Cosmic America

Goats Head Soup is largely identified as the album where the Rolling Stones stopped being as special as they once were. It would have been nearly impossible for any band to keep up the breakneck pace of incredible art that the Stones pumped out from 1966 to 1972, and for many critics and fans, Goats Head Soup doesn't come close to their previous four albums in terms.Is that a fair criticism? Certainly there are a couple of questionable moments here, but there are also a large number of really fascinating and rewarding aspects on this album that have largely been lost to time. You can clearly hear the strain on this album from a band that has been living under tremendous pressure and change for the previous several years, but that creates a different --- and still very interesting --- listing experience. We delve into the album track-by-track and evaluate each moment, and come away with some surprising conclusions.