No Moss

By Guy Garcia

If Satan could sing, he'd probably sound a lot like Mick Jagger. Jagger can be at once insolent, charming and slightly lewd. His is the voice of silky excess, the serenade of a jaded demon. On Love Is Strong, the first cut from the Rolling Stones' fine new album, Voodoo Lounge, Jagger is at his seductive, sneering best. The song, with its coiling harmonica and swaggering rhythm, sounds like a surefire smash, the kind of hit that will be blaring from radios all summer.

With their latest effort, the Stones prove that even after recording together for 31 years, they can still produce exciting work. Five years have passed since Steel Wheels, an album that, for all its virtues, seemed more manufactured than genuinely inspired. In the interim, Jagger and Keith Richards concentrated on solo work, and bassist Bill Wyman quit, to be replaced by Darryl Jones. Jones is 32, but the average age of his new bandmates is, well, practically geriatric. Before the new album was released, it was reasonable to wonder how much desire and energy the Stones had left.

Plenty of both, it turns out. On Voodoo Lounge, Jagger and company have recaptured the spontaneous verve of a great working band. You Got Me Rocking, a full-tilt stomp built on Charlie Watts' brick-solid drumming and Richards' saw-toothed guitar lines, has the frayed, unrehearsed ending of a live performance, as does Moon Is Up. Producer Don Was has avoided trying to update the band's sound with trendy hip-hop or techno touches. Instead, he helps serve up a classic collection of rockers and semisweet ballads.

If Jagger's yowls and Richards' riffs are more than a tad familiar, the duo launch into their trademark grooves with such brio that the results are still scintillating. By showcasing what the Stones have always done best, Voodoo Lounge, while not breaking any new ground, secures their status as rock 'n' roll's reigning survivors.