Stewart, Rod

views updated

Rod Stewart

Singer

For the Record…

The Jeff Beck Group

Stewart’s Solo Career

The 1980s and 1990s

Selected discography

Sources

Roderick David Stewart was born in Highgate, North London, England on January 10, 1945. He was the typical working-class youth, the fifth child of Robert and Elsie Stewart. Stewart worked as a paper boy, picture framer, grave digger, and soccer player before becoming a rock and roll singing star. He was very talented at soccer, and he had a soccer apprenticeship at Brentford Football Club in his youth.

Stewart has been nominated for numerous awards over his lifetime. On December 31, 1977, he received the Best Solo Male Singer award from the Daily Mirror. In 1989 and 1991, Stewart was nominated for a Grammy award for best Male Pop Vocal, but didn’t win. In Germany, he won many music and showbiz awards such as the “Berolina” in 1988, the “Goldene Europa” in 1991, and the “Goldene Kamera” in 1993. At the Canadian music awards, he was nominated for a Juno for International Entertainer of the Year in 1990. He was honored with the Longtime Achievement Award on the Brits in England in 1993. In 1994 Stewart was inducted into the Guinness Book of World Records for performing in front of the largest outdoor concert ever. It was located on the Copacabana Beach in Rio de Janeiro, attended by more than 4.2 million people on New Year’s Eve. Stewart was also inducted into the Cleveland Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. His platinum albums include Gasoline Alley, Blondes Have More Fun, Camouflage, Storyteller: The Complete Anthology and, Vagabond Heart.

During the 1960s, The Beatles’ British Invasion had a tremendous influence on musicians everywhere, helping to springboard rock and roll’s validity around the world. Music icons were created overnight, and the success of these British idols affected the business world that surrounded the music industry. Tons of money could be made overnight if the right “package” could be found and sold to a mass audience. At this time, corporations were starting to understand that the music industry could be run as a business and huge profits could be made. This climate affected many performers, especially Rod Stewart. The pressure for big music rewards during the sixties displaced many careers; however, Stewart made sure early in his that he was going to fit in with the times. The times were The Beatles. Although Stewart was actually born Scottish, he wanted to be perceived as British, due to the onslaught of the British Invasion. His “package” was going to be British, and with the strong influence of The Beatles, this turned out to be an understandable one.

He played guitar in a school skiffle group called The Kool Kats, for this was the first band he joined. His career really started when he was discovered after

For the Record…

Born Roderick David Stewart in Highgate, North London, England on January 10, 1945; fifth child of Robert and Elsie Stewart; married actress Alana Hamilton, April 6, 1979 (marriage ended); married model Rachel Hunter, 1990; children: Kimberly and Sean (with Hamilton), Ruby (with ex-girlfriend Kelly Emberg), Renee and Liam (with Hunter).

Recorded first single, “Good Morning Little Schoolgirl,” 1964; joined Jeff Beck Group (JBG), 1967; made debut performance in U.S., 1968; performed with The Faces, 1970–75; Had first No. 1 single “Maggie May,” 1971; performed for TV special on Cinemax, 1984; released A Spanner in the Works, 1995; made Guinness Book of World Records in 1994 for performing in front of the largest outdoor concert; inducted into the Cleveland Rock and Roll Hall of Fame; platinum albums include Gasoline Alley (1970), Blondes Have More Fun (1978), Camouflage 1985, Storyteller: The Complete Anthology (1990), and Vagabond Heart (1991).

Awards: Best Solo Male Singer award from the Daily Mirror, 1977; Grammy award nomination for Best Male Pop Vocal, 1989 and 1991; Berolina award, 1988; Goldene Europa, 1991; Goldene Kamera, 1993; Juno award nomination for International Entertainer of the Year, 1990; Longtime Achievement Award in England, 1993.

Addresses: Record company —Warner Bros., 3300 Warner Blvd., Burbank, CA 91510.

seeing performances of The Yardbirds and The Rolling Stones. In January 1964, he was sitting on a Twickenham railway station platform in London playing the harmonica when he met Long John Baldrey. Baldrey saw him playing and approached Stewart to ask him if he would like to join his band. The rest was history. Stewart was excited to earn 35 pounds a week performing in a band. His first recording was on September 10, 1964 with the single, “Good Morning Little Schoolgirl,” written by Willie Dixon. He sang it with John Paul Jones who went on to perform with Led Zeppelin.

Stewart would eventually play with a number of other bands, including Jimmy Powell and the Dimensions, Long John Baldry’s Hootchie Coochie Men, Brian Auger’s Steampacket, Mick Fleetwood, and Peter Green’s Shotgun Express. Stewart’s success at this time was that he blended in with the working-class reputation that the bands he performed with were noted for. He started to develop the image of the common man’s rock star. He also started to develop comfort singing with groups, while learning that the music business emphasized “business” just as much as it did music.

The Jeff Beck Group

Stewart’s big move was joining the Jeff Beck Group (JBG) in 1967. It was the typical British rock band. Stewart stated, “That was probably the finest band I was ever in. Verygoodband: Ron Wood was on bass, Micky Waller on drums, Nicky Hopkins on piano, me singin’ and Jeff Beck on guitar. That’s a fairly good line-up”.

The band made its stage debut in London, England on March 3,1967. Beck had a large reputation in Britain, and wanted to take his band on the road to the United States. They went on a six-week tour, and the results were fantastic. The band made their first debut in the U.S. at the Fillmore East in New York City on June 22, 1968. Atthe band’s opening act in the U.S., Stewart had such a strong degree of stage fright that he sang the first song from behind the speaker cabinets at the back of the stage. However, Stewart’s vocals won him standing ovations, and by the end of the tour he was well known by many U.S. rock fans, even though he wasn’t yet as well known back home. It was with the Jeff Beck Group that he began a longstanding association with Ron Wood. The band got off to a bad start in London, but did better in the U.S. The JBG made headlines, on and off the stage, and they were often considered a “superstar” band. The music business was turning toward guitar stars, and the band was somewhat pushed in the direction of featuring more and more of Jeff Beck’s guitar talents, often at the expense of the rest of the band. The band started to feel the strains of competition, and it drove Stewart to stay with the band for just two albums. However, the separation was made much easier when the JBG’s excellent bass player, Ron Wood, left and went to The Faces as lead guitarist. The Faces’ lead guitarist, Steve Marriott, left the group, and Ron Wood asked Stewart to replace him. Stewart’s singing with The Faces eventually was the springboard for his solo career.

The Faces quickly experienced huge success. It was again another young British band with a working-class attitude, and the members had a close friendship and excellent chemistry when they performed. To Stewart, it felt like the early days of the Jeff Beck Group all over again. They were a close-knit group, so much so that their drinking excursions were somewhat misinterpreted by the public as being excessive. Stewart later said that the drinking “was an image that was put upon us, nine times out of ten, we used to have a little drink before we went on, but I can honestly swear that the band was never that drunk. We must’ve just left everybody with… cuz we used to be so happy when we were playing, that we must’ve just left everybody with that picture.”

Stewart’s Solo Career

It was at this time that Stewart developed a unique and flashy show act. He also started recording more solo songs, and this took its toll on the band. The more Stewart performed solo, the less it seemed The Faces recorded music. When he performed with the band, Stewart was just one of the rest of the members playing rock and roll. However, he was different when performing solo, and the two gold albums by now under his arm led to tensions among the band members. The Faces’ recordings were never as popular as Stewart’s solo hits, and legal battles broke out between Mercury and Warner Records over the contract disputes that surfaced when Stewart played both solo and with the band. He was with The Faces from 1970 to 1975, and the band’s first album with Stewart as lead singer was released on March 21, 1970. Their last show together was on October 12, 1975 at Nassau Coliseum on Long Island, New York. During an odd time in his career, he actually recorded under the name of Python Lee Jackson when he recorded, “In a Broken Dream/Doing Fine,” and “The Blues,” in 1970.

In ten short years, Stewart became an international rock celebrity. His working-class image and songs of love, friendship, and fun times helped propel him to the top of rock. His sang his first No. 1 single, “Maggie May” on October 2, 1971, and his No. 1 album, Every Picture Tells a Story also made it to the top on both the UK and the U.S. charts. “Maggie May” stayed on top of both single charts for four weeks, and the Every Picture Tells A Story album stayed at No. 1 in the UK for three weeks and in the United States for six weeks.

He became one of the world’s most successful musical artists during the 1970’s with his hits “Never a Dull Moment” (1972) and “Sing It Again Rod” (1973). His relationship with Ron Wood as his occasional co-writer, Ian McLagan from the Faces, Martin Quittenton on mandolin and acoustic guitar, and Mickey Waller on drums helped boost him to the top. He didn’t receive a favorable response from his audience on Smiler (1974), so he changed his focus in 1975 to record the TomDowd produced Atlantic Crossing (1975) in the U.S. He also moved that same year to the United States to escape the high British income tax, and he soon became part of the Beverly Hills scene. It was at this time that Stewart started to achieve superstar status. His album included the hits “Sailing” and “This Old Heart of Mine”.

He also started his affair with Swedish film star Britt Ekland. The relationship ended in 1977 with a $15 million palimony suit that was settled out of court. The advent of punk and new wave made it difficult for Stewart to remain fashionable and relevant at the time. Stewart tried to adapt with “Hot Legs” in 1978 and “Do You Think I’m Sexy” in 1979, but it didn’t work. Critics were harsh on him about the latter song, and Stewart even admitted to its tastelessness. To make amends, Stewart has continued to donate the song’s royalties to UNICEF.

The 1980s and 1990s

After an awkward period, by 1983 Stewart was back on top of the charts, especially in the U.S. With the eighties albums, he regained his former success. Stewart did a lot of touring at this time, and he even had a few of his own TV specials, like the 1984 Cinemax concert on November 27. He made a controversial tour series with Sony, for music executives were upset that Stewart made a deal with a blank tape manufacturer, given all of the losses album sales experienced due to people making unauthorized tapes of singles and albums.

In the middle eighties, some critics felt that Stewart’s best performances were behind him. He told a Los Angeles Times reporter in 1984, “I don’t feel old. I’m 39. I don’t think I’m getting too old for this. The body is in good shape, the bones don’t creak. I’m not ready for the rocking chair just yet. My face hasn’t gone to pot, has it? Not too many lines, huh?’ll know when it’s time to quit. When being on stage is embarrassing. I put a great deal of myself in a show. When I can’t do that or it gets to be superficial, then it’s time to quit… when I feel like some old guy, then it’s time to quit… then maybe I can stay home and drink and chase women and do all the other evil things I supposedly do”.

Soon after, three of his albums went platinum: Foolish Behaviour, Tonight I’m Yours, and Outof Order. He also hit the top of the British charts with “Baby Jane.” He toured England more often and had many sell out concerts. His “Every Beat of My Heart” was very successful. Other top hits included “Passion,” “Infatuation,” “My Heart Can’t Tell You No,” and “Downtown Train.”

His 1995 release A Spanner in the Works, was his first new studio album since 1993. The album was co-produced by Stewart, along with Trevor Horn, Andy Taylor, and Bernard Edwards. He teamed up with guitarists Jeff Golub, Andy Taylor, Michael Landau, and Robin LeMesurier, bassists Carmine Rojas and Bernard Edwards, drummer David Palmer, and keyboardist Kevin Savigar. In British terms, a “spanner” is a wrench, and a “spanner in the works” is an obstruction or hindrance. The new album comes after a very successful ten-month tour, and it was the first time that Stewart performed in the round. He performed with his own 12-piece band and a full 22-piece orchestra.