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The Rolling Stones’ Tops has one of those recording histories that makes a supposedly finished song look rather less finished. Cut during the 1972 sessions in Jamaica, the track disappears into the vaults before returning almost a decade later on Tattoo You, by which point Mick Taylor is long gone and the credits become a rather awkward subject. This early alternate take offers a different glimpse of the song’s development, with Taylor’s guitar work especially relevant to the track’s complicated history. There is also the pleasure of hearing the Stones before the familiar 1981 version settles everything into place. The vaults, naturally, disagree.
Written by: Jagger/Richard Recorded: Dynamic Sounds Studios, Kingston, Jamaica, Nov. 25-30 and Dec. 6-21 1972; Mobile Recording Unit at unlocated railway warehouse, Paris, France, Oct. 11-Nov. 12 and Nov.25-mid Dec. 1980 Guest musicians: Nicky Hopkins (piano)
More about Tops (early take) by The Rolling Stones
*By Marcelo Sonaglioni
An unreleased Tops
Tops is one of those Rolling Stones songs that took the scenic route to an official release. Recorded during the 1972 sessions in Kingston, Jamaica, it remained in the vault until Tattoo You appeared in 1981, turning an old studio recording into a “new” Stones track almost nine years later. That would already make the song worth investigating, but the real intrigue sits underneath the finished version. Mick Taylor’s guitar work, recorded when he was still a member of the band, became a major point of contention after his departure. Taylor was not credited on Tattoo You, despite arguing that his contribution was central to the recording. Meanwhile, alternate takes and outtakes reveal different stages of the song’s development, including Mick Jagger trying different vocal approaches. Apparently, the Stones’ vaults were perfectly capable of creating legal headaches without anyone asking them to.
From Kingston to the Vault
The story begins at Dynamic Sounds Studios in Kingston, Jamaica, where the Rolling Stones record Tops between November 25 and December 21, 1972. The sessions form part of the work that eventually produces Goats Head Soup, although the song does not make that album.
Nicky Hopkins is also credited as a guest musician on the recording, adding piano to the track. Instead of arriving in record stores with the rest of the 1973 material, however, Tops sits around for years. The song effectively becomes a musical time capsule from the Stones’ Jamaican sessions.
When Tattoo You finally arrives in 1981, the track gets its second life. The release turns an almost decade-old recording into part of a new Stones album, because apparently the vault can occasionally double as a very patient record company.
Mick Taylor’s Missing Credit
The 1981 release creates a particular problem for Mick Taylor. He had already left the Rolling Stones, but his guitar work remained on Tops. Taylor objected to the fact that he was not credited on the album and eventually took legal action seeking royalties.
His argument centered on the recording’s origins in the 1972 Jamaica sessions. An instrumental outtake, available through bootlegs, runs longer than the released version and provides an especially revealing listen to the guitar work. Bill Wyman and Keith Richards have also confirmed that the track remained largely unchanged from its original recording, despite later overdubs. That makes the alternate material more than a curiosity. It helps document how much of the final track was already sitting there in 1972.
Different Takes, Different Stones
Another unreleased outtake recorded in Paris offers a different glimpse of the song. Mick Jagger experiments with several vocal approaches, including falsetto. That falsetto eventually appears in the 1981 version as part of the backing vocals, giving the finished recording another connection to its earlier incarnations.
The alternate material therefore turns Tops into more than a leftover song rescued for Tattoo You. It shows a recording evolving across different sessions and years, while also preserving the work of musicians who were no longer officially part of the band when the track finally appeared.
And then there is the small credit detail: by 1981, Keith Richards’ name appears with the full “s.” The Stones can apparently spend nearly a decade deciding what to do with a song, but at least somebody had time to settle the spelling.
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