Main Offender
Black and white close-up photograph of Richards' face, brightly lit on right side of picture, hidden in shadow on left side, with KEITH RICHARDS MAIN OFFENDER in white scribbled capitals in top left quarter of album cover
Studio album by
Keith Richards
Released19 October 1992
Recorded18 March – 6 September 1992
StudioMaster Sound Astoria (Astoria, New York)
  • Studio 900, Giant Studios and The Hit Factory (New York City, New York)
  • The Site, (San Rafael, Marin County, California)
Genre
Length49:53
LabelVirgin
Producer
Keith Richards chronology
Talk Is Cheap
(1988) 		Main Offender
(1992) 		Crosseyed Heart
(2015)

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 Wachtel to the mix both in composing and producing Main Offender. Sessions with Richards' group of musician friends known as "The X-Pensive Winos" took place in California and New York City from March to September 1992, with touring in Europe's autumn and early 1993 in North America.

Main Offender was released in October 1992 to generally positive reviews. However, it failed to match the commercial success of Talk Is Cheap, reaching No. 45 in the UK, and No. 99 in the US. After the Main Offender tour, Richards returned to recording exclusively with the Rolling Stones and did not release another solo album until Crosseyed Heart in 2015. In 2022 the album was reissued to mark its 30th anniversary.[1] The reissue featured the previously unreleased concert album Winos Live in London ’92.[2]

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[3]
Chicago Tribune[4]
Entertainment WeeklyB+[5]
Orlando Sentinel[6]

Track listing

  1. "999" (Keith Richards, Steve Jordan, Waddy Wachtel) – 5:50
  2. "Wicked as It Seems" (Richards, Jordan, Charley Drayton) – 4:45
  3. "Eileen" (Richards, Jordan) – 4:29
  4. "Words of Wonder" (Richards, Jordan, Wachtel) – 6:35
  5. "Yap Yap" (Richards, Jordan, Wachtel) – 4:43
  6. "Bodytalks" (Richards, Jordan, Drayton, Sarah Dash) – 5:20
  7. "Hate It When You Leave" (Richards, Jordan, Wachtel) – 4:59
  8. "Runnin' Too Deep" (Richards, Jordan) – 3:20
  9. "Will but You Won't" (Richards, Jordan) – 5:05
  10. "Demon" (Richards, Jordan) – 4:45
  11. "Key to the Highway" (Charlie Segar, Big Bill Broonzy) – 3:21 (Japanese issue bonus track)

Winos Live In London ‘92

Released as part of the 30th Anniversary reissue.

  1. "Take It So Hard" (Richards, Jordan) – 4:15
  2. "999" (Richards, Jordan, Wachtel) – 6:45
  3. "Wicked As It Seems" (Richards, Jordan, Drayton) – 5:14
  4. "How I Wish" (Richards, Jordan) – 4:31
  5. "Gimme Shelter" (Mick Jagger, Richards) – 6:10
  6. "Hate It When You Leave" (Richards, Jordan, Wachtel) – 6:39
  7. "Before They Make Me Run" (Jagger, Richards) – 3:31
  8. "Eileen" (Richards, Jordan) – 5:42
  9. "Will But You Won’t" (Richards, Jordan) – 7:30
  10. "Bodytalks" (Richards, Jordan, Drayton, Dash) – 6:53
  11. "Happy" (Jagger, Richards) – 8:28
  12. "Whip It Up" (Richards, Jordan) – 8:33

Personnel

Production

Charts

Chart performance for Main Offender
Chart (1992) Peak
position
Australian Albums (ARIA)[7] 96
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[8] 67
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[9] 60
Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)[10] 43
UK Albums (OCC)[11] 45
US Billboard 200[12] 99
Chart (2022) Peak
position
Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria)[13] 22
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[14] 58
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[15] 152
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[16] 55
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[17] 4
Scottish Albums (OCC)[18] 15
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[19] 13
UK Independent Albums (OCC)[20] 8

References

  1. ^ "30th anniversary reissue of Keith Richards' second solo album, 'Main Offender,' released today". KSHE 95. 18 March 2022. Retrieved 28 March 2022.[dead link]
  2. ^ Paul, Larisha (25 January 2022). "Keith Richards' 'Main Offender' Gets 30th-Anniversary Reissue With Bonus Tracks". Rolling Stone.
  3. ^ Koda, Cub. "Main Offender - Keith Richards". AllMusic. Retrieved 8 July 2018.
  4. ^ Kot, Greg (22 October 1992). "Keith Richards Main Offender (Virgin)/Izzy Stradlin Izzy Stradlin and the Ju Ju Hounds (Geffen)". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 8 July 2018.
  5. ^ Altman, Billy (6 November 1992). "Main Offender". Entertainment Weekly.
  6. ^ Gettelman, Parry (6 November 1992). "Keith Richards, Ronnie Wood, Izzy Stradlin". Orlando Sentinel. Retrieved 8 July 2018.
  7. ^ Ryan, Gavin (2011). Australia's Music Charts 1988–2010 (PDF ed.). Mt Martha, Victoria, Australia: Moonlight Publishing. p. 234.
  8. ^ "Dutchcharts.nl – Keith Richards – Main Offender" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 25 March 2022.
  9. ^ "Offiziellecharts.de – Keith Richards – Main Offender" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved 25 March 2022.
  10. ^ "Swedishcharts.com – Keith Richards – Main Offender". Hung Medien. Retrieved 25 March 2022.
  11. ^ "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 25 March 2022.
  12. ^ "Keith Richards Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved 25 March 2022.
  13. ^ "Austriancharts.at – Keith Richards – Main Offender" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved 29 March 2022.
  14. ^ "Ultratop.be – Keith Richards – Main Offender" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 27 March 2022.
  15. ^ "Ultratop.be – Keith Richards – Main Offender" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved 27 March 2022.
  16. ^ "Dutchcharts.nl – Keith Richards – Main Offender" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 26 March 2022.
  17. ^ "Offiziellecharts.de – Keith Richards – Main Offender" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved 25 March 2022.
  18. ^ "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 26 March 2022.
  19. ^ "Swisscharts.com – Keith Richards – Main Offender". Hung Medien. Retrieved 27 March 2022.
  20. ^ "Official Independent Albums Chart Top 50". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 26 March 2022.
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