Can't really say why, but one of my guilty pleasures the last few months has been to dig into the back catalog of Rod Stewart. Not the newer stuff, but going back to the early days of his career with The Faces. Frankly, I have no use for most anything he's done since breaking up with them; the odd song here and there, but don't have any Rod in my collection newer than 1973.
Looking back now, it's amazing how quickly things moved in the 1960's in popular music, especially in the latter half of the decade. At the same time that the Beatles and the Rollings Stones were conquering first Britian and then the US, Rod Stewart was banging around a succession of semi-professional folk and blues groups. During that time, between 1964 and 1967, the Yardbirds went through three guitarists that would go on to profoundly influence every level of rock and roll; Eric Clapton, Jeff Beck, and Jimmy Page.
Beck left the Yardbirds in '66 and formed the Jeff Beck Group. They needed a lead singer and the finger pointed to Rod Stewart. It was probably Beck's commercial pinnacle, but only the beginning for Stewart. After two albums the group broke up. At the same time another influential British band, the Small Faces, was losing its leading light, guitarist/vocalist Steve Marriott. Stewart and Ron Wood, who switched from bass to guitar, joined Marriott's old rhythm section and the name was changed to just The Faces. At the same time, Rod signed a solo record deal with another company; he, with Mercury, and the Faces on Warner Brothers.
And so began a barrage of Rod Stewart-led albums that are still enjoyable today. His solo debut came out first, "An Old Raincoat Won't Ever Let You Down," known in America simply as "The Rod Stewart Album." This is probably the weakest piece of the collection, but gave a good indicator of what to expect. His folk and blues roots were placed front and center, and the arrangements featured the ragged-but-real Faces backing, along with a gaggle of others including Keith Emerson.
To be frank, it's a pretty weak effort, especially considering what was to follow. Having recently dug this out from the dusty stacks I was getting to the point of wondering how the hell this guy ever got signed. Then came "Handbags and Gladrags." Awesome song, with a light but interesting arrangement featuring Ian McLagan's distinctive piano and a sweet little chamber orchestra. A true pearl, tucked deep within a fairly tired oyster.
His next album, "Gasoline Alley," was a better version of the same idea; rootsy acoustic songs mixed with energetic stripped-down rock. More good songs, less dross. Things came together even better with "Every Picture Tells A Story," followed by "Never a Dull Moment." Personally, I consider Dull Moment his finest work ever. Both albums, and in fact all his albums, were an interesting collection of originals and covers, the covers ranging from old folk songs to contemporary rockers, made his own by his unique voice and the sloppy-but-happy backing by the Faces.
The Small Faces had evolved as an R&B-cum-psychedelic band that got far more attention in the UK than in the States. Marriott left to form Humble Pie, and his replacement by Stewart and Wood dramatically changed the direction of the band. They became one of those bands that defined the rock'n'roll lifestyle of the late '60's and early '70's as a rolling party. The sound was loose, but listening now the arrangements were pretty sophisticated. They must have actually practiced, although it often sounded like they just showed up and kicked into it. That's called, makin' it look easy. Seeing video of these guys on YouTube shows that they were not a bunch of hacks, but were actually very good musicians. I would be most interested in talking with a good drummer about Kenny Jones' style, which is very different from a lot of others of the era.
The inevitable comparison is between the Faces and the Rolling Stones. The artistic and inspirational relationship between the two bands is not unlike that between the Grateful Dead and the New Riders of the Purple Sage. Definitely similar, but in the grand pecking order the Stones outrank the Faces.
Unlike Rod's solo albums, those of the Faces started right out producing good, worthy stuff. Of their four studio albums, the third, "A Nod is as Good as a Wink . . . to a Blind Horse" is my favorite. And the last one, "Ooh La La" might be the weakest, but even that's pretty good. Stewart shared lead vocal duties with bassist Ronnie Lane. For myself, it's hard to listen to Lane without imagining how Stewart would have done the same tune. The one exception is a song from "A Nod," titled "Debris." A very nice little ballad that Lane does very well.
It was an incredibly creative, and productive, arrangement, but eventually the success of Stewart's solo career took its toll on the band. It would be comparable to having Mick Jagger solo albums coming out at the same time as Rolling Stones albums. The Faces were really trying to be a band, but half of their live sets came from Stewart albums on which they were mere backing musicians. So that was the public's perception; that even the Faces albums were Stewart, backed by the others. Egos being what they are, a parting of the ways was inevitble.
Guitarist Ron Wood, as the world knows, replaced Mick Taylor as the Rolling Stones' lead guitarist. Drummer Kenny Jones replaced Keith Moon in The Who, which didn't work out quite so well. Ronnie Lane did some solo albums as well as a collaboration with Pete Townshend, which I've never heard. He passed away in the '90's of multiple sclerosis. Pianist Ian McLagan went on to be a go-to studio musician.
And Rod Stewart went on to become Rod Stewart. After the Faces, he put together a proper backing band of tight professionals and spent the next few albums trying to recapture the loose feel of his older stuff. There's some pretty good stuff, but anyone who counts "Hot Legs" and "Do Ya Think I'm Sexy" on his resume has questionable taste, imho. Some of his choices strike me as a bit odd. I mean, "Unplugged . . . and Seated," really? Who gives a rat's ass if he's freakin' seated?!?
And he certainly doesn't have what could be called a pretty voice. He gives people an excuse to say they like Kim Carnes. You know, "Bette Davis Eyes"? Or am I thinking of Bonnie Tyler, of "Total Eclipe of the Heart" fame? And . . . who cares? Personally, I liked "Forever Young," but not much else. And the idea of him singing old standards on his American Songbook series? Yeah, they're great tunes, but with Rod Stewart singing them? Hey, we've got songs made famous by Frank Sinatra, Ella Fitzgerald and Nat "King" Cole. Who do we want to hear sing them now? Yeah, right.
So anyway, there's my thoughts on some very good recordings that are worth your attention.
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