Mick Jagger Entertainment Art "The Very Best of Mick Jagger" (Rhino Records) Released October 2, 2007

Mick Jagger as a solo artist, however, has been a bit spotty. But you can cut him some slack considering the wealth of hit songs he’s given us through the years with the Stones. The Stones work has always overshadowed his solo material and how could you compete against the Stones? The answer, you can’t.

Rhino Records thinks Jagger has gotten a raw deal, and has just released a collection of Jagger’s best solo songs to prove they are worth a second listen. The Very Best of Mick Jagger is a 17 song retrospective from all four solo albums, unreleased tracks and a couple other nuggets he’s recorded through the years.

What you have here is an album worth listening to from his very first solo song to his collaborations with a Beatle, Ziggy Stardust and a Rastafarian. This is every bit a best of collection and proves Jagger is more than a “rolling stone”.

Other than the weak “Let’s Work” from 1987’s Primitive Cool album, this is a solid album of material. From his first song, “Memo From Turner” (a much forgotten song from the much forgotten 1969 movie, Performance) Jagger proves he may have once had a fighting chance as a solo artist. The song was recoded between classic Stones albums Beggars Banquet and Let it Bleed and could have easily been on either album.

Jagger’s voice is so distinct it’s hard not to compare his solo songs to his work with the Stones. “Just Another Night” and “Lucky in Love” are long lost sisters of “Undercover of the Night” and the unreleased “Charmed Life”, although includes an orchestral backing, would have been a welcome inclusion to 1994’s Voodoo Lounge album. W

ith that said, there are plenty of songs that don’t sound anything like the Stone’s. The opening track “God Gave Me Everything” with Lenny Kravitz is one of those songs and a rare gem off of a disappointing album. ”Put Me in The Trash” is another one from arguably his best solo album, Wandering Spirit. The Wandering Spirit album has four songs alone on this collection and is worth owning if only for his take of Bill Withers’ classic “Use Me.”

“Too Many Cooks (Spoil the Soup)” is an interesting Motown cover that was long thought to be lost. The song was produced by John Lennon, who may or may not have played guitar on it, with backing vocals by the late great Harry Nilsson. The horns in particular songs like the Lennon songs from that era.

“Dancing in the Streets”, another cover that was originally recorded for Live Aid, is a fun duet with the one and only David Bowie. This recently track surfaced on a best of Bowie collection.

The songs go on with collaborations with Eurythmics Dave Stewart, Peter Tosh and a wealty of other songs for you to discover. In some ways, maybe we are lucky his solo career never paid off. If it did the Stones might have ended back in the late 80’s or early 90’s.

So selfishness aside, The Very Best of Mick Jagger is worth picking up for any fan of the Stones. It’s a nice tight collection of songs that proves he can do it alone but we’re happy, much like a relative, he only visits this every so often.

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