April 2019
Sticky Fingers, released in 1971, is the Rolling Stones' ninth (or eleventh American) album. It really brought the heat, being the first of eight consecutive albums to top the Billboard charts.
Sticky's Finger Joint is a chicken finger restaurant, which has never breached the Billboard Top 100. They serve chicken fingers and popcorn chicken, on their own, or in sandwiches, wraps, or salads. For some reason, the wraps and salads have the same ingredients; the sandwiches have unrelated recipes. I don't know if they think hot dogs are sandwiches; they don't seem to think a wrap is a sandwich.
The Rolling Stones started as a traditional blues cover band before their manager pushed them to write their own songs. This caused Brian Jones to leave the band, a month before his death. He became an early member of the 27 Club.
Sticky's Finger Joint's manager pushed them to make their own recipes; they now have 20, ranging from hot honey to bbq-vindaloo to caramel. No one has died from eating even the hottest of the sauces. I tried their Buffalo Balsamic Maple, which tastes like buffalo, balsamic, and maple; and Nashville Numb, a southern/szechuan fusion hot sauce.
The cover of Sticky Fingers, a picture of a man in tight-fitting jeans, was designed by Andy Warhol. The original vinyl release had a working zipper on the jeans. It had a large impact on the record: scratches and scrapes from the metal teeth.
The breading of the chicken is light, and the chicken is cooked nicely. There's some sort of diced herb sprinkled over the top. It doesn't seem to add much flavor when you bite it with your metal teeth. Or your enamel teeth. Really any kind of teeth.
The Rolling Stones have a trademark dual-guitar sound. Keith Richards and Brian Jones, the Stones' two original guitarists, played both lead and rhythm parts.
As Sticky's Finger Joint's sauces are dipping sauces, they don't easily mix. The flavor of both the Buffalo and Nashville Numb would have been improved by a second guitarist, or at least some sort of creamy flavor from a blue cheese. They do have a ranch dipping sauce, but it was one of the eighteen sauces I didn't get a chance to try.
Sticky Fingers, the album, has sold over three million copies, and is a classic. Sticky's Finger Joint does not release sales numbers, but overall has sold a lot, judging by the line when I was there. I give it six sticky fingers out of ten.