Mick Jagger – Goddess in the Doorway Review

Mick Jagger is no friend of typography. Goddess in the Doorway, or Goddessinthedoorway, however it is meant to be written, is, at the time of writing, the final solo studio effort from Jagger. A remake of Alfie saw him oversee the soundtrack but Goddess in the Doorway serves as a final shot of solo work. It is not as though the preceding efforts were much good. Jagger is at his best when backed by The Rolling Stones and while the projects of Charlie Watts and Keith Richards range from solid to staggering, Jagger never truly converted the on-stage energy into in-studio confidence. A ragged pop-rock motion from Jagger who uses Goddess in the Doorway more as a foundation for collaboration than anything else. Everyone from Lenny Kravitz to Pete Townshend played their part in the making of Goddess in the Doorway, from writing to influencing its creation. They all have a hand in the blame game.  

Generic-sounding pop rock shuffling is what Goddess in the Doorway provides. Heavy string sections and some relatively tame but Jagger-first, everything second, styles of songwriting. Opener Visions of Paradise serves him as a hero with a heart of gold and the rocking efforts heard within it are dire. What paradise is from one lover to another matters not, the backing vocals and wailing guitar, the inevitable fade out, means it makes no difference. These are so far removed from The Rolling Stones efforts Jagger fronts, and that is the point of Goddess in the Doorway. There is the problem, too. Jagger strips the confident stage swagger which appeals to listeners of his group work, which defines him as one of the greats, in place of a tone which sounds as vague in tone as post-1990s U2. Lifeless but loud works like Joy border on horrendous. Should the songs found on Goddess in the Doorway be used as radio fodder, it is hard to think anyone would notice.  

Lyrically flat efforts are frequent on this last solo album from Jagger, more because the situations and scenarios it details are so very plain. Plenty of dancing, a collection of unsophisticated grooves Jagger is hoping we revel in, but it is hard to be moved by tones which take us nowhere. At times, Jagger sounds like a caricature of himself. He moans and juts about dancing around, and any song that hears Jagger suggest dancing, be it in the street or under the stars, is destined for failure. Promising moments are few and far between, but the heaviness of God Gave Me Everything is a welcome surprise. One diamond in the rough. None of it feels all that real or lived in. Generic acoustics for the sake of producing a soppy story.  

Staggeringly obvious metaphors on Don’t Call Me Up end, inevitably with the fear of letting someone down. For a songwriter and performer with decades of experience behind him, the results heard on Goddess in the Doorway are beyond pitiful. Flatlining instrumentals and a dense lyrical continuation across the whole project leave Goddess in the Doorway, and Jagger, flailing. The solo efforts Jagger has, even without the context of his incredible work with The Rolling Stones, would be a flat and dire affair. In his efforts to compartmentalise the thrilling feel of love and lust, he finds nothing but a dull fling, and Goddess in the Doorway pales in comparison to even his earlier solo efforts, which are just as forgettable and rough. Another in the forgettable pile of Jagger solo works, but that should be no surprise.