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Tyler: Peter, what have we gotten ourselves into?

Peter: Well, we’re tackling a divisive album. One I think most people don’t know. You’re really going to do numbers with this one. Everyone want to know two random dudes’ opinions on Their Satanic Majesties Request.

I am very familiar with the album. It was new to you?

Tyler: Brand new to me.  I knew what it “is”—the Rolling Stones’ riposte to Sgt. Pepper—but also had heard it was very subpar.  I’ve a curiosity about madcap departures from a creative norm, like, say, Ringo the 4th.  But this one was so obvious enough in concept, that I gave it a pass.

Peter: So, I don’t know when I first heard the album. I probably bought it on CD in the late nineties? I did view it through the “Stones answer to Sgt. Pepper.” So, we can start there. It’s not as good as Sgt. Pepper. We can say that right up front.

Tyler: Not as good as Sgt. Pepper, no.  It ain’t as good as “You Know My Name (Look Up The Number).”

Peter: Okay, that’s harsh. I take it you didn’t enjoy TSMR?

Tyler: I’m taking the piss, to get British about it.  Credit where it’s due, there’s a handful of hot tracks on this one.  It’s got “She’s A Rainbow,” which would save the worst of albums from the dollar bin.  But man—y’know, maybe if “Sing This All Together (See What Happens) wasn’t wedged into the middle of the LP, mocking us with its hydroponic fuck-aroundery, I wouldn’t make such a nasty wisecrack up front.  Man alive, does that thing work my nerves.

Peter: Alright, we’ll get into it. But up front, I want to say that I think if this was an album by some obscure English blues band from 1967 experimenting with psychedelia, it would be a cult classic. I think the fact that it’s the Stones and it’s their “answer” to Sgt. Pepper doomed it from the start.

Tyler: Hey, I don’t wanna totally short the thing right out of the gate.  You’ve known it, well, for years, and know its theoretical charms.  I’m all ears.

Peter: There are two absolute classics on this album. “She’s A Rainbow” and “2000 Light Years From Home.” They weren’t massive hits or anything, but they’re both very highly regarded, and rightly so. I think “Citadel” and “2000 Man” are also very good. And I like the “Sing This All Together” jams! The first more than the second. But how did two versions of this nonsense get on the record? It’s so 1967, and it’s amazing. The second one was 8 minutes long! That’s insane! But it’s very 1967. “Nothing you can do, but you can learn how to be you in time. It’s easy!”

They took a very zen, relaxed approach to making a record. The Bill Wyman song was the single! That’s nuts!

Tyler: Lord have mercy, I didn’t know that crooner was notable grotesque Wyman.  And that thing was a single?

Peter: It was the lead single!

Can you imagine?

Tyler: See, they were clearly just being smartasses.

Peter: I think it’s a good indication of how high they were.

Tyler: Oh, yeah.

Peter: This album reminds me of Jefferson Airplane’s After Bathing At Baxter’s. After Surrealistic Pillow, and its massive hits “Somebody To Love,” and “White Rabbit,” the Airplane got to pretty much do whatever they wanted in the studio. And they made After Bathing At Baxter’s, and it’s kind of a train wreck. But also, great, in its way. This feels like that.

Tyler: See, I’m absolutely about that sort of musical, let’s call it exploration.  Nothing wrong with left turns and passion projects.  But, they’re hiding the solid stuff on here amidst a lot of other, cheap shit they’ve put together.  There’s such a contrast between the composure of “She’s A Rainbow” and the other, self-indulgent tracks.

I keep getting roped in by particular licks or tasty riffs, but then they throw in some just-hit-record nonsense and I lose interest.

Peter: That’s fair. Ha, this will be fun. Okay, the opener “Sing This All Together.” 10/10 no notes. It’s weird and freaky and unlike anything the Stones had ever recorded. This is the sound of the Stones improvising high on acid. At the very least it’s a museum piece. Now we know what that sounded like.

Tyler: It’s got this “Barbara Ann” thing going on, at the heart of all the hallucinations.

Peter: The Beach Boys song?

Tyler: Totally.  That raucous group sing-along vibe.

I dunno about it.  Definitely one that clanked for me.  An example of that lackadaisical attitude that hits me as a real disregard for their audience.  I should say, as a proper new-album release.  “Sing This All Together” as a B-side, maybe?  It’s just so hard for me to believe that Mick and the crowd are really singing in the name of togetherness.  Strikes me more as a bit of a swipe at “All You Need Is Love,” or perhaps lesser songs in that vein.  Man, records turned around quick in those days!  Their Satanic Majesties Request was released, what, months after Sgt. Pepper? One year if that before Beggars Banquet? Man.

Peter: Okay, that’s interesting. The Stones have distanced themselves from this album, sometimes suggesting it was a sort of subversive commentary on the music of the day. I think that’s revisionist garbage. But I never really considered their sincerity in assessing the song. I think they were just really, really high all the time and that kind of talk was in vogue.

But yes, they aren’t that kind of band. Altamont, not Woodstock.

The second track is “Citadel.” I also like this track. I like the chorus and the little tempo change.

Tyler: “Citadel” hooked me from the badass start, but I’m not yet sold on the rest of it.  Could be the lyrics.  I know you’re digging on the proud silliness of it all, but, man, do they quash my enthusiasm. I think you’re right, basically.  Stoned in-the-moment verbal blathery.  I’m just not charmed by it.

Peter: The first time I heard After Bathing At Baxter’s I was angry for similar reasons… Hmm. A lot of self-reflection going on right now. Um, the lyrics are frequently silly. I agree. I just… don’t care? I doin’t know why I’m giving them a pass. It’s 1967. I love the hippie bullshit. I really do.

The third track “In Another Land'” (see above), is trash.

Tyler: Woof.  Wyman is gross.

Peter: So gross. And boring. Let’s move on.

Tyler: Wading neck-deep through “In Another Land” definitely gets you ready for that terrific pluck that begins “2000 Man.”

Peter: I like this song. It’s kind of rootsy like Beggars Banquet. I mentioned I think I bought this on CD in maybe the late ’90s and “2000 Man” had some pretty silly lyrics, or so I thought at the time. “I’m having an affair with a random computer,” seemed particularly silly, but in today’s world, with the advances in AI, it’s not a bad line!

Tyler: I love the beginning of it.  I’ve yet to love where the rest of it ends up.

Peter: There are a lot of songs in here that sound like 2 different songs welded together.

Okay, the second “Sing This All Together” jam is pretty trying, but, again, this is the sound of the Stones jamming in 1967 high on acid. That being said, I hardly ever listen to it all the way through. But it’s better than “Revolution 9!”

Tyler: I will fight you on “Revolution 9.”  With words, words that fight!

Peter: You like “Revolution 9?”

Tyler: I don’t seek it out.  But I think you just gotta listen to it if you’re playing the White Album.  The chaos takes a little more shape in that context.

Peter: When they used to have CD jukeboxes, I’d pick “Revolution 9” off the White Album and everyone hated it.

Tyler: Oh, you, bastard.

Peter: Doesn’t work at the bar, obviously. But, yeah, I normally get into that sort of thing. But, I’ve probably only heard the whole thing a few times.

Luckily, the next track is “She’s A Rainbow,” an undeniable winner.

Tyler: Absolutely. Gorgeous.

Peter: It was the second single from the album. John Paul Jones did the string arrangements for it.

Tyler: It’s something of pure joy. It shines.

Peter: Agreed. A real gem.

The next one is “The Lantern,” right?

Tyler: Bell tolling and all, it is.

Peter: Lots of sound effects on the album! They were into it.

And found sounds.

Tyler: I don’t know much of those Stones inner-dynamics.  But, based on my limited knowledge, and correct me please if I’m mistaken, I have to wager that Brian Jones was all about making this album.

Peter: Yeah, he plays a lot of weird stuff on here. His Mellotron is particularly useful.

Tyler: I have read Keith’s memoir, and it was wonderful.

Peter: I also liked Keith’s book.

I like “The Lantern.” I like Charlie’s drums, which is basically just repeated fills.

Tyler: Yeah, this one’s got merit for me, too. It sounds so non-Stones.  That might be what made me overlook it at first.

Rest in peace, Charlie.

And Brian, too.

Peter: Absolutely, always loved Charlie. Loved Brian’s sitar on “Paint It Black.” Good stuff.

Tyler: Well, we’re about to get all weird again with “Gomper.”

Peter: Ha, yes. This is the Stones doing raga-rock, sorta.

It’s not offensive.

It’s fine. I don’t know.

It doesn’t bother me? Is that a compliment?

Tyler: I’ll tell you, it’s certainly evocative.  I hear it and I’m thinking, beat-up colorful rugs on a studio floor, joss-stick and weed aromas hanging in the air, tapes rolling and these guys just whooping it up.

Peter: Yeah, it’s vibing, as I think the young people say. It’s a mood. It’s another chance to hear them experiment in the studio and I like it for that.

Tyler: I was close to assembling a question about whether something like “Gomper” should’ve been reserved for a B-side, or some odds-and-sods collection, as opposed to making the cut on a new album.  I was thinking that, and then I realized that, in the streaming age, there is no difference.

Peter: Yeah, I think about that too. Now they do like “deluxe editions” with extra songs. We had to buy the cassette single!

Get your ball off my lawn!

Okay, next is “2000 Light Years From Home.” I love this song. It’s one of two songs off this album the band has played live. I really like it.

Tyler: I’m coming around on “2000 Light Years.”  It’s got a groove.

Peter: It’s kind of too bad it has the long intro. It’s like 45 seconds before the song kicks in. Lots of that kind of thing on this album.

Tyler: Yeah, there’re some intros and outros and intermissions that sound to me suspiciously like slapdicking around.

I digress.  This is a good one.

Peter: Brian on the Mellotron.

Okay, closer “On With The Show.” I don’t think I’ve ever listened to “On With The Show” the whole way through.

It’s sort of English music hall style? It reminds me of some of Paul’s songs. “Honey Pie.”

It’s that bawdy English humour!

Tyler: It makes me think of the “Sgt. Pepper’s” reprise.  Farewell from the band, so forth.

Peter: Right, that too.

Imagine if they hadn’t released this at the time. Imagine they finished the record and then decided it wasn’t as good as Sgt. Pepper and decided to shelve it. It would be one of those legendary “lost” albums.

Tyler: Oh, man, absolutely.  That said, do those treasures ever meet expectations when they see the light of day?

Peter: I was really obsessed with Smile until I heard some of it.

Tyler: Did you enjoy Brian Wilson’s reassemblage of it?

Peter: Um… it’s “interesting.” It’s certainly a lot of notes. I think it’s fascinating to hear a giant square get into acid and write an album. I don’t love Brian’s voice in the modern era. But I’m happy for him that he finished it.

At least Mike Love’s not on it.

Okay, to sum up.

Listen, Their Satanic Majesties Request is not as good as the four albums they would record next, but is it better than Goat’s Head Soup? Is it better than It’s Only Rock & Roll? I mean, maybe? Is it better than Black & Blue? Probably. I might even like it better than Some Girls and Tattoo You, if I’m being honest. It’s certainly more *interesting* than all of those save maybe Some Girls.

Tyler: Oof.  Better than Some Girls.

Peter: I’m not saying it’s better than Some Girls. I might like it more.

Tyler: That’s a fair thing.  Do you think that’s partially to do with having heard TSMR fewer times, possibly far fewer, than you’ve heard Some Girls?  Does it continue to reveal itself still?

Peter: Yeah. Yeah, that could be part of it too.

Some Girls is a bit overrated, though. In boxing, it’s what they call a “comparison round.” Sometimes a fighter wins a round because he did better than he had in previous rounds. After Black & Blue, almost anything would’ve been an improvement.

I do think TSMR gets better over time. It’s kind of shocking at first.

Tyler: I’ll say this.  I listen to the album a few times in preparation, but also cycle it as we get together to chat. Throughout our conversation here, there have been moments that began to stand out a bit from the willful mess I’d criticized.  I dunno if I’m gonna bring it to the table particularly often, but I could see myself coming back to this one if I’m in the mood for something especially random.

Peter: I’ll take it! I was not super into it at first. Your criticisms are valid. It is them goofing around in the studio. I kind of like that about it, though. Soon they would become very, very big. Multi-million tours and whatnot. This is sort of the end of them being kids and having fun for fun’s sake.

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