As much as Elton John was always around in the early days, Rod Stewart was even more so. While I followed the Keef Richards rock’n’roll model, my very best friend thought he was Rod Stewart, the most inconvenient thing with that being the havoc sweat, rain and gravity inflicted on such a ridiculous hairstyle . With Keef hair all those things just made it look even better.
My youthful mate John had all those early LP’s, handily left behind by his elder sister when she ran away to Bristol. Apparently, her claim to fame was that Roger Daltry once pinched her arse (why have I never forgotten that?). One of my most vivid teeny memories is lolling about listening to solo Rod or Rod and The Faces; An Old Raincoat, Gasoline Alley, Long Player, Every Picture, A Nods As Good As A Wink, Never A Dull Moment, Ooh La La, Smiler, even Atlantic Crossing when he was all Britt and blonde. If I hear any of those records now I can still sing along to every line.
In our first tentative attempt at forming a band in 74’ John naturally became the lead singer by proxy. After all, he was Rod Stewart. Actually, his voice wasn’t that bad but as soon as punk hit he got well and truly left behind, so caught up in his false persona that he couldn’t let it go to find his true self. And of course by 1976 Rodney was just about the worst person to look like. Almost inevitably, me and John lost touch and the last thing I heard my old mate was bald as a coot getting through life as an estate agent. Shame really.
01 Three Button Hand Me Down / Single B Side February 1970
02 Dirty Old Town / An Old Raincoat Won’t Ever Let You Down February 1970
03 Around The Plynth / The Faces First Step March 1970
04 Gasoline Alley / Gasoline Alley June 1970
05 Country Comfort / Gasoline Alley June 1970
06 Bad’n’Ruin / The Faces Long Player March 1971
07 Tomorrow Is A Long Time / Every Picture Tells A Story June 1971
08 I Know I’m Losing You / Every Picture Tells A Story June 1971
09 Miss Judy’s Farm / The Faces A Nod’s As Good As A Wink November 1971
10 Too Bad / The Faces A Nod’s As Good As A Wink November 1971
11 True Blue / Never A Dull Moment July 1972
12 Lost Paraguayos / Never A Dull Moment July 1972
13 Silicone Grown / The Faces Ooh La La April 1973
14 Bring It On Home-You Send Me / Smiler October 1974
15 Hard Road / Smiler October 1974
16 Three Time Loser / Atlantic Crossing August 1975
17 The Balltrap / A Night On The Town June 1976
18 I Was Only Joking / Footloose And Fancy Free November 1977
