The Small Faces never really made a name for themselves in the
U.S., despite their popularity in the U.K. and releasing one of those lost
gems, indeed one of the top LPs ever produced in Ogden's Nut Gone Flake, an LP
that many compare to Sgt. Pepper. The band had just one psychedelic hit with "Itchycoo
Park," but The Small Faces were seemingly too British for the States. The
original members included Steve Marriot, who would go on to form Humble Pie
with Peter Frampton, Ronnie Lane, Kenney Jones, and Ian McLagan. Steve Marriot
would leave the band in 1968 in dramatic fashion, walking off the stage and
shouting, "I quit!" The rest of the band would join up with Ron Wood and Rod
Stewart and shorten their name to Faces. Stewart would front the band while
simultaneously having a successful solo career; his hits with the band
assimilating into his own canon.
Faces hits included "Stay With Me," "Cindy Incidentally," and "It's All Over Now."
Rod Stewart's solo career started with the debut in 1969
called The Rod Stewart Album in the U.S., and the more cryptic An Old Raincoat Will Never Let You Down in the U.K. For the LP, Stewart took on the role of song stylist, along the lines of Joe Cocker, with more than half of the LP's
tracks the songs of others, including The Rolling Stones' "Street Fighting Man" and the traditional "I Am a Man of Constant Sorrow," which George Clooney sang
so soulfully in O Brother, Where Art Thou, channeling Ry Cooder. The follow-up,
Gasoline Alley, would do the same, with Stewart penning only three songs. Both
were critically acclaimed, though sales were minimal.
Rod's breakthrough LP, a worldwide smash, was Every Picture
Tells a Story, which contains one of my top ten singles "Maggie May." It's an
AOR classic, but the majority of songs play like hit singles including, the
title track, "That’s All Right," "Reason to Believe" and "Madoline Wind." Maggie May's intro is a lovely guitar solo called "Henry." The LP ranks No. 172
of Billboard's Top 500 LPs. Its odd perforated cover makes a mint copy a
rarity.
Stewart would go on to be a superstar in the late 70s and
80s with hits like "Forever Young," "Do You Think I’m Sexy," "Sailin'," "Tonight’s
the Night," and even Tom Wait's "Downtown Train." From hard rockers to American
standards, Rod Stewart has been as chameleon-like as David Bowie.
As a member of The Small Faces, Steve Marriott was pretty
much Mod London's poster boy – like Jimmy from The Who's Quadrophenia. While Ogden's
Nut Gone Flake was the band's Pet Sounds, it has since become somewhat obscure.
As a collectible, it retains its value as being the only round record sleeve
(with the exception of the special edition of PIL, which came in a metal film
canister). Despite the LP's merits, its only notoriety is that the title
track was sued in the opening of Grand Theft Auto 5. It’s the 2nd of
Marriott's tunes to reach GTA status; the song "Cocaine" was utilized on a fictitious
radio station on GTA4.
Marriot would go on to form Humble Pie with Peter Frampton.
Humble Pie would be only slightly more successful in America, their only
charting LPs Smokin' and Eat It, which got up to Nos. 6 and 7 respectively on
the Billboard 100. They had no hits, but are stilled featured on deep track
rock stations with "30 Days in the Hole."
Ron Wood, of course, would leave Faces and join The Rolling Stones in
1975.
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