The Rolling Stones - "Between the Buttons" Vinyl, LP, Album, Germany, Reissue, 1967/1982 (Decca)

"Between the Buttons" is the height of The Rolling Stones as songwriters as well as making one of their perfect albums, such as their previous "Aftermath."  I have two versions of "Between the Buttons," the American mono release as well as this German stereo reissue that came out in 1982.  I'll let the audio freaks argue what is better, but for me, the Stones always sounded great in mono.  Still, I love all of their European editions than the U.S. releases due to the slight order or addition of songs.  

There is a Dylan "Blonde on Blonde" influence that comes through, especially on "She Smiled Sweetly" and "Who's Been Sleeping Here."  Then again, what wasn't influenced by Dylan in the mid to late 1960s?    The songwriting craft comes to focus for the Stones, where their voices become a distance from their R n B roots into a more pop format.  Perhaps under the influence of Andrew Loog Oldham, or whatever was being pumped in the air during those heady times.  Still, a remarkable presence at the time, where one would buy a Beatles record, then a Stones, a Dylan - in a way it became a dialogue between these artists, and us listeners were invited to overhear their musical chat. 

"Aftermath" wowed me, but "Between the Buttons" gently whispered into my ears, and it became one of favorite Rolling Stones albums.  I have always loved the music hall touch in The Beatles, as well as in The Kinks, and The Stones embracing that world in the songs "Cool, Calm, and Collected" and "Something Happened to Me Yesterday" is a total delight.  Those two have a Dylan feel but mixed in with British culture, which makes them unique and a lovely aural/sensual cocktail.  

The rockers "All Sold Out," "Connection," "Miss Amanda Jones" (a Dylan type title of a song), and "My Obsession" are remarkable works.   The Jagger/Richard songwriting is at their most wonderful peak.  It's a reflective album, then a diary or journalistic approach to the world around them.  For that reason, as well as the quality of the songs, "Between the Buttons" is an important album to me, and I hope to other listeners.  

The Aranbee Pop Symphony Orchestra - "Todays Pop Symphony" LP, Album, Vinyl, Remastered, 1999/1966 (Immediate/Sequel Records)

Not for one minute do I think that even Keith Richards made an appearance in the recording studio for this all-instrumental album of Rolling Stones, Beatles, 4 Seasons, Wilson Pickett, Otis Redding, and of course, Sonny & Cher songs.  "Under the direction of Keith Richard," I think took place when he was in another room or even in another city.  Nevertheless, I suspect that this album was pulled together by the great and brilliant Andrew Loog Oldham.  

On one level this is or was a knock-off album to probably cash in the song publishing dough, but beyond that hustle, this is a great album.  As one can gather I'm a huge fan of the Andrew Loog Oldham Orchestra, which is Oldham's version of doing Phil Spector, but in turn, and due to the temperament of Oldham, it becomes an original piece of work.  "Todays Pop Symphony" is the classical baroque version of the Oldham orchestra.  Stings galore as well as huge brass arrangements at that time (and always) classics.  The beauty of this album, although it's based on the melodies of the classic Stones and soul, through the arrangement it sounds very different.  This is a classic album of doing arrangements right and should be used in a classroom for further study.  I'm going to take a wild guess that John Paul Jones had a hand in the arrangements, but there is no clear credit, except for Keith Richard, which again, I greatly doubt he had much to do with this album.  

As Noel Coward once noted there is beauty in 'cheap music,' and The Aranbee Pop Symphony is a total delight from track one to the last track eleven.