just go buy all their stuff starting from Exile on Main Street and work backwards...
the Stones sucked donkey cock after exile IMO...
but all their stuff is pretty much dollarbin common to $10 for everything from 'England's Newest Hitmakers' on up, provided you are satisfied w/US pressings. You may even luck into some cheap UK press if you hit up stores with good rock selection.
Early Stones is always some great raw shit, all the way up thru Exile. Not every LP was great, but most were good or better, and some are sublime (like 'Aftermath' and '12x 5' and several more.
to the Bird here. The titles that he refers to here are:
Beggar's Banquet
Let It Bleed
Sticky Fingers
Exile on Mainstreet
I also dig:
Some Girls
Tatoo You
Some of:
It's Only Rock n' Roll
Goat's Head Soup
and lots of their early stuff. They do one of the best covers of Not Fade Away and It's All Over Now is nice. Many people think their mid 60s work is really interesting and their most original work. Wes Anderson films celebrate this period thoroughly.
I agree with both of the above posts, but to elaborate a little further: all of the Rolling Stones' studio albums from their debut through Exile on Main St. are worth owning, with the possible exception of Satanic Majesties' Request. (The two live records from that era just aren't as great.) Myself, I prefer the latter end of the spectrum (i.e., Aftermath, Between the Buttons, Beggar's Banquet, Let It Bleed, Sticky Fingers and Exile). The earlier stuff is good too, but the LPs move me less-- they were doing a lot of covers and I find it just a little too derivative of American R&B.
After Exile on Main St. they recorded a number of very good albums (Black and Blue, Some Girls, Tattoo You), but nothing as essential as their earlier stuff.
If I had to pick 6, it would be Aftermath, Between the Buttons, Beggar's Banquet, Let It Bleed, Sticky Fingers and Exile, but you'd still be missing out on plenty of great songs (e.g., "Satisfaction," "Mother's Little Helper," "Emotional Rescue," "Time Is on My Side" etc. etc.).