The Darlings of Wapping Wharf Launderette

Another one of my all-time favorite bands that I am proud to present here in Wonderland....

The Small Faces began life with a fateful 1963 encounter between the two driving forces of the group--lead guitarist and powerhouse vocalist Steve Marriott, and bassist and vocalist Ronnie "Plonk" Lane. Marriott had been a child actor but had given that up to pursue a career in music. He was working as a sales assistant in the J60 Music Bar in London, an instrument shop where all the budding musicians would gather, when Lane walked in to purchase a bass. Lane had been playing guitar in his band, the Pioneers (which also featured future Face Kenney Jones on drums), but was looking to learn bass to make himself more valuable in the music community. The two young men immediately struck up a friendship. Marriott invited Lane to come back to his place to listen to the latest James Brown and Otis Redding records, and Lane invited Marriott to jam with the Pioneers. Eventually, the band line up was perfected by the dismissal of keyboardist Jimmy Winston (who went on to record a couple of great freakbeat tracks with Winston's Fumbs), and the addition of keyboardist Ian "Mac" McLagan. (I have posted a scan of the CD that Mac signed for me, one of my most treasured autographs.)

A quintessential Mod band , the name Small Faces originated when one of the lads' girlfriends commented on their small stature. The term "Face" was a Mod term given to a guy with a certain type of charisma, so when Annie remarked, "Cor! Ain't you got small faces," the name stuck! The Small Faces evolved musically, progressing from the soulful R&B of their beginnings on through to psychedelia and harder rock until Marriott left to form the heavy Humble Pie with Peter Frampton. With the addition of Rod Stewart and Ron Wood, the Small Faces then became the Faces, one of the best boozy, bluesy rock bands ever. After the Faces' breakup and the untimely death of Keith Moon, Kenney Jones became the drummer for the Who.

Ronnie Lane, ever the humble, spiritual soul, left the Faces when it all became too loud and crazy for him. He pursued his own musical vision and lived his life with great integrity. (For more on Lane, please watch the excellent documentary, The Passing Show.) Unfortunately, Multiple Sclerosis claimed Ronnie's life in 1997, and a house fire took the powerful Steve Marriott from us in 1991.

Some of the best CD collections of the Small Faces' music include the 2 disc Decca Anthology for the first part of their career, and the 2 disc Darlings of Wapping Wharf Launderette collection of Immediate Records material. My favorite of their albums, Ogdens' Nut Gone Flake, has received the deluxe treatment from Sanctuary records--a 3 disc set with both the mono and stereo mixes, housed in a round metal tobacco tin.

References: Happy Boys Happy! A Rock History of the Small Faces and Humble Pie by Uli Twelker & Roland Schmitt and Small Faces: All Our Yesterdays by Terry Rawlings

Stones 45 Picture Sleeves

Presented here are my personal scans of some gorgeous Rolling Stones 45 picture sleeves, which were given to me by my friend Jeff. These pictures depict the Stones as the epitome of rock star cool, especially the "As Tears Go By" photo, which was also used on the UK Out of Our Heads and US December's Children (And Everybody's) LPs.

Oh! You Pretty Things...

"They invented everything and were credited with nothing," declares Arthur Brown, the God of Hellfire himself. Never has such an influential band been so outrageously underrated and neglected within the annals of rock history. Their influence encompasses diverse acts, such as the Who, the Velvet Underground, and true PT acolyte David Bowie (hence the title). Needless to say, the Pretty Things are among my all-time favorite bands, and I shall champion their legacy at any given opportunity.

The Pretty Things were born out of the same intense love for American blues and R&B that produced the Rolling Stones. In fact, both bands were formed in lead guitarist Dick Taylor's front room! Taylor, lead vocalist Phil May, Mick Jagger and Keith Richards became friends at Sidcup Art College where Taylor and Richards were students. The young lads shared a common obsession with Chuck Berry, Jimmy Reed, Muddy Waters, and Bo Diddley (a song of Diddley's gave the Pretties their name), often pooling their money together to order imports of American records. Taylor had played bass in an embryonic version of the Stones but left the band when the Stones decided to go "professional," a decision Taylor has never regretted. "I could have been Bill Wyman. Or I could have ended up face down in a swimming pool," he dryly observed in a 1999 interview (Pulse!, April 1999).

Joining Taylor and May for the first classic line up included John Stax on bass, Brian Pendelton on rhythm guitar, and a wild character that could even give Keith Moon a run for the money--Viv Prince on drums. With the help of manager Bryan Morrison (also the manager of Pink Floyd), the Pretties soon gained the reputation of being more dangerous, scruffy, dirty, and outrageous than the Stones could even think of being. Phil May was specifically singled out for having "the longest hair in Britain" to the horror of parents everywhere. Their early singles were crunching R&B of the Bo Diddley variety, and as Paul Du Noyer writes in the liners for the CD reissue of the Pretties' debut, the prototype for every garage band to follow in their wake.

After several tumultuous years and a line up change that left only Taylor and May from the original group, the Pretty Things recorded their masterpiece at EMI Studios in 1967--the year of Sgt. Pepper and Piper--the first rock opera, the magnificent S.F. Sorrow. Taylor and May were joined by bassist and songwriter Wally Waller, legendary figure and drummer Twink, and keyboardist John Povey. During the recording of the album, John Lennon would often poke his head in to tell the boys they were sounding fantastic. (In fact, according to Povey, George Harrison's sitar and Ringo Starr's drums were used during the sessions!) Apparently, a roadie shared by the Pretties and the Who took an acetate of S. F. Sorrow to a party at Pete Townshend's house. Pete proceeded to play the acetate continuously, thus becoming inspired to create his rock opera, Tommy. This is still a sore spot for all parties...

After the commercial failure of S. F. Sorrow, Taylor exited the group (later to return) but the Pretties persisted and recorded the brilliant concept album Rolling Stone magazine selected as the best of 1971, Parachute. Yet due to poor publicity, Parachute failed to sale in the US, making it the first Rolling Stone album of the year to not reach platinum level sales. In my opinion, it is as much a masterpiece as S. F. Sorrow. In between those albums, the Pretties recorded an album with rich French playboy, Philippe DeBarge, which had remained officially unreleased until now; Ugly Things records has released an LP edition, with a CD issue to follow in Februrary. (I was very lucky to get an autographed copy!)

The Pretty Things continue to perform and record to this day, and they're not going anywhere. If you are not aquainted with them, there's no better time than the present to discover their catalog. They are the epitome of the best elements of rock'n'roll--all the rebellion, the attitude, the experiementation, the freedom, the creativity. Long Live the Pretties--unbowed and unrepentant!

References: Pulse! April 1999, liner notes to The Pretty Things, Discoveries and Goldmine magazines, Mojo Psychedelic Special Edition 2005, etc.

Christmas with Dusty

My friend Jeff is a connoisseur of Christmas music of all kinds--classic, novelty, sacred and secular. In his quest to obtain every '60s pop Christmas recording, he came across a truly lovely (and rare) ballad by the incomparable Dusty Springfield entitled "O Holy Child," which was written by her brother Tom and recorded to aid an orphanage in London. Jeff sent me the 45 single of "O Holy Child," as well as the rare "Woman's Own" Christmas EP by the Springfields. I have used my needledrop of the Dusty single to accompany the slideshow presentation. I hope you enjoy this special Christmas gift from me and Jeff.

Of all the great British Invasion songstresses (Petula, Cilla, Lulu, Sandie, Marianne), Dusty is my favorite. Her voice was rich and soulful, and as all great singers do, she made every song her own. I recommend her masterpiece, Dusty in Memphis for any introduction to her catalog, as well as the equally essential Complete A and B Sides 1963 - 1970. No female singer quite interpreted Goffin and King as wonderfully as she, save for Aretha.

Dusty was born Mary O'Brien in West Hampstead, London. She began her singing career performing folk songs alongside her older brother. They achieved success as the Springfields, even scoring a major U.S. hit with their cover of Wanda Jackson's "Silver Threads and Golden Needles." Dusty soon broke out on her own, shunning the folk of the past, and thus reaching worldwide fame and iconic status as the platinum blonde r&b diva.

I wish you all a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

(Biographical information taken from the liner notes to The Springfields: On an Island of Dreams, written by Michael Robson.)

Everywhere It's Christmas!

One of the many perks of being a member of the Official Beatles Fan Club was that as Christmas neared, one would receive a special flexi-disc record containing Christmas messages from the Fab Four themselves. Starting in 1963 and continuing through 1969, the Beatles recorded hilarious, Goon-type greetings that may have baffled a few of their American fans! I make it a tradition to listen to these recordings, as well as outtakes from the sessions, each Christmas season. They are a constant source of holiday cheer for me and countless Beatles fans.

The Christmas record featured in this post is the 1966 release entitled Pantomime: Everywhere It's Christmas, recorded November 25th at music publisher Dick James' house. The night before, the Beatles had convened at EMI's Studio Two to tackle a first take of John's stupendous "Strawberry Fields Forever." Housed in a psychedelic cover designed by Paul McCartney, Pantomime is perhaps the most creative and interesting of all the Christmas flexi-discs. Playing off the British Christmas tradtion of musical-comedy theatre productions, the Beatles add their own unique twist to the format. The video is a Lego animation film created by Leftfield Studios in 2003 as a visual accompaniment to the Beatles' record--I think it is perfectly executed and quite fun to watch!

So, to one and all, a Happy Crimble and a Merry Goo Year!

Check back soon for another special Christmas posting...

(References: The Beatles on Apple Records by Bruce Spizer and That Magic Feeling by John C. Winn)

Purple Hearts and Power Chords

Pete...Roger...Keith...John

If you are not familiar with the Who, beg, borrow and/or steal the Amazing Journey and The Kids are Alright documentaries. Once you view them, you will quickly become a Wholigan, and will thus be compelled to get your hands on all their classic albums. My personal favorite is the mono version of their psychedelic concept album, The Who Sell Out, but you cannot go wrong with A Quick One, The Who Sings My Generation, Who's Next, Live at Leeds, Quadrophenia, Tommy, Meaty, Beaty, Big and Bouncy...They are one of rocks' most vital, visceral, incendiary groups. Here we have a band where everyone plays lead--lead guitar, lead bass, lead drums and lead vocals--yet they accentuate each other perfectly. They might have wanted to take each other's heads off at one time or another; perhaps that's what made them so dynamic--all that tension!

The footage presented here captures the Who's explosive live act. Filmed on August 6, 1965, the first night of the Richmond Jazz and Blues Festival, this clip of "Anyway Anyhow Anywhere" was eventually aired in the US on December 9--43 years ago this week.

It's such a shame that the Ox and Moonie are not here with us--they are sorely missed. There will never be another bassist and drummer quite like them. Thankfully, the Who continue to release concert DVDs so those of us who missed out on seeing them live can at least witness these phenomenal documents and imagine what it must have been like to be there.

(References: Anyway Anyhow Anywhere: The Complete Chronicle of the Who 1958 - 1978 by Andy Neill & Matt Kent; The Who: Ten Great Years - Rolling Stone.)

Early Invasion Timeline

To commemorate the 20th anniversary of the First Wave of the British Invasion, Goldmine magazine featured an article by Charles Webb, chronicling the significant milestones of late 1963 through 1964. The bands featured on this blog are mentioned numerous times, as well as many others that will be in the spotlight soon.

I will also develop entries on many British bands that did not achieve great commercial success on this side of the Atlantic, but nonetheless were critically praised and highly influential. They may not technically fit within the terms "British Invasion" but deserve exposure and recognition for their excellent contributions. Some of these artists include the Creation, the Move, the Pretty Things, the Action, Small Faces, the Birds, Soft Machine, and other bands specializing in psychedelic, R&B, freakbeat or pop genres. As holidays and deadlines quickly approach, my new posts may not appear as often as in the past, but please continue to check in weekly just in case! I hope all of you are enjoying your trip through Wonderland...


One may click on the scans to enlarge them for reading purposes. Enjoy!