''Wandering Spirit'' is the third solo album by Mick Jagger. Released in 1993, it was his only solo album release of the 1990s.

Background

Following The Rolling Stones' ''

Steel Wheels Steel is an alloy made up of iron with added carbon to improve its strength and fracture resistance compared to other forms of iron. Many other elements may be present or added. Stainless steels that are corrosion- and oxidation-resistant ty ...

'' (1989), Jagger began writing new material for what would become ''Wandering Spirit''. In January 1992, after landing Rick Rubin as co-producer, Jagger recorded the album in Los Angeles over seven months until September 1992, recording simultaneously as Keith Richards was making ''

Main Offender ''Main Offender'' is the second studio album by Keith Richards, released in 1992 between the Rolling Stones' '' Steel Wheels'' and ''Voodoo Lounge'' projects. Richards teamed with '' Talk Is Cheap'' collaborator Steve Jordan and added Waddy W ...

''. Jagger kept the celebrity guests to a minimum on ''Wandering Spirit'', only having

Lenny Kravitz Leonard Albert Kravitz (born May 26, 1964) is an American singer-songwriter. His style incorporates elements of rock, blues, soul, R&B, funk, jazz, reggae, hard rock, psychedelic, pop and folk. Kravitz won the Grammy Award for Best Male Roc ...

as a vocalist on his cover of Bill Withers' "Use Me" and bassist Flea from Red Hot Chili Peppers on three tracks. Following the end of The Rolling Stones' Sony Music contract and their signing to Virgin Records, Jagger elected to sign with

Atlantic Records Atlantic Recording Corporation (simply known as Atlantic Records) is an American record label founded in October 1947 by Ahmet Ertegun and Herb Abramson. Over its first 20 years of operation, Atlantic earned a reputation as one of the most i ...

(which had signed the Stones in the 1970s) to distribute what would be his only album with the label.

Critical reception

Released in February 1993, ''Wandering Spirit'' was commercially successful, reaching #12 in the UK and #11 in the US, going gold there. The track "Sweet Thing" was the lead single, although it was the second single, "Don't Tear Me Up", which found moderate success, topping ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

''s

Album Rock Tracks Mainstream Rock is a music chart in ''Billboard'' magazine that ranks the most-played songs on mainstream rock radio stations in the United States, a category that combines the formats of active rock and heritage rock. The chart was launched in Ma ...

chart for one week. Critical reaction was very strong, noting Jagger's abandonment of slick synthesizers in favour of an incisive and lean guitar sound.

Track listing

Personnel

* Mick Jagger – vocals, guitar, clavinet, harmonica, percussion *David Bianco – synthesizer * Curt Bisquera – drums *

Lenny Castro Lenny or Lennie may refer to: People and fictional characters * Lenny (given name), a list of people and fictional characters * Lennie (surname), a list of people * Lenny (singer) (born 1993), Czech songwriter Arts and entertainment Music * ''L ...

– percussion *Matt Clifford – virginal, harpsichord, string arrangements, conductor * Flea – bass guitar on "Out of Focus", "Use Me" and "I've Been Lonely for So Long" * Lynn Davis – backing vocals * Jim Keltner – drums on "Evening Gown" *

– vocals on "Use Me" *

Jay Dee Maness JayDee Maness (born January 4, 1945) is an American pedal steel guitarist who is a veteran session musician in Los Angeles. He is known for his work with Gram Parsons, the Byrds, Buck Owens and the Buckaroos, Ray Stevens, Vince Gill, and the De ...

–

pedal steel guitar The pedal steel guitar is a Console steel guitar, console-type of steel guitar with pedals and knee levers that change the pitch of certain strings to enable playing more varied and complex music than any previous steel guitar design. Like all s ...

*Jean McClain – backing vocals *Pamela Quinlan - piano, backing vocals *Robin McKidd – fiddle * Brendan O'Brien – guitar *Jeff Pescetto – backing vocals *John Pierce – bass guitar (tracks: 1, 4, 5, 7 to 11, 13, 14) * Courtney Pine – saxophone *

Billy Preston William Everett Preston (September 2, 1946 – June 6, 2006) was an American keyboardist, singer and songwriter whose work encompassed R&B, rock, soul, funk, and gospel. Preston was a top session keyboardist in the 1960s, during which he ba ...

– piano,

Hammond organ The Hammond organ is an electric organ invented by Laurens Hammond and John M. Hanert and first manufactured in 1935. Multiple models have been produced, most of which use sliding drawbars to vary sounds. Until 1975, Hammond organs generated s ...

, clavinet * Jimmy Rip – lead guitar, percussion *

Frank Simes Frank Turner Simes is an American musician, singer, guitarist, songwriter, composer and record producer. Simes is the musical director for Roger Daltrey, and has recorded and performed with Mick Jagger, Don Henley, and Stevie Nicks. Early lif ...

– guitar * Benmont Tench – piano, Hammond organ * Doug Wimbish – bass guitar on "Sweet Thing" ;Technical *David Bianco - engineer *Jim Champagne, Peter Lewis, Steve Holroyd, Steve Musters - assistant engineer *Melanie Nissen - art direction *Richard Bates - design * Annie Leibovitz – photography

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications and sales

Notes

External links

''Rolling Stone'' review
{{Authority control 1993 albums Mick Jagger albums Albums produced by Mick Jagger Albums produced by Rick Rubin Atlantic Records albums