Paint It Black: An Alt country Tribute to the Rolling Stones

You may notice by scanning the track selection that the artists here mostly chose the softer or slower songs in the Rolling Stones’ catalog and when they didn’t, they found ways to slow them down. Even “Jumping Jack Flash” by Giant Sand has been turned into a walking-bass number that sees no reason to emulate the firepower of the original. Only Everest’s version of “Sweet Virginia” and Blue Mountain’s take on “Torn and Frayed” attempt any aggression. It’s not a bad strategy, but it makes this less a tribute to the band than a re-examination of Mick Jagger and Keith Richards’ songwriting. “Before They Make Me Run” removes Richards’ defiance and replaces it with a lite-FM groove. The Cowboy Junkies make “Moonlight Mile” their own solitary walk. The Bittersweets take the crudeness of “Loving Cup” and turn it into a song of salvation. Brian Ritchie changes up “Paint It Black” into chamber pop. The greatest revelation is from Anders Parker who sings Richards’ “Coming Down Again” with the same wasted vision but clear enough to understand the words.