This is the original April 15, 1966 UK release, which is different from the mess the record execs made of the later July 2, 1966 American release (which has been perpetuated by the CD releases using the American track list). The original American version replaced Mothers Little Helper with what was at that time a recent hit - Paint It, Black, while cutting Out Of Time, Take It Or Leave It, and What To Do. This SACD release of the original UK version restores the album to its original form as intended by the Stones. In addition, this release includes what is known as version 1 or the long version of Out Of Time, which was never released in the U.S.

Nearly everyone knows this music and now you can enjoy it the way it was meant to be heard. For the music itself, it's hard to improve on the review done by Brian Christie on Aug 29, 2002, but here is some information he did not provide to help you understand the significance of this release.

ABCKO acquired the Stones' catalog when Allen Klein became their manager in the 70s. The resulting legal battles produced releases that the Stones opposed (they took out full page adds asking fans not to buy them), including the controversial Metamorphosis releases (which are now available on CD for the 1st time ever). But the sad fact is that the Stones lost control of their great early material. With these remastered SACD releases, we at last have some idea of what they really sounded like in the studio. I guess if we had these 40 years ago they would have ended up Greatest Rock And Roll Band in the Universe instead of just our tiny little World.

All the tracks were recorded during 2 sessions at RCA Studios in Hollywood.

Dec 3-8, 1965 at RCA Studios in Hollywood

The tracks recorded during these sessions that were not released on the UK version were Sittin' On A Fence, Sad Day, 19th Nervous Breakdown, Ride On Baby, Paint It, Black, Long Long While, and version 2 - the short version - of Out Of Time. In addition there were 3 tracks that have still never been released: Looking Tired, Aftermath, and Tracks Of My Tears.

This information comes from "It's Only Rock And Roll: The Ultimate Guide To The Rolling Stones" by Karnbach and Bernson and from my own collection.

Aftermath represents the first time Jagger/Richards wrote a whole album worth of songs on their own, and the result is a classic. Their inexperience still shows on a few of the lesser tracks, but those results are still interesting. And where they hit their stride the results are phenomenal.

Unfortunately, in the original US release 2 classic tracks on the British version of Aftermath (Mother's Little Helper & Out of Time), plus 2 lesser tracks (What To Do & Take It Or Leave It) were left off. Instead, one classic track (Paint It Black) was added. As great a song as Paint It Black is, it cannot make up for the losses. For years, the only version of Aftermath avaiable on CD was this butchered US version. But now - finally - the UK version is avaiable as well.

So what do we have? Under My Thumb, Out of Time and Stupid Girl show the Stones at their misogynistic best. Lady Jane and I Am Waiting are excellent examples of the Stones' softer side. Mother's Little Helper well deserves its classic status. Flight 505, Dotcha Bother Me and What To Do are solid, as is Goin' Home before it starts goin' on for about 5 minutes too long.

Of course, an ideal solution to the US/UK version issues would have been to merge the two - release the UK version with Paint It Black (which after all was recorded in the same sessions) as a bonus track. A similar solution would have been ideal for the same situation regarding Between the Buttons. But, still, this a long overdue release, a great album, and the Stones' best before Beggar's Banquet.

By late 1965/early early 1966,The Rolling Stones had either been on the road,or in a recording studio almost non-stop for three years..holed up in hotel rooms, groupies coming at you from all corners. The amazing result of this is the classic album AFTERMATH,the uncut UK version available for the first time legally in the US; and in the brilliant sounding SACD hybrid format,with the equally revolutionary DSD encoding technique. For the first time Mick Jagger and Keith Richards produced an entire albums worth of original material, ranging the gamut from the baroque sounding [Lady Jane, I Am Waiting]., to hard rock [Its Not Easy].A lot of the songs are 'on the road' classics, or have some relation to dealing with being a star: meeting REALLY dumb ladies/groupies. The nice thing about the new version is: NOW you can hear the sarcasm in Mick's voice on Mother's Little Helper..NOW you can FEEL the nasty growl in Bill Wyman's bass on a dozen different tracks...Brian Jones' artistry on a dozen different instruments..The bite in Keith Richards fuzz box..and the subtle yet powerful way Charlie Watts drives this band. All in all, this UK version is an amazing 54 minutes [!!] of music, and is an absolutely EISSENTIAL part of anyone's library. [ANYone who wants bonus tracks on a 54 minute album is looking for overkill..even if it WAS possible legally! Also,Ive always been of the opinion that 90% of the 'bonus tracks' that are included on most CDs are garbage anyway!Who WANTS to hear the 5th take/re-mix of some of these songs?? Obviously not the group!]

In 1966 sandwiched in between the two Beatles releases Rubber Soul and Revolver the Rolling Stones put out Aftermath. This was there first album of entirely original material and their strongest record to date. The first four songs are stones classics that anyone who cares is familiar with. In these remastered versions the clarity is superb. Under My thumb and Lady Jane are especially nice on earphones where the clarity is stunning. Beyond The first four songs there are others on this record that could have been classics in another context. There are two fine rockers, Flight 505 and It's Not Easy. The softer tunes I Am Waiting and Take It or Leave It. Out Of Time could have been a hit on it's own. The version of Out of Time on this disc, With all the Stones in place is much better than the one recorded by Jagger alone (as a demo for Chris Farlow) with the heavy orchestration. 1966 was a time of experimenting with exotic instruments in rock and Brian Jones rose to the occasion bringing in sitar, dulcimer and marimbas.

The only bad points to this disc is that the song Going home does plod on a little long and Paint it black wasn't included as a bonus track so one could resequence the order of the songs on your CD player to simulate the American version. But then Alan Klein doesn't think like a fan but a sticky fingered moneygrubber.

On the front cover is the UK version designed by Andrew Oldham that Brian Jones hated on the inside flap is the photo used on the American release but unfortunately it has been distorted from its original form.

Much has been made of the misogyny of the Stones lyrics. And they are in full form on many of these tracks. At the time of this recording Jagger was in the midst of his on again, off again tumultuous relationship with model Chrissie Shrimpton, a relationship that supplied a lot of fodder for his songs as, heard on this disc. Of Mick's relationships with women Shrimpton said, "He would never let the woman be the one to call things off." And of his misogyny, "Mick doesn't really respect women...Mick doesn't like women. He never has." Mick was able to fire back in song. But then in Going Home he laments "Maybe you think I've seen the world, but I'd rather see my girl." The poor mixed up lad.

This disc is a keeper, a true slice of swinging London in 1966.

At last, the 14 song UK version of The Rolling Stones Aftermath. This is one of my favorite Rolling Stones albums. It was a landmark album for the band as it was the first Rolling Stones album to consist of all original Jagger/Richards material. The days of doing cover versions of other artist's songs were slowing down as the band was beginning to develop their own style and sound. With original hits over the last 15 months such as "Heart Of Stone," "The Last Time," "(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction," and "Get Off Of My Cloud," Mick Jagger and Keith Richards were developing into a very strong songwriting team. Besides Mick and Keith coming into their own as songwriters, Brian Jones was beginning to show his versatility as a musician as he played several differernt instruments: Indian Sitar on "Mothers Little Helper," marimbas (African xylophone) on "Under My Thumb," "Out Of Time," and mountain dulcimer on "Lady Jane," "I Am Waiting," as well as harmonica "High And Dry," "Goin' Home," and guitar and keyboards. The album also contains the 11-minute blues jam "Goin' Home". The album was immediately praised as one of their best albums and has remained a fan favorite from the Brian Jones era. The album has some great pop tunes on it. Don't just judge the Rolling Stones by their radio hits, some of their studio albums have a lot of hidden gems, and this album is one of them. The sound has been greatly improved for SACD as part of ABKCO Records "Rolling Stones Remastered Series". I highly recommend this album.

HISTORICAL REFERENCE