Stones but beyond what that understandably history-bound band has been able to achieve on record in recent times.

In terms of consistency, craftsmanship and musical experimentation, Goddess in the Doorway surpasses all his solo work and any Rolling Stones album since Some Girls. It does so by returning to the dance beats, big grooves and modern edge that have characterized the Stones' best work. The key to all the Stones' classics - from "Satisfaction" and "Brown Sugar" to "Miss You" and "Start Me Up" - is that they are built from the rhythm up: Goddess in the Doorway, which was almost entirely constructed around Jagger's rhythm guitar, is a return to that modus operandi.

Jagger has poured his heart into this album. The strongest songs - "Don't Call Me Up," "Brand New Set of Rules," "Hide Away" and "Everybody Getting High" - are also the most candidly personal. In the past, he has slipped into personae - the Street Fighting Man, Jumpin' Jack Flash, the Man of Wealth and Taste - but he lets his guard down to an unprecedented degree on Goddess; the beautiful ballads draw on feelings of loneliness, vulnerability, spiritual yearning and, as always, life with the ladies.

These gains in maturity have taken no toll on Jagger's inner rock & roller. The Street Fighting Man can still swagger at the top of his - or anybody else's - game. Goddess in the Doorway resembles the Stones' best albums in that it's a varied yet cohesive collection of ballads, hard rockers and one country song. But on his own, he is free to cast off the blues-rock anchor that both defines and (at times) confines the Stones. Jagger heads into edgy, danceable modern-rock territory with the throbbing electronic groove of "Gun" and the snarling, whip-crack assault of "Everybody Getting High."

Making the most of this opportunity to stretch himself, Jagger has recruited some outstanding guests, many of them younger artists whom he directly influenced. Rob Thomas of Matchbox Twenty collaborates on the pop-y, melodic opening track, "Visions of Paradise," which boasts a soaring chorus. Lenny Kravitz produces and co-writes "God Gave Me Everything," a driving, riff-propelled rocker that evokes the punkish stomp of the early Stones.

On "Hide Away," one of my favorite tracks, Wyclef Jean helps burnish a subtle reggae- and hip-hop-inflected groove. Employing some of his most moving and nuanced vocal