By LANCE GOULD
DAILY NEWS FEATURE WRITER
The Rolling Stones may seem cute and cuddly now - sort of - but there was a time
when their "Bad Boys of Rock" title packed more than a cartoonish
wallop.
One album that best exemplified the Stones' debauched and dangerous side was
1969's "Let It Bleed" - the album the band featured most prominently
in their show last night at Madison Square Garden.
On their "Licks" world tour, which kicked off last September in
Boston, the legendary British rockers have mixed more obscure songs from a
particular album into their set list of greatest hits. The album that often got
the most attention during the first three months of the tour was "Exile on
Main Street," the Stone's 1972 classic double-album.
"Let It Bleed," less fully realized than "Exile" but
nevertheless possessed of some of the band's greatest songs, has been getting
more attention since the band resumed touring last week, following a month-long
break for the holidays.
The five "Bleed" tracks - "Monkey Man" (which can be
heard in "Goodfellas"), "Live With Me," "Midnight
Rambler," "Gimme Shelter" and the leering title track - made for
some of the least predictable and therefore most exciting moments.
The band opened with "Street Fighting Man," their '60s call-to-arms.
But Mick Jagger, the Stone's tireless singer and front man, hardly seems the
revolutionary type anymore, especially dressed in a spangly white sports jacket.
But he has shown no worse for wear as either a vocalist or performer in the 40
years since he started. Manically pointing and gesticulating like a tourist in
search of a cab, Jagger pumped energy through the entire show.
In fact, when Jagger took a two-song break and let the Stones' riff-happy
guitarist Keith Richards take over for "Slippin' Away" and
"Before They Make Me Run," the show's energy level deflated noticeably.
Still, over the course of the three-hour, 22-song set, the Stones were
marvelous, especially the blistering interplay between Richards guitarist Ron
Wood.
The evening ended with a run of standards, including "Brown Sugar,"
"Sympathy for the Devil" and "Jumpin' Jack Flash."
The band reprises this show Saturday night in front of a live national
audience on HBO. In spite of their advancing age, the boys show they can still
leave blood on the stage.
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Madison Square Garden
