The Rolling Stones: Ranking The Albums Best To Worst

2. A Bigger Bang

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J27Sb8np80k Date Of Original Release: 2005 Key Tracks: Streets of Love, Rough Justice Quite possibly, this will be the last Stones LP, and maybe - just maybe - that's okay. Rolling Stone magazine fawned like always about it upon its release, but there's nothing to get too excited about on display here. This features a stripped down, back to basics sound inspired by garage-rock types as White Stripes and the like, but the songs still fail to register to the listener on any level. Credit should be given to Mick for an attempt at controversy with the track "Sweet Neo-Con", but the song is too toothless to be considered any real kind of provocation (and it comes nowhere near "Street Fighting Man"). Plus, Mick is far too old to try a cheeky line like "Now am I just one of your cocks?" in "Rough Justice". It basically sounds like a record you would expect rich senior citizens to make, or possibly your grandparents. The most interesting thing to say about this album is that during the tour, Keith Richards fell out of a coconut tree and broke his head. Why couldn't they have written a song about that?

1. Dirty Work

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v9soEaWwUIg Date Of Original Release: 1986 Key Tracks: Harlem Shuffle, One Hit (To The Body) This is it, the bottom drawer of Stones albums, recorded in the mid-80's when the tensions in the band were at an all time high, and released shortly before the Stones entered a three-year hiatus. The seething animosity and bad vibes are everywhere on this album, from the song titles (Fight, One Hit To The Body, Had It With You) to the awful 80's sleeve design (check out those ice-cream colored suits they bought from the Miami Vice garage sale on the sleeve) and the overbearing, dated production by Steve Lillywhite (Hey Steve, you don't have to mix the drums all the way up in every song). It also must be considered that Mick was holding back any possible decent tracks for his solo album, so his songwriting prowess is on autopilot here. There are two redeeming features; the amusing "Harlem Shuffle" (never a good sign when the standout track on your album is a cover) and the single "One Hit", which at least has a decent riff to distinguish it. The rest is a tuneless, leaden mess, rightfully forgotten by the fans and the Stones themselves. How would you rank the band's albums? Leave your comments below.