Originally Posted by BillyCoxDodgers3B (Post 2497057)

I've taken flak about it over the years, but I've always said pretty much the above about the Stones. In the 60's, they were something else; always trying new ideas and going so many different directions at the same time. Having to compete with the Beatles (like everybody else) likely forced them to bring their "A" game. Then, the 70's rolled around. For me, their material sounds too similar after the 1960's. Too many drugs and less creative juices/effort. But that's just my perception; it's neither right or wrong. The band is known for its age-defying longevity, but I really wonder what sort of extra reverence they may have been afforded if they had met their end after, say, Altamont and never reunited. 60's Stones were a thing of strange beauty.

Originally Posted by Chris-Counts (Post 2541685)

Once Topps started using game shots in 1971, they got really lazy. They were already heading down that path around 1960, when the endless capless head shots start appearing. Due to expansion, the 1961 and 1969 sets have a ton of these images.

Originally Posted by commishbob (Post 2541690)

The '58 set gets a lot of abuse, much of it deserved. But it holds a special place in my heart as those colorful rectangles were the first cards I laid eyes on. A kid from down the street in my Long Island neighborhood showed up one day with a small handful of them, and I was mesmerized. I remember that moment all these decades later, and it led directly to this lifelong obsession. I built it, I blogged it, I love it!