THE ROLLING STONES 

Some Girls: Live in Texas ’78   

[Eagle Rock]

As the Stones mark their 50th anniversary with talk of a new album and tour, it’s useful to look back to ’78, when Mick, Keef and the gang were in their mid-30s, and the band was nearly 20 years old. These days, their longevity is a source of wonder, and for all the gruff they get for shaking their sexagenarian rumps like a bunch of frisky grandpas, few really want them to call it quits. In the late ’70s, though, there was more at stake and less goodwill to take for granted. This live set, recorded just after the release of the mid-career masterpiece Some Girls, finds the Stones nimble and loose—determined but in no way desperate to retain the title of “World’s Greatest Rock ’n’ Roll Band.”

This Fort Worth gig has been available since 2011, when it surfaced on CD and DVD, but this latest reissue spreads the show over two 180-gram vinyl discs, one lipstick red, the other mustard yellow. The colors match the brilliant cover art—a cheeky take on American wartime propaganda posters—and the vibrancy of the show itself. Drawing heavily from Some Girls, the Stones prove their relevance in the age of punk, doing the disco-rock groover “Miss You,” Temptations cover “Just My Imagination” and mangy mover “Shattered” with their inimitable slack, sexy bounce. The package comes with a DVD, but the footage is secondary to the music itself. Mick’s white blazer and Keith’s red blouse look dated, but the performance will hold up in 25 years, when the Stones celebrate 75 years with a lunar residency. –Kenneth Patridge

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