Greatest Hits debuted at number five on the US Billboard 200 chart, selling 268,000 copies in its first week. In January 1999, the album reached its peak at number three on the chart. It has spent 433 weeks on the Billboard 200.[2] On October 16, 2000, it was certified 9 platinum. Nearly 11 years later, in June 2011, it was certified by the RIAA for shipments of over 10 million, the late rapper's first RIAA Diamond award.[3][4] With 5.33 million units sold which is 10.66 million in RIAA sales,[5] it remains the best-selling rap greatest hits compilation of all time and the twentieth best-selling rap album since Nielsen Soundscan began tracking record sales in 1991.[6]
The eventful year ended with the Stones' apparent answer to Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band - the extravagantly-titled Their Satanic Majesties Request. Beneath the exotic 3-D cover was an album of psychedelic/cosmic experimentation bereft of the R&B grit that had previously been synonymous with the Stones' sound. It featured arrangements and contributions by John Paul Jones. Although the album had some strong moments, it had the same inexplicably placid inertia of 'We Love You', minus notable melodies or a convincing direction. The overall impression conveyed to critics was that in trying to compete with the Beatles' experimentation, the Stones had somehow lost the plot.[22] Their drug use had channelled them into laudable experimentation but simultaneously left them open to accusations of having 'gone soft'. The revitalization of the Stones was demonstrated in the early summer of 1968 with 'Jumping Jack Flash', a single that rivalled the best of their previous output. The succeeding album, Beggars Banquet, produced by Jimmy Miller, was also a return to strength and included the socio-political 'Street Fighting Man' and the brilliantly macabre 'Sympathy for the Devil', in which Jagger's seductive vocal was backed by hypnotic Afro-rhythms and dervish yelps. This song appears in a British movie by the French nouvelle vague director Jean-Luc Godard,One Plus One (1968 shown at the London Film Festival, in a version changed by the producerwho put the final recording of the song at the end of the film).It mixes documentary scenes from rehearsal of Sympathy for the Devil at the Olympic Studios in London (June 1968)with scenes from a story about a white revolutionary who commits suicide when her boyfriend deserts to Black Power.While the Stones were re-establishing themselves, Brian Jones was falling deeper into drug abuse. A conviction in late 1968 prompted doubts about his availability for US tours and in the succeeding months he contributed less and less to recordings and became increasingly jealous of Jagger's leading role in the group. Richard's wooing and impregnation of Jones' girlfriend Anita Pallenberg merely increased the tension.[23] Matters reached a crisis point in June 1969 when Jones officially left the group. The following month he was found dead in the swimming pool of the Sussex house that had once belonged to writer A. A. Milne.[24] The official verdict was 'death by misadventure'. A free concert at London's Hyde Park two days after his death was attended by a crowd of 250,000 and became a symbolic wake for the tragic youth. Jagger released thousands of butterfly's and narrated a poem by Shelley for Jones. Three days later, Jagger's former love Marianne Faithfull attempted suicide.[25]
Temptations Greatest Hits Full Album Zip
By the second half of the 1970s the gaps in the Stones' recording and touring schedules were becoming wider. The days when they specially recorded for the singles market were long past and considerable impetus had been lost. Even big rallying points, such as the celebrated concert at Knebworth in 1976, lacked a major album to promote the show and served mainly as a greatest hits package.[31] By 1977, the British music press had taken new wave to its heart and the Stones were dismissed as champagne-swilling old men, who had completely lost touch with their audience. Against the odds, the Stones responded to the challenge of their younger critics with a comeback album of remarkable power. Some Girls was their most consistent work in years, with some exceptional high-energy workouts, not least the breathtaking 'Shattered'. The disco groove of 'Miss You' brought them another US number 1 and showed that they could invigorate their repertoire with new ideas that worked. Jagger's wonderful pastiche of an American preacher on the mock country 'Far Away Eyes' was another unexpected highlight. There was even an attendant controversy thanks to some multi-racist chauvinism on the title track, not to mention 'When the Whip Comes Down' and 'Beast of Burden'. Even the cover jacket had to be re-shot because it featured unauthorized photos of the famous, most notably actresses Lucille Ball, Farrah Fawcett and Raquel Welch. To conclude a remarkable year, Keith Richard escaped what seemed an almost certain jail sentence in Toronto for drugs offences and was merely fined and ordered to play a couple of charity concerts. As if in celebration of his release and reconciliation with his father, he reverted to his original family name Richards.[32]
A three-year silence on record was broken by Dirty Work in 1986, which saw the Stones sign to CBS Records and team up with producer Steve Lillywhite, with guest contributions from Jimmy Page.[36] Surprisingly, it was not a Stones original that produced the expected offshoot single hit, but a cover of Bob and Earl's 'Harlem Shuffle'. A major record label signing often coincides with a flurry of new work, but the Stones were clearly moving away from each other creatively and concentrating more and more on individual projects. Wyman had already tasted some chart success in 1983 with the biggest solo success from a Stones' number, 'Je Suis Un Rock Star' and it came as little surprise when Jagger issued his own solo album, She's the Boss, in 1985. A much publicized-feud with Richards led to speculation that the Rolling Stones story had come to an anti-climactic end, a view reinforced by the appearance of a second Jagger album, Primitive Cool, in 1987.[37] When Richards himself released the first solo work of his career in 1988, the Stones' obituary had virtually been written. As if to confound the obituarists, however, the Stones reconvened in 1989 and announced that they would be working on a new album and commencing a world tour. Later that year the hastily-recorded Steel Wheels appeared and the critical reception was generally good. 'Mixed Emotions' and 'Rock and a Hard Place' were radio hits while 'Continental Drift' included contributions from the master musicians of Joujouka, previously immortalized on vinyl by the late Brian Jones.[38]
After nearly 30 years in existence, the Rolling Stones began the 1990s with the biggest grossing international tour of all time, and ended speculation about their future by reiterating their intention of playing on indefinitely. Wyman officially resigned in 1993, however.[39] Voodoo Lounge sounded both lyrically daring and musically fresh. Riding a crest after an extraordinarily active 1995 Stripped was a dynamic semi-plugged album. Fresh sounding and energetic acoustic versions of 'Street Fighting Man', 'Wild Horses' and 'Let It Bleed' among others, emphasized just how accomplished the Jagger/Richards songwriting team had become. The year was marred however by some outspoken comments by Keith Richards on R.E.M. and Nirvana. These clumsy comments did not endear him to a younger audience, which was all the more surprising as the Stones had appeared to be in touch with contemporary rock music. Citing R.E.M. as 'wimpy cult stuff' and Kurt Cobain as 'some prissy little spoiled kid' were, at best, ill-chosen words.[40] Bridges to Babylon was a particularly fresh-sounding album, with Charlie Watts anchoring the band's sound like never before. Their next album titled A Bigger Bang was released in 2005. This was the bands second album released in the new millennium, the first being Live Licks that was released a year earlier and featured recent Stone hits live. A Bigger Bang contained the songs 'Rain Fall Down', 'Dangerous Beauty' and 'Look What the Cat Dragged In' and other songs like 'Sweet Neo Con', 'Oh No, Not You Again' and 'Driving Too Fast'.
Nelly's career was off like a rocket with the release of his song Country Grammar which borrows the hook from the children's song Down, Down, Baby. The single even cruised to the top of the Billboard charts after it was released in February of 2000. On June 6, 2000, Nelly released his first full-length album - also called Country Grammar. The album managed to sneak past Eminem and Britney to the number one spot on the Billboard charts on Aug. 26. It succeeded in putting both Nelly and St. Louis on the hip-hop map. The singles "Country Grammar" and "Ride Wit Me" helped earn Nelly two Grammy Awards for Best Rap Solo Performance, one Grammy for Best Rap Collaboration, and one Grammy for Best Rap Album. With massive solo success under his belt, Nelly did not forget his posse. He rejoined the St. Lunatics, who released Free City in 2001. 2ff7e9595c
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