1983

"It was the early 1980's, and like many aging rock icons, the Rolling Stones were spending their time in the vast domain of excess that was NYC nightlife, ignoring the declared "death of disco" with the rest of the metropolitan world. Leaving their past splendor in the dust and embracing their new aesthetic surroundings with the cocky wit they always wielded, Mick Jagger and Keith Richards took a leap in 1983 with Undercover, which received lukeworm reviews as the rock world couldn't quite discern what exactly the old men were going for. "A little too much cocaine I see." Club children, of course, instantly connected and identified with the brilliant "Too Much Blood," a post-disco bloodbath of Sly & Robbie echo chambers, hi-life guitar riffs and ingenious lyrical meanderings summarizing splendidly the growing hostility of crime-ridden inner city existence. The true genius of this session wasn't fully unveiled until recently, when a doubly-long extended studio version was leaked by some committed enthusiasts. This definitive version opens a window into the still burning genius of old men traversing the endless bounds of spaced-out, intelligent and inspired underground club music, applying their time-tested musicality to a totally new canvas. Decades past its heyday, "Too Much Blood" still stands the test of time as their finest song never (properly) released, a perversion of rock's parameters born of culture's reformation and redistribution along the new paths blazed by electronic and dance. A favorite at the Paradise Garage, this special 12" pressing from slow to speak is a well-deserved look back testifying to the determination always to look forward."

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