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The Rolling Stones’ classic album “Exile on Main Street” is to be re-released in May with additional never-before-heard tracks.

The new “Exile on Main Street” release will include 10 unreleased tracks recorded during the “Exile” era, including “Plundered My Soul,” “Dancing in the Light,” “Following the River” and “Pass The Wine”, as well as alternate versions of “Soul Survivor” and “Loving Cup.”

“Exile on Main Street” was originally released as a double LP in 1972 and comprised material recorded between 1968 and 1972. It was The Rolling Stones’ tenth studio album and hit number one on the album charts in both the US and UK.Despite receiving mixed reviews early on, the album’s reputation has definitely grown and it is now regarded as one of the best in the band’s catalogue.

In 2003, Rolling Stone magazine placed it at number seven in its list of 500 best albums of all time.

Mick Jagger was hinting as far back as 2003 that a new version of the album might occur:

“Exile is not one of my favourite albums, although I think the record does have a particular feeling. I’m not too sure how great the songs are, but put together it’s a nice piece. However, when I listen to Exile it has some of the worst mixes I’ve ever heard. I’d love to remix the record, not just because of the vocals, but because generally I think it sounds lousy.”

The official announcement says nothing about whether the songs will receive a remix, but Jagger’s views on the existing mix suggest this is likely.

The “Exile on Main Street” release will be available as a deluxe edition, comprising the original 18-track album and 10 additional tracks, or a super deluxe release which also includes a copy on vinyl, a documentary DVD, and a 50-page collectors book.

“Stones in Exile” documentary

“Fans of The Rolling Stones will also soon be enjoying a documentary, “Stones in Exile,” which will feature never-before-seen archival footage and interviews from the early 1970s. The film was produced by Oscar-winning filmmaker John Battsek and directed by Stephen Kijak.”Stones in Exile” will appear on US Network television and on BBC Worldwide later this year.

In May, 1972, The Rolling Stones held rehearsals at the Rialto Theater in Montreux, Switzerland for their upcoming US tour. Forty-five songs were rehearsed, including tracks from “Exile on Main Street.” Here’s “Loving Cup.”

The second track on “Exile” was “Rip this Joint.” Here’s a rocking live version from 1972.

The 2009 Rolling Stones remasters

“Exile on Main Street” is the latest in a series of remastered Rolling Stones’ classic albums that have been released. Last year saw the release of 13 albums:

• Sticky Fingers
• Goats Head Soup
• It’s Only Rock ”N’ Roll
• Black and Blue
• Some Girls
• Emotional Rescue
• Tattoo You
• Undercover
• Dirty Work
• Steel Wheels
• Voodoo Lounge
• Bridges to Babylon
• A Bigger Bang

Gene Pitney would have been 70 years old today. He died on April 5, 2006 at the age of 66 in a hotel in Cardiff, Wales, midway through a UK tour.

Gene Francis Alan Pitney was born in Hartford, Connecticut on February 17, 1940, but spent most of his youth in Rockville, Connecticut. He had musical ambitions from a young age and formed a band while a student at Rockville High School. His first singles were released as part of a duo called Jamie and Jane, with singer Ginny Arnell, and included the song “Classical Rock and Roll.” The singles were not hits and the duo was soon abandoned.

Gene Pitney’s first real success came as a songwriter. He wrote or co-wrote several very big hits, including “Rubber Ball”, which was a number one for Bobby Vee, “He’s a Rebel”, which was the Crystal’s biggest hit, and “Hello Mary Lou,” which was one of Ricky Nelson’s most memorable hits. It was in this period that Pitney also forged important alliances with producer Phil Spector and fellow songwriters Burt Backarach and Hal David.

As a point of interest, it’s strongly rumoured that The Blossoms (Darlene Love, Famita Jones, and Gracia Nitzschke) are the real singers on “He’s a Rebel,” as The Crystals were out of town and Phil Spector was impatient about getting the recording done.

After briefly recording under the pseudonym Billy Bryan, Pitney reverted to his own name and recorded “(I Wanna) Love My Life Away” in 1961, which featured ambitious multi-tracked vocals and overdubbed instruments. Pitney achieved his first top 40 hit with this single. The experimentation was taken to the next level on “Every Breath I Take,” which was produced by Phil Spector and is an early example of the “Wall of Sound.” The song was written by the amazing songwriting duo, Gary Goffin and Carole King. Despite the greatness of the recording, the single failed to make the top 40.

Gene Pitney - “Every Breath I Take”

Pitney’s first really big hit was “Town Without Pity” in 1962, which reached number 13 on the Hot 100. This was followed by a series of hits penned by Bacharach and David, including “The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance,” “Only Love Can Break A Heart” and “Twenty Four Hours From Tulsa.”

Gene Pitney - “Town Without Pity”

In 1963, while on a UK tour, Pitney met and befriended The Rolling Stones, who had not yet broken in the US. Pitney sat in on a recording session for the band’s first album, 12 x 5, and is rumoured to have played piano on some tracks. He recorded the Jagger/Richards song “That Girl Belongs to Yesterday” and this became the first song composed by The Rolling Stones to chart in the US and the first to hit the top 10 in the UK.

Gene Pitney with The Rollings Stones and Phil Spector

In 1965, Gene Pitney recorded an album of duets with country star George Jones. The double act also scored several moderate hit singles on the country chart.

Like Del Shannon, Eddie Cochran and Gene Vincent, Gene Pitney was more popular in the United Kingdom than in America. He had 16 top 40 songs in the USA from 1961 to 1968, but managed more than 40 top 40 hits in the UK up to 1989. The last, in 1989, was a duet with Marc Almond on his old hit “Something’s Gotten Hold of My Heart.” This was the first number one hit of Pitney’s career. The song had already been a top five hit for Pitney in the UK in 1967.

Gene Pitney was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2002.

Gene Pitney’s death came as a surprise in 2006 as he had shown no signs of ill health and was receiving great reviews on his tour. He spoke to the BBC about this tour, just days before his death:

Some living outside the UK might not be able to view the above interview. Apologies if that’s the case.

Let’s conclude with one of Gene Pitney’s most memorable hits.

Gene Pitney - “Something’s Gotten Hold of My Heart”

Great purchases

That first US tour wasn’t very successful as the band didn’t even have a hit record to promote, but the trip was not a wasted one. During the tour, the band did a two-day recording session at the legendary Chess studios in Chicago which produced their first UK number one - the classic It’s All Over Now.

Eleven days after the gig at the Manning Bowl, the Stones made their US television debut on Dean Martin’s Hollywood Palace, performing Not Fade Away and I Just Wanna Make Love to You. Check that performance below:

For more Rolling Stones videos, head over to the ClassicPopIcons video section