Exile on Main Street is an album of enigma and mystery, a travelog through arcane (but familiar) soundscapes, and strong artistic statement. Considered the Rolling Stones’ greatest work of their most-creative period, it followed Beggars Banquet, Let It Bleed, and Sticky Fingers along with “Honky Tonk Women,” “Jumping Jack Flash,” and “Brown Sugar.” Exile completed the presentation of the reinvented Stones with guitarist Mick Taylor.

Set against the backdrop of a stately, spooky mansion on the French Mediterranean, Exile is a paradox; cosmopolitan worldliness embracing homespun rock-and-roll innocence. Produced by Jimmy Miller, its chronology spans songs from 1969 recorded at Olympic Studios, London, and Stargroves (Jagger’s studio), others developed and recorded at Villa Nellcote, France, in ’71, and overdubs/mixes at Sunset Sound in Hollywood stretching into ’72. Its mythology is underscored by songs reflecting revered areas of Americana – Chuck Berry rock and roll, soul, country, blues, gospel, folk, and roots music from New Orleans and the Deep South. Additional musicians were integral and included Billy Preston, Nicky Hopkins, Bobby Keys, Jim Price, Al Perkins, Bill Plummer, Dr. John, and eight backing singers. Keith Richards specified the Stones recorded it as “an eight-piece band” with two horns and piano. The music is sprawling beyond the confines of a 19-song double album (their first) with a cohesive and satisfying – if uneven – program. Even Exile’s title is inscrutable.

Originally titled Tropical Disease, Richards referred to it as first an allusion to the U.S. (where “…everybody’s got a Main Street”) and American music that nurtured the Stones. He conflated it with the Riviera strip, where frequent cruising aboard his speedboat made it their new Main Street.

Exile is sometimes called “the Nellcote album” because Richards’ financial mismanagement in 1969 led to the band facing 93 percent income tax. In April of ’71, they chose exile over penalties and moved to the Villa Nellcote, a Victorian mansion near Nice, on the French Rivera. Rented by Richards, they converted its dank basement rooms into musical spaces. Employing their famous mobile recording truck with engineer Andy Johns (Led Zeppelin, Free, Television) at the console, conditions imparted an earthy, bluesy patina to the record, in a space that represented freedom and partying – a rock-and-roll paradise. Road manager/longtime friend/early Stones pianist Ian Stewart (“Shake Your Hips,” “Sweet Virginia,” “Stop Breaking Down” on Exile) designed the electrical system (pulling power from nearby railroad lines) and installed sound baffling. He also brought horn players Bobby Keys and Jim Price to the Stones’ attention. Nellcote sessions started on July 6; running from late afternoon to early morning, they were inconsistently attended, plagued by tuning problems due to midsummer humidity, punctuated by drug use, and subject to a lifestyle that separated abusers and moderates. Nonetheless, it yielded about 30 tracks.

Songwriting approaches differed, summarized by Richards as “Mick’s rock, I’m roll.” Jagger preferred planned arrangements and predictable workflow, while Richards prized spontaneity and serendipity. “Happy” was the result of only Richards, Miller (drums) and Bobby Keys (baritone sax) working for four hours then adding bass/guitar overdubs. It became a favorite Stones track. “Tumbling Dice” and “Sweet Virginia” were holdovers from Sticky Fingers. The Richards/Taylor guitar chemistry and assignment of lead/rhythm roles were determined instinctively; both shared deep blues roots.

Changes amidst the chaos confounded the other Stones; Wyman complained that the bass parts on “Happy,” “Casino Boogie,” and “Soul Survivor” were redone by Richards, and were inferior. Taylor played bass for “Tumbling Dice,” “Torn and Frayed,” “I Just Want to See His Face,” and “Shine a Light.”

After October ’71, basic tracks were taken to Sunset Sound, where Richards added over dubs with a recently purchased late-’50s Les Paul Standard and Ampeg VT-40. The album was released in May ’72.

Exile opens with the swaggering “Rocks Off” setting the tone. Johns recalls the song came alive when Richards added guitar parts. After first approving the track at 3 a.m., Richards went to sleep, but when he awoke a couple hours later, he reconsidered, woke Johns, and recorded finishing bits on an old Tele through Ampeg SVT.

“Rocks Off” features the intertwining guitar textures for which the Stones are known, reflecting how Richards and Jones spent time working out orchestrations. This excerpt highlights two symbiotic figures forming a whole greater than the sum of its parts. Note the classic suspended-4th triadic riff and power chords of Gtr.1–Stones signatures–in measures 1-2. These are enhanced by smaller dyads in Gtr.2. In measures 3-4 Gtr.1 plays looser arpeggiations and chord partials while Gtr.2’s bluesy counter melody and palm-muted bass notes flesh out the section.

At nearly 200 bpm “Rip This Joint,” enlivened by Plummer’s lively string-bass lines, is supercharged rockabilly. One of the fastest tracks ever recorded by the Stones, it was performed into the mid ’70s but never suited Jagger’s strutting stagecraft. “Shake Your Hips,” a Slim Harpo cover, is a hypnotic boogie in the vein of John Lee Hooker and morphs into a loose jam with staggered entrances. It personifies the spontaneous blues side of Exile, paying homage to early influences.

“Casino Boogie” arose when the writers hit a dry spell and snatched words from newspaper headlines. A riff-based altered blues, it’s distinguished by a honking sax solo, electric-slide background lines, and one of few Taylor solos (2:12-3:30). An episode of instrumental prowess, it’s a departure from other Stones periods where lead-guitar playing was minimal or contextual.

The first single, “Tumbling Dice” reached the Top 10 and is today a true classic. But it didn’t come easy, reportedly requiring more than 150 takes and glossier production, with rhythm-guitar hooks enlarged with slide fills, solo references to Chuck Berry (1:50-2:00) and dubbed gospel/soul backing vocals. Choir sounds inspired by a visit to an evangelical church where Aretha Franklin recorded Amazing Grace, were reprised in “Loving Cup,” “Let It Loose” and “Shine a Light.”

Exile’s second side was perceived as having a country flavor. “Sweet Virginia” is an acoustic-propelled number with country-blues leanings influenced by Gram Parsons, Keith’s cohort and visitor at Nellcote. Wailing R&B horns and a solid rock pulse gave it modernity that offset its folky acoustic timbres, Broonzy-like guitar fills, and Jagger’s harmonica melodies.

Acoustic guitars also drive the vamping “Torn and Frayed.” Likewise inspired by Parsons, it reconciles country, honky-tonk, gospel, and rock colored with a light electric-guitar underscore and Perkins’ pedal-steel solo suggesting Bakersfield outlaw country.

“Sweet Black Angel” continues the country-rock atmosphere; revolving around a looping arpeggiated acoustic figure accompanied by propulsive strumming and complemented by Jagger’s harmonica.

“Loving Cup” is powered by Hopkins percussive piano evoking the Americana/Mississippi/Appalachia/Memphis rootsiness associated with The Band. A horn-laden interlude (2:01) supplies respite from the relentless rhythm groove.

“Happy” is Keith’s baby all the way. Tracked spontaneously without the other Stones, it’s a leading tune from Exile and a showcase for his five-string Open G riffmaking approach to songwriting. Like many songs in the “Keef-chord” canon, it’s capoed (here at the 4th position), which adds sparkle and resonance to the sonorities (chord symbols in parentheses indicate basic fingered shapes played as if without the capo while chord names above are the actual sounding forms). Note his use of familiar simple patterns ubiquitous in the Stones catalog, and the integration of slide guitar.

Side three begins with the second single, “Happy” (#22 that August), a demo converted to a master recording, it was done without the Stones. Featuring Richards’ lead vocal (his third, preceded by “Connection” and “You Got the Silver”), it was cut quickly, before the other bandmates arrived. Overdubs were added later – Open-G rhythm guitars, doubled slide riffs, and a slide solo.

“Turd on the Run” is more than the band’s scatological joke. Built on a reimagined Bo Diddley beat with references to Berry’s “Maybelline,” it evokes imagery of roadhouses and juke joints with its swampy uptempo groove, Watts’ brush work, Hopkins’ barrelhouse piano, and Plummer’s upright-bass lines.

“Ventilator Blues” laments the air quality in Nellcote’s basement with obvious nods to Muddy Waters, Howlin’ Wolf, and the Chess school. Taylor received a rare writing credit for the riff, played electric and resonator guitar (likely Richards’ National Style 1 tricone), and contributed another potent Bluesbreaker-esque solo.

“Just Wanna See His Face” traces the evolution of blues from work songs and field hollers to gospel antiphony, rendered by Jagger and choir, viewed through the prism of rock. Electric piano (played by Richards) establishes a haunting, otherworldly atmosphere, bolstered by heavy percussion, Plummer’s upright, and vocal ostinatos.

“Let It Loose” is an unfinished (but elegant) sketch over a repeated progression, more mood than complete composition, that works texturally despite its simplicity. The flowing gospel-tinged ballad features a solo intro and theme figure of Vibratone-processed guitar arpeggiations and light fills gradually joined by Hopkins’ piano and Mellotron, bass-and-drums pulse, gospel-choir backing vocals (with Dr. John) and R&B horns. Its elusive tempo necessitated Miller playing drums in the ending.

Side four opened with “All Down the Line,” a straightforward rocker highlighted by Taylor’s slide-guitar purveyed on Keith’s new Rickenbacker 450. Regarded as a blues virtuoso in the Mayall “Beano” fold, on Exile, he proved equally adept on several solos, this one – prominent in the mix – serves as case in point. “Stop Breaking Down” is a blues journey re-cast from the Delta to Chicago through London into Nellcote. A Robert Johnson composition given a pumping rock treatment, it again sported Taylor’s superb slide behind the vocals and in solos – here in tandem with harmonica improvisations akin to Muddy Waters and Little Walters’ interaction.

“Shine a Light” is Jagger’s gospel ballad harking back to ’68, and serves as a tribute to former Stone Brian Jones. Taylor’s melodic blues playing decorates and transcends the track (functioning as a quintessential session guitarist) augmented by Hopkins’ driving piano, Preston’s organ, Miller’s drumming, and gospel vocals.

Mick Taylor, often described as the Stones’ soloing lead guitarist, rose to the occasion in several tracks on Exile. While many of his flights occurred over conventional settings like “Casino Boogie” and “Ventilator Blues,” capitalizing on his abilities as a Mayall Bluesbreaker, in “Shine a Light” he reimagined his blues-based vocabulary over a gospel-rock groove and Am-F-G changes. Here, he pursued an adaptation of blues-rock material similar to what Clapton and Page explored in “While My Guitar Gently Weeps” and “Stairway to Heaven,” transforming predominately pentatonic lines replete with idiomatic string bends and blues gestures into melodic minor-mode phrases.

“Soul Survivor” brings the album to a close. A loose, blues-based rocker in the comfortable midtempo Stones pocket, it highlights Open-G “Keef chords,” electric-slide underscore and a catchy syncopated chorus figure that is a central hook, theme and clever bit of word painting (“…death of me”).

Richards’ trademark five-string Open G tuning is ubiquitous on Exile. The inspiration evolved from researching old blues players’ guitars, some with seven-strings, etc. He learned fundamentals from Ry Cooder, who applied it to slide, as had Jones on “Little Red Rooster” in ’64. Breaking from guitar traditions, Keith removed the sixth string and forged a riff-making approach endemic to the Stones sound, just as he was growing bored with standard tuned six-string. He discovered advantages in its limitations, and “Keef chords” came to exemplify his credo: “Five strings, three notes, two fingers and one a**hole,” and he admitted that the tuning helped him advance as a guitarist. Open G and its capoed variants are heard in “Honky Tonk Women,” “Brown Sugar,” “Start Me Up” and practically every electric track on Exile.

Ted Newman Jones (VG, December ’15) played a significant role in Stones’ lore. The relationship began when he dropped in (uninvited) at Nellcote to gauge Keith’s interest in a restored ’65 Rickenbacker 450. The legend of Micawber began in this period; Jones found two blackguard Telecasters for Richards – the ’54 he called “Micawber” and a ’53 ash-body in natural finish dubbed “Malcolm,” as well as a spare often seen with a capo at the fourth fret, which corrected the notion Micawber had once been Clapton’s guitar. These were acquired after several of Richards’ most-used guitars were stolen from Nellcote. Micawber was photographed in ’72 tour rehearsals and at Nellcote before Jones replaced the neck pickup with a PAF, reinstalled the original bridge with individual brass saddles, and upgraded its tuners. It is speculated the bridge pickup is from a Broadcaster or a lap steel. Richards used custom string gauges now marketed in a signature Ernie Ball set of five – .011-.015-.018-.030-.042. Jones later built five-string guitars for Richards, first seen in ’73 at an L.A. benefit for victims of an earthquake in Nicaragua. He became the model for guitar techs in rock shows, worked as Richards’ from ’72 into ’78, and oversaw the ’72 tour’s 19-guitar arsenal that also included a ’58 three-pickup Les Paul Custom, ’57 Custom (with Alnico pickup), ’59 Standard, ’69 walnut ES-355, ’59 Strat, ’50s sunburst Tele, Fender Bronco, two Dan Armstrong Plexiglass guitars, a Gibson Hummingbird, and a Martin D-45.

Wolf Marshall is the founder and original Editor-In-Chief of GuitarOne magazine. A respected author and columnist, he has been influential in contemporary music education since the early 1980s. His latest book is Jazz Guitar Course: Mastering the Jazz Language. Others include 101 Must-Know Rock Licks, B.B. King: the Definitive Collection, and Best of Jazz Guitar. A list credits can be found at wolfmarshall.com. To read more about Keith Richards’s ’63 Les Paul Custom, go to www.vintageguitar.com/27046/keith-richards-1963-gibson-sg-custom.

This article originally appeared in VG’s July 2024 issue. All copyrights are by the author and Vintage Guitar magazine. Unauthorized replication or use is strictly prohibited.