THE ROLLING STONES -- Stripped (Virgin)

It seems like every time The Rolling Stones go out on tour, we get a new live album from the band. Sometimes that's good (like Get Your Ya-Ya's Out), sometimes not so good (Love You Live!). This time out, they sound great. Stripped features songs recorded all around the world, from small club appearances to rehearsals during the Voodoo Lounge tour.

Songs like Sweet Virginia, Dead Flowers, Wild Horses & Let it Bleed really benefit from the new arrangements. One of the coolest things about Stripped though, is the cover of Bob Dylan's "Like a Rolling Stone". It sounds like the band is thoroughly enjoying themselves when you listen to the song.

Several songs had seldom (if ever) been performed live. Shine a Light had only been played live once before. It had been almost 25 years since Let it Bleed was performed onstage. The Spider and the Fly had never been performed live. For Keith's song this time, they chose the poignant Slipping Away (from Steel Wheels).

In addition to over to almost 75 minutes of music, Stripped also has multimedia capabilities including interviews with the band, lyrics to all the songs, custom graphics, and over six minutes of video. It's compatible with both IBM and Macintosh CD-ROM formats.