believe that the rest of the world doesn't know it either. If you're going to call the Stones the best rock and roll band ever, get the album that rocks the hardest. Violent and decadent and delicious. The reggae beats of Feel On Baby are even better than the excellent Send It To Me, Hot Stuff, and Cherry Oh Baby. The true classic is Too Much Blood. This song and Fingerprint File are the two best Stones songs ever. I find no filler whatsoever on this album. This album is hot, hot, hot.

'Undercover' is maybe the Stones album that non-Stones fans can appreciate more than any other. And true blue fans, who seem to easily disregard it, should see that this is one of their most underrated efforts. It seems to be a forgotten album. Even Mick Jagger himself thinks that it doesn't include anything special. But he also doesn't like Between the Buttons. I don't know if I can trust his overall taste.

In the world of the Rolling Stones, you always hear about 'Some Girls' and 'Tattoo You' and how great they are. But, for my money, I enjoy this one more (If only 'Hang Fire' could be on this, too). A major part of the allure is the slightness of the songs. It's refreshing to know they went to the studio without intending to produce the next stadium rocker. Instead, they collaborated to create a slick list of ten thick-sounding, weird, raunchy, 80's-indulged, country-punk-disco intermingled tunes that run hypnotically ragged, one after the next. It's compulsively listenable, but I wouldn't be fool enough to check this out during the day. This music should really only be played at night, when it's dark. And if the moon is shining full, it won't hurt.

The centerpiece of 'Undercover' is 'Too Much Blood.' It's the kind of song that would have fit perfectly onto the soundtrack of the movie 'American Psycho,' with all of its bloody descriptions and biting sense of charm. But maybe the Stones would have charged the film makers too much to use one of their songs and that's why it wasn't used. You can't help but be surprised by the lyrics Mick mumbles through. But as intriguing as his talking is, it's not the main allure of the song. That would be the instrumentation. What great 80's, horn-enduced sounds that are created. This is the Rolling Stones? you easily think.

Also, one of my favorite Keith Richards songs is on this album, 'Wanna Hold you.' Very simple and with a very nice riff. This song makes for a good example of how the album, throughout, includes that endearing Stones riffing, but it's got that 80's sound intermingled with it. And this extra thick musical texture gives songs like 'Wanna Hold You' a sense of newness of creation in the Stones catalogue. The single-minded, isolated riff in a tune like 'Start Me Up' gives way here for the group- rocking sound of 'Rocks Off.' It's just that the context here is different (it's '83 and not '72) so the result sounds different.

You could make a strong guess that Mick Jagger was the driving force behind the decision to make 'these' kinds of songs on Undercover (his 80's solo career sounds closer to this than late 60's stuff). During the recording sessions in Paris, whether he came inspired or not I'm not sure, since soon after this record was made talk of the band breaking up began to surface. But the results of his singing would lead you to believe that he was working on all cylinders. He rarely has sounded this delicisously beat up, spinning through country, punk, regge and funk-based tunes with a swagger that adds to how helplessly interesting this record is.

I wish they would have decided to make more slight songs like 'All the Way Down, 'Too Tough' and 'She Was Hot,' among others on 'Undercover,' an album that should be heard more often than it is, not just in the culture of the Rolling Stones, but in the world of music. It's got a lot of great things on it and finds the Stones less enamored by themselves than the music they seem to be paying close attention to in the studio.

UNDERCOVER deserves more recognition than it gets. It is not the best album from the Stones, but its not the worst. UNDERCOVER OF THE NIGHT is a good rockin song that kicks the album off. It has alittle funky beat to it that will get the listener dancing in no time. SHE WAS HOT is another good song that although not a classic is still a good rocking song that the Stones sound good on. TIE YOU UP is disco sounding song that the Stones should have put out on earlier releases. By the time this album came out, disco was dead. WANNA HOLD YOU is an excellent song with Keith on lead vocals. It might just be the best song on the album. FEEL ON BABY is a song that in my opinion was just album filler. TOO MUCH BLOOD has a funky beat complete with horns that helps to add more life to this album and is another good song. PRETTY BEAT UP is a slower paced song that is ok. TOO TOUGH has that classic Stones riff that shows the Stones still have what it takes. ALL THE WAY DOWN also has a classic Stones sound to it, but it falls short of being a hit, but it is still a decent song. IT MUST BE HELL is a pretty solid rocker that helps to end the album on a high note. Not a bad album from the band. WANNA HOLD YOU is enough of a reason to buy this album. You will be dancing to this in no time. Rates closer to 3 1/2 stars instead of 3

See Wandering Spirit's review below for a crisp summary of what's so great about this Stones album, surely one of the most overlooked, least recognized discs the band made in the Ronnie Wood era.

I remember when Some Girls' "Miss You" came floating out of the radio in the summer of 1978, and it was magical. And the off-speed metal groove of Start Me Up in August of '81 was brilliant. But no less powerful was the early winter of '83 when "Undercover of the Night"'s weird machine gun rattle announced that the Stones were back saying things that struck home about this world we live in ("the race militia have got itchy fingers...once-proud fathers act so huuuumble" and "our tv leader tries to preach, the words of Christ he tries to teach" are book ends to this record).

Seems to me this is late Stones at their most insightful and funniest about these strange days we live in, awash in too much blood, too much sex, too few good relationships. And unlike other Stones records of the 80s (Emotional Rescue, Dirty Work, and yes, Tattoo You (I won't even mention that one from '89)) this one hangs together as a coherent listening experience, that is, an album.

No, it's not Beggar's Banquet or Exile on Main St. But Ronnie Wood's influence freshens the old fellows up more than since Black and Blue's "Hey Negrita" (which, incidentally, is Woody's best contribution to the Stones collection, bar none) with "Pretty Beat Up" and "Feel on Baby." Keith's "Wanna Hold You" I've always found to be pretty ho-hum, though you have to chuckle when he has the nerve to sing a line like "I know you find it funny...that I got no money"

Years ago, I put Undercover on one side of a cassette, with REM's Document on the other. That's the best of the '80s. Give Undercover another listen.

Here is why I love Amazon....because you get a mix of views....Is this the lost Stones gem? Sort of....its unique in the Stone catalogue....they have made sleazer records (Goats head soup where excess overwhelms them)...they made a record where they jammed for the sake of trying out Ron Wood (Black and Blue)....but this one is different and unique.....if you take it as a one of a kind in the catalogue then you can relax and enjoy it! They have some funky jungle beats.....not too bad on the 80's production (that would mark in my mind dirty work as there worst record to date). Perhaps it was the political climate in latin America in the Regan 80's or just the inter fighting starting to pull Mick and Keith apart....but this is a dark, bloody record with some killer grooves. I can't go through track by track because others have (and did a decent job here)....however do not ignore the second half of record as some of suggested...its great. A dark, sometimes bloody, with sex and sleaze through in for good measure, STones record........I like it.....no its not there greatest, its by no means their worst....its unique! Enjoy

Okay. A 5 star Stones album is one in which there is no detectable filler. This one has a few forgettable songs, which loses it that fifth star, but the good ones are fine enough to rate it four, in my book.

Here's why:

The title song is one of the most intense, scary things the Stones have ever done. The lyrics mix images of political turmoil with images of psychosexual desperation in the same way that "Street Fighting Man" and "Gimme Shelter" did, and the music perfectly matches the lyrics. "Gimme Shelter" is like a long, sustained scream; "Undercover of the Night" is like a four-and-a-half minute chase through barbed-wire and police blockades.

"She Was Hot" is the Stones-formula rocker of the album, occupying the same space that "Shattered" and "She's So Cold" did before it and "Flip The Switch" and "You've Got Me Rocking" did after it. This time around they put more into the formula than usual, though: when you really listen there's a lot more going on musically in this track than first appears.

Your mileage on the rest of the album will vary depending on whether you lean toward the conservative Chuck Berry-riffing side of the Stones or the trend-hopping sort-of-experimental side of the band. I tend to like the latter, and this album has some fine examples. "Too Much Blood" pushes the envelope the furthest, and I think it works, although just barely; "Feel On Baby" and "Pretty Beat Up" are better, dance-oriented numbers that nevertheless grind as nastily as they need to.

Yes, it's a violent, mean-spirited album. But it was 1983, and Rambo was president. What could a poor boy do? Or even--especially--five rich ones?

the stones myth is tattoo you is the last great stones album and that was made up of castoffs of others albums,
think..bout how many great albums they produced year after year,where as nowadays bands take 3-4 years to get an album out,
Undercover is a great funny slightly odd album,i listen to these more than the 60's 70's albums..dirtywork well was a bit poor,but steel,vodoo,bang,bridges,emotion etc are not bad albums there just not exile!

Among Stones purists, this is a controversial album. Some love it and, well.....some don't. I happen to belong to the former category. There are no ballads(a rarity for any Stones album), just straight ahead hard rock songs.This album was strangely out of step with the times as the 80's had a happy-go-lucky vibe and this album is quite dark and violent. Just look at the song titles-"Pretty Beat Up", "Too Much Blood","Too Tough", "Must Be Hell", and you can start to feel the sense of dread that pervades throughout.The band rocks ferociosly and Charlie Watts pounds the skins like a man possessed and conjures up a hip hop like urban jungle sound that really suits the material. They do lighten up a little on "She Was Hot", Mick's humorous blow by blow account of a one night stand and Keith's light hearted "Wanna Hold You", but this is like the sun coming out momentarily on a cloudy day. Truthfully, there isn't one particular classic cut on this album, but taken song for song as a complete album it is compelling listening from beginning to end.