If recent comeback single Angry was The Rolling Stones reclaiming their blues-rock crown, new song Sweet Sounds Of Heaven has them harking back to their glory days of gospel-soul balladry.
Here, Mick, Keith, Ronnie and drummer Steve Jordan are joined by Lady Gaga - who’s seemingly channelling Merry Clayton’s stunning vocal performance on classic Stones cut Gimme Shelter - and Stevie Wonder, who’s happy to take a back seat as he contributes Rhodes, piano and Moog parts.
And the good news? What could have been an overblown mess ends up sounding like a triumph, with Gaga providing the perfect vocal foil for Jagger as he delivers the kind of vocal that you might have thought would be beyond him these days.
And Keith? He just does what Keith does.
It all bodes well for the rest of Hackney Diamonds, the new Rolling Stones album that will be released on 20 October.
“It's not quite as dark, but it explores other subjects a little bit more”: Robert Smith confirms existence of ‘companion’ album to Songs Of A Lost World
“I signed some contracts back in the ‘90s that I thought were amazing - I celebrated with a bottle of champagne. I look back now and think, ‘how the hell did I agree to sign this?’”: Sasha on breaking into dance music - and why it's not any easier in 2024
