Hey, I like '60s Stones as much as the next guy. Through the Past Darkly was one of the first three albums I ever bought when I was 9 years old, along with Cream's Greatest Hits and Iron Butterfly Heavy - two out of three ain't bad! But as much as I love the early/mid-60's stuff, to me '68 through '72 was the best they ever were - Beggars Banquet through Exile to be precise. I loved Brian Jones, but there was something about the more defined division of labor between Keith and Mick Taylor that just worked on more levels for me. And plus, they were just more mature as songwriters and musicians too. Exile is my desert island record for sure. And then '78-'81 was pretty good too, in a completely different style. Some Girls and Tattoo You were damn good albums - not '60s or early '70s great, but I still pull 'em out from time to time.
But hey, you can't trust me - I always liked the Dead best with one drummer from '72-74 too. I'm guessing Luke hates all eras of the Dead equally... And unlike Luke I love live albums. Lot's of them sucked, but some of them are wonderful. I'll take the Allman Bros at Fillmore East (and the live part of Eat A Peach) over ANY of their studio stuff. And the best Dead never made it into formal releases. I'm really into improvisation, warts and all, and it just doesn't happen the same way in the studio.
Tony, I last saw Dr John open for the Nevilles within the past five year I think, although I'm not sure exactly when. I'd seen both of them when they were simply amazing and by this last show, they were working HARD just to make ANYthing happen. The Doc was trying to move what little he had to between instruments with the help of a cane. And Aaron didn't have those beautiful highs anymore - he could fake a few of them, but 10-20 years before that he was one of the wonders of the world, and he was having to work too hard just to get through the show the last time. Glad they were still playing, but I honestly would have been happier to remember them in their primes. I think Keith Richards turned me onto the Nevilles back in about '80 or 81 in an interview. I saw them a few times from then until that last show...
-Ray