Steel Wheels
by The Rolling Stones

Steel Wheels by The Rolling Stones
Year: 1989
Overall rank: 4,195th   
Average Rating: 
68/100 (from 287 votes)
     
Accolades:
Award Top albums of 1989 (58th)
Award Top albums of the 1980s (621st)
Award Best albums of all time (4,195th)

Listen on Spotify Spotify

The Rolling Stones bestography

Steel Wheels is ranked 21st best out of 102 albums by The Rolling Stones on BestEverAlbums.com.

The best album by The Rolling Stones is Exile On Main St. which is ranked number 45 in the list of all-time albums with a total rank score of 19,634.

The Rolling Stones album bestography « Higher ranked (4,037th)
Hackney Diamonds
This album (4,195th)
Steel Wheels
Lower ranked (4,698th) »
Emotional Rescue

(N.B. Bestographies include all albums by an artist (and their variations), but do not include albums ranked outside the top 100,000).

Upcoming concerts

Jan
10
Sat
20:00
Petty Thief (Tom Petty Tribute) w/ Stonesy (Rolling Stones Tribute)
Tractor, Seattle, United States. United States
Tickets from Ticketmaster Get tickets
 
Jan
17
Sat
20:30
Satisfaction - The International Rolling Stones Tribute Show
Impact Fuel Room, Libertyville , United States. United States
Tickets from Ticketmaster Get tickets
 
Jan
23
Fri
19:30
Satisfaction: the International Rolling Stones Show
The Vogel at Count Basie Center for, Red Bank, United States. United States
Tickets from Ticketmaster Get tickets
 
Discover more upcoming concerts

Listen to Steel Wheels on YouTube

Loading content from YouTube...

Steel Wheels track list

   The tracks on this album have an average rating of 75 out of 100 (all tracks have been rated).

Sort by
#
Track
Rating/Comments
1.
Average Rating: 76 (43 votes)Comments: View 1
  • Amazon Music
  • iTunes
  • Spotify
2.
Average Rating: 79 (63 votes)Comments: View 2
  • Amazon Music
  • iTunes
  • Spotify
3.
Average Rating: 75 (43 votes)Comments: View 2
  • Amazon Music
  • iTunes
  • Spotify
4.
Average Rating: 71 (41 votes)Comments: View 1
  • Amazon Music
  • iTunes
  • Spotify
5.
Average Rating: 74 (41 votes)Comments: View 1
  • Amazon Music
  • iTunes
  • Spotify
6.
Average Rating: 71 (39 votes)Comments: View 1
  • Amazon Music
  • iTunes
  • Spotify
7.
Average Rating: 80 (62 votes)Comments: View 1
  • Amazon Music
  • iTunes
  • Spotify
8.
Average Rating: 73 (38 votes)Comments: View 1
  • Amazon Music
  • iTunes
  • Spotify
9.
Average Rating: 78 (50 votes)Comments: View 5
  • Amazon Music
  • iTunes
  • Spotify
10.
Average Rating: 76 (41 votes)Comments: View 3
  • Amazon Music
  • iTunes
  • Spotify
11.
Average Rating: 70 (37 votes)Comments: View 1
  • Amazon Music
  • iTunes
  • Spotify
12.
Average Rating: 76 (40 votes)Comments: View 1
  • Amazon Music
  • iTunes
  • Spotify

Steel Wheels rankings

Rankings summary
Overall rank: 4,195th | 1980s rank: 621st | 1989 rank: 58th

Steel Wheels collection

Steel Wheels ratings

Average Rating: 
68/100 (from 287 votes)
   Help Average Rating = (n ÷ (n + m)) × av + (m ÷ (n + m)) × AV
where:
av = trimmed mean average rating an item has currently received.
n = number of ratings an item has currently received.
m = minimum number of ratings required for an item to appear in a 'top-rated' chart (currently 10).
AV = the site mean average rating.

Showing latest 5 ratings for this album. | Show all 287 ratings for this album.

Sort by
RatingDate updatedMemberAlbum ratingsAvg. album rating
 
80/100
 !
12/03/2025 10:52 Tamthebam   22,94869/100
 
5/100
 !
11/28/2025 19:39 Kingturtle   7,53073/100
 
15/100
 !
11/12/2025 23:37 NYAndreas   1,43243/100
 
60/100
 !
11/09/2025 09:17 Siromynian   1,59978/100
 
70/100
 !
11/03/2025 13:08 daCritic   4,38673/100

Rating metrics: Help Outliers can be removed when calculating a mean average to dampen the effects of ratings outside the normal distribution. This figure is provided as the trimmed mean. A high standard deviation can be legitimate, but can sometimes indicate 'gaming' is occurring. Consider a simplified example* of an item receiving ratings of 100, 50, & 0. The mean average rating would be 50. However, ratings of 55, 50 & 45 could also result in the same average. The second average might be more trusted because there is more consensus around a particular rating (a lower deviation).
(*In practice, some albums can have several thousand ratings)

This album has a Bayesian average rating of 68.0/100, a mean average of 66.6/100, and a trimmed mean (excluding outliers) of 67.9/100. The standard deviation for this album is 15.3.

Please log in or register if you want to be able to leave a rating

Steel Wheels comments

Showing latest 10 comments | Show all 19 comments |
Most Helpful First | Newest First | Positive Sentiment First | Longest Comments First
(Only showing comments with -2 votes or higher. You can alter this threshold from your profile page. Manage Profile)

Rating:  
40/100
From 01/02/2026 22:46 | #312435
When good groups stick around too long and run out of things to say.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
65/100
From 03/13/2021 18:33 | #267328
Incredibly bland and mediocre.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
55/100
From 01/03/2021 00:16 | #263719
Perfectly fine for what it is but really not a single notable song on here. Painfully average for the Stones.

Best song(s): Rock and a Hard Place; Almost Hear You Sigh
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
60/100
From 02/11/2018 16:00 | #207658
Senza infamia e senza lode
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
65/100
From 01/11/2017 23:11 | #182301
Not a bad album, but most of these tracks would barely make it as the last bit of filler on earlier stones records.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
65/100
From 05/29/2016 17:13 | #167164
Meh. Nothing to like and nothing to hate. Pretty easy to forget this one exists.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
80/100
From 03/25/2016 21:14 | #162540
This really is an underrated album. I know it's the slick, mtv, corporate rolling stones record, but it has some great tracks. Best are rock and a hard place, almost hear you sigh and the wonderful continental drift. I think mixed emotions is a good song too, although it's probably the least interesting stones single released up to that point. It's no exile or let it bleed, but it has its moments. Keith's two show pieces can't be seen and slipping away are both good too. Whether this album is one of their best, which it isn't, or worst, which again it isn't, it's still an incredibly enjoyable one, and in the end, I guess that is all that matters.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
60/100
From 03/17/2016 14:49 | #162102
Another in a long line of just OK "Stones" albums. I have not listened to it in years. Meh...
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
85/100
From 04/12/2015 21:29 | #139399
Good album. Best 10 songs average is 86,5/100 and the album can get good 85/100. Best songs are "Mixed emotions" and "Rock and a hard place" both 90/100. Most other songs are good 85/100, some are only just good and "Break the spell" is average only.
Genre: Rock
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
80/100
From 10/12/2014 06:40 | #124209
Not their best but a definite return to form. Its a better album than people think, an all round good stones album. Almost Hear You Sigh stands out, other good songs are Sad Sad Sad, Hearts For Sale & Rock and A Hard Place.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Please log in or register if you want to be able to add a comment

Your feedback for Steel Wheels

Anonymous
Let us know what you think of this album by adding a comment or assigning a rating below!
Log in or register to assign a rating or leave a comment for this album.
Best Albums of 1989
1. Doolittle by Pixies
2. Disintegration by The Cure
3. The Stone Roses by The Stone Roses
4. Paul's Boutique by Beastie Boys
5. On Fire by Galaxie 500
6. 3 Feet High And Rising by De La Soul
7. Bleach by Nirvana
8. Pretty Hate Machine by Nine Inch Nails
9. Full Moon Fever by Tom Petty
10. New York by Lou Reed
11. Technique by New Order
12. Like A Prayer by Madonna
13. The Real Thing by Faith No More
14. The Sensual World by Kate Bush
15. Floating Into The Night by Julee Cruise
16. Rhythm Nation 1814 by Janet Jackson
17. 13 Songs by Fugazi
18. Hats by The Blue Nile
19. Oh Mercy by Bob Dylan
20. Wrong by NoMeansNo
Back to Top