Slash picks his favourite albums by The Rolling Stones
Slash has always been lauded as one of the greatest guitarists in rock ‘n’ roll history. With Guns ‘n’ Roses, he provided a signature sound that even had those who didn’t like the band dropping their cap in admiration. Surely, that’s the mark of a great? With individuality and skill in abundance, the maestro just about defined the sound of the so-called hair rock era.
This notion of making a sound your own and smashing it out with unbridled style is something that the rocker has always admired in the legendary Rolling Stones. As Slash said in praise of Mick Jagger when he was asked to pick his four favourite singers of all time: “From day one it was all about the Stones, The Yardbirds, Cream and the Kinks.” That’s the same rock education that many musicians have had, in part, because of the way the bands above combine attitude and ability.
He went on to call their back catalogue “pretty much his favourite music of all time”. However, he was able to delve into it further and proclaim his four favourite Stone’s records in an interview on Jonesy’s Jukebox with former Sex Pistols punk Steve Jones. The first of which was Beggars Banquet. The classic 1968 record is one that helped progress the band away from their blues cover origins into a sound that can only be called Stonesesque. In the end, he would even cover the iconic track ‘Sympathy for the Devil’ with Guns ‘n’ Roses for the Interview With the Vampire soundtrack.
The next outing on his list was Let It Bleed. This was one of the records that formed his initial musical education. As he stated: “The Stones were definitely the background music to my existence for a long time – and still are. My parents were really into the Stones, too.” He might have a unique style of his own, but you can definitely detect the inherent swagger of Let It Bleed in his sound.
However, it was the entire Stones peak that enamoured Slash, and he finds it tricky to choose between them. The Rolling Stones mega-fan went as far to say: “Sabbath is one of my favourite bands, but I think if I was going to name a favourite record that has been a favourite for all my life it would probably be either Beggars Banquet or Let It Bleed from the Stones. Actually, Sticky Fingers, Let It Bleed, Beggars Banquet, Exile on Main St. — those four records in a row are pretty much my favourite music of all time.”
The golden four album run spanned from 1968-1972. It continues to go down in history as one of the finest achievements any band has put forth in rock in the eyes of many commentators. After the folly of Their Satanic Majesties Request – which Keith Richards claims was nothing more than a Sgt. Peppers rip off – The Stones truly hit their own stride in this period, as they knuckled down to business and tried to block out external influence. Slash might have only been three when the run began, but it’s a mark of the transcendence of the music that he was still taking in the sound.
And he wasn’t prepared to let a rather strange encounter with Richards ruin that for him. “The first time that I really personally met Keith, he was great. But he pulled a f–king switchblade on me,” Slash recalled. “Ronnie Wood introduced us and took me to Keith’s hotel room. So Keith sort of motioned me over and he put not a switchblade, a butterfly knife and flash it around. I was like ‘cool’ (laughs). I didn’t know (how) I was supposed to react (laughs). But it was a funny, sort of auspicious kind of first meeting.” You can say that again.
Slash’s four favourite Rolling Stones records:
- Beggars Banquet
- Let It Bleed
- Sticky Fingers
- Exile on Main St.
