Through The Past Darkly is an important release that belongs in every Rolling Stones fan's collection. The reason is that many of these songs are essential non-album singles such as Jumpin' Jack Flash and Honky Tonk Women. These two songs do not appear on any LP. For casual fans, or those interested, here's how the tracks break down:

Paint It, Black - Featured only on the US version of "Aftermath". Not on UK version.

Ruby Tuesday - Featured on US version of "Between The Buttons". Not on UK version. Also featured on "Flowers".

She's A Rainbow - Appears on "Their Satanic Majesties Request".

Jumpin' Jack Flash - Non-LP single.

Mother's Little Helper - Appears on U.S. and UK versions of "Aftermath". Also appears on "Flowers".

Let's Spend The Night Together - Appears only on US version of "Between The Buttons". Not on UK version. Also appears on "Flowers".

Honky Tonk Women - Non-LP single.

Dandelion - Non-LP single.

2000 Light Years From Home - Appears on "Their Satanic Majesties Request".

Have You Seen Your Mother, Baby Standing in the Shadow? - Appears on "Flowers".

Street Fighting Man - Appears on "Beggar's Banquet".

So, if you pick up Through The Past, Darkly and the UK versions of Aftermath and Between The Buttons (and avoid Flowers), then you'll have all of these tracks with as little redundancy as possible.

I've always had kind of a soft spot for this album; it was the third Stones album I ever bought (after the first "Big Hits" and "Let It Bleed"), mostly because it had "Paint It Black" and "Jumping Jack Flash" on the same record, and I've always liked the way the songs were sequenced--it just seems to have a nice flow, at least for me. There are more complete Stones comps, but if you like the late '60s Stones, you'll probably like this album.

As with the rest of the ABKCO remasters, the sound has been improved a great deal over the old '86 CDs--there's a lot more detail audible in the mix on this CD, at least on most of the tracks. "Honky Tonk Women" in particular sounds a lot better, at least to these ears--the guitars are nice and scuzzy, the drums boom, and the bass thuds along in the middle of the mix... and it's in stereo, for once. (The cowbell still sounds tinny, so to hear it in all its proper glory, you'll just have to find the old vinyl single.) And it sounds like they also used the speed-corrected "Street Fighting Man," which has never sounded this good on CD before (except maybe on the new "Beggars Banquet" CD). And the packaging has also been restored to its proper glory--the photos are now all in color, and the tribute to and epitaph for Brian Jones has also been put back.

Unfortunately, I still have a few minor issues to pick with the nice people at ABKCO. I don't care that "Have You Seen Your Mother Baby" is in mono, as no stereo mix of the track apparently exists, and at least it sounds a little less messy and chaotic than on previous vinyl and CD issues. On the other hand, it seems odd that "Aftermath UK" is the only new Stones CD to carry a stereo mix (however wonky) of "Mother's Little Helper," and even more odd that while on other CDs it has been speed-corrected, on this one it seems to play at the old slower speed, with a lower pitch. And would it really have hurt ABKCO to note that "tracks 5 and 10 are in mono and the rest are stereo," rather than just slap a "stereo" label on the CD? Regardless, this CD is a great listen. It's not an indispensable part of the catalog, and it just missed out on being a definitive collection of their late '60s singles by being released just a couple of months before "Let It Bleed" (making the B-side of "Honky Tonk Women," "You Can't Always Get What You Want," unavailable), but it's still a pretty fine record. Any record with both "Paint It Black" and "Jumping Jack Flash" would have to be.

Many listeners will have lost their virginity to the Stones with Hot Rocks and now with the more recent 40 Licks compilations. For my money, Big Hits 2, or "Darkly!" as my college friend fanatically referred to it, is the optimal place to start. To understand the essence of the Stones, it is not fair to ask an initiate to dive into the dark excess of Exile or the hospital bed of Sticky Fingers first, while those may be more rewarding experiences later. Here is the power and glory of Brian Jones and his Rolling Stones. Paint It, Black (you devil)! Jumping Jack Flash! Honky Tonk Women! and even 2000 Light Years From Home and Dandelion! That the frail shadow of what was once Brian Jones was murdered in his swimming pool by construction workers just prior to the release of this set only underlies its magnificence. Ain't Life Unkind?

This is the DSD/SACD hybrid remaster released 8/27/02. Never have the Stones sounded so good. The ABKCO, Bob Ludwig team did an outstanding job on the remastering. All I can say is "WOW". This could be the one Rolling Stones disc to have if you could only have one. For some reason this disc sounds better than Let It Bleed or More Hot Rocks from the same 22 disc remaster/release. The sound is clean and clear with tight articulate bass being the most noticable improvement in sound over the 1986 original CD releases. Get all 22 but you could start with this one as a sampler or just splurge and get the Singles Collection. SACD is not the future, it is the present. One negative that I am sure will be corrected in later editions(the 22 discs supposed to be released on 8/27/02 are DIGIPAK or cardboard/card stock boxes with the plastic jewel case disc holder sandwiched in between, not all 22 discs are available as yet but due out soon, limited production run in the DIGIPAKs w/ paper token of authenticity included, later editions will be standard plastic jewel case)is that no where on the outside of the packaging does it say that the disc inside is an SACD/CD dual layer hybrid. The disc itself is marked with the DSD and SACD logos. Don't make the mistake of buying the discs that say 1986 issue remaster. All quite confusing.

Having read several articles and some of the Amazon user's reviews at this point in regards to the Stones re-issues, I don't think I can add much to what's already been said, other than to say that MOST of the remastered tracks (on this album as well) have sustained a substantial improvement - while others haven't. I found that the opening track, "Paint it, Black" has been re-done to an astonishing level. There are literally layers and layers of sound now on this track. I would even go so far as to move it up to the top ten on my list of all time favorite Stones tunes with this new sound quality. I'd say the same for "Ruby Tuesday"(outstanding strings and a deep chello) and "Honky Tonk Woman" (which now has the bass drum it seems to have always wanted - no fault to Charlie whatsoever). On the contrary, "Mother's Little Helper" and "Have You Seen Your Mother, Baby..." are still a mess.

I'm not going to comment much on the necessity of buying this record - I think the track listing speaks for itself. It's the remastering that the real fans are going to be talking about for a while. I do think it's important to say this though since it will come up. The inevitable comparison to "Beatles 1" has already started and it's going to be talked about again in the media. I think it is necessary to make the point that the Beatles collection was always "sonically" better than the Stones 60's period, even before it's remaster, because the original production was better to begin with. Andrew Loog Oldham was no George Martin. I think that it's better to treat the Stones material as a completely different entity - and well it should be, since they were very different bands. But what do I know ;)