Reviews

Sometimes the history of pop seems to be dominated by a few big names: Elvis Presley, The Beatles and The Rolling Stones. These tend to overshadow the achievements of so many other worthy bands. So, the achievements and music of the Small Faces should be placed in context and the band should rightfully be remembered as one of the most successful, creative and influential bands of the British Invasion of the mid-to-late ‘60s.

Moving from the short pop single format through the psychedelic era, the band made some of the most interesting and innovative music of the decade. Not only that but some of the band members were also later to morph into The Faces and become one of the greatest rock bands of all time (certainly at their peak matching The Stones). It also launched Steve Marriott’s formidable career in Humble Pie and as a solo performer. The band also contained in Ronnie Lane one of Britain’s finest songwriters, who with Marriott and later alone, wrote a marvellous array of songs.

This DVD features 27 complete performances filmed from 1965 to 1968 in England and Europe when the band rivalled The Who, The Kinks, The Stones and The Beatles in the battle to dominate the charts. Some are mimed but many appear to be live.

It is fascinating to trace the history of the band as they moved from the short sharp pop songs (occasionally written for them) to the more adventurous work of the late ‘60s. There were the mod classics such as ‘What’cha Gonna Do About It’ (which borrowed heavily from Solomon Burke’s ‘Everybody Needs Somebody To Love’), ‘Sha La La La Lee’ (written for the band by Doc Pomus’s songwriting partner Mort Schuman and Kenny Lynch),‘All Or Nothing,’ the R&B infused ‘Tin Soldier’ (unfortunately here without PP Arnold) and the psychedelic classic ‘Itchycoo Park.’

By the time of ‘All Or Nothing’ in August 1966 the Small Faces had gelled as a band and, while they might have still been seen as cute pop idols, the sound they were reaching for owed a lot to R&B and soul. The song was a joint No.1 with The Beatles ‘Yellow Submarine/Eleanor Rigby.’

Amazingly, there is film of the band’s very first appearance at London's legendary Marquee Club in March 1966 and, while it is a little rough, it certainly shows the genesis of what would become a fine R&B band. The version of ‘You Need Loving’ was obviously the basis for Led Zeppelin’s later classic ‘Whole Lotta Love.’ In fact, most of the clips show that the Small Faces were a powerful live band, much gutsier than most of their pop counterparts.

After recording for Decca the band moved to Andrew Loog Oldham's Immediate Records where they were able to get more studio time to experiment. The resultant sound was far more adventurous.

‘Here Come The Nice,’ written by Marriott and Lane, was released the day after The Beatles’ Sgt Pepper’s came out and was the band’s first foray into psychedelia. Somehow the song escaped censorship despite its drug references, perhaps overlooked because everyone was concentrating on ‘Lucy In the Sky With Diamonds.’

The hit singles ‘Itchycoo Park’ (which McLagan hates) and ‘Tin Soldier’ (perhaps its finest single) followed in the next 6 months and really helped to establish the band as serious contenders, taking them out of the pop realm.

Less than a year later, in May 1968, the band’s often overlooked masterpiece Ogden’s Nut Gone Flake was released. Despite its low profile these days, it did go straight to No.1 in the UK. Also included here are nine songs from that album recorded for England’s Colour Me Pop show in 1968 including ‘Lazy Sunday’ (which rivalled Ray Davies in its summation of English life).

‘The Universal’ was the last Small Faces single released while they were still together, recorded by Marriott playing 12-string guitar in his back garden with his dog, roadie and wife in the background. Six months later, during a New Year’s Eve gig at London’s Alexandra Palace, Marriott stormed off stage and informed the band that he was quitting. Later he said, “As it happened, we got two good groups out of it, Humble Pie and the faces with Rod Stewart and Ron Wood.”

Interspersing the performances are interviews with keyboard maestro Ian McLagan (who you can often see at the Lucky Lounge in Austin, Texas) and drummer Kenney Jones along with short-term member Jimmy Winston. By the time the band burst onto the scene in a big way Winston had been replaced by McLagan, who even very early on showed his keyboard prowess and really added to the sound of the band.

They talk eloquently about the songs and the band’s history. There are also archival interviews with Steve Marriott and Ronnie Lane. The bonus features include the entire interview with Lane, carried out in Austin, Texas in 1988. It is very touching indeed, as the signs of the MS that would eventually kill him are clearly evident.

There are also some interview excerpts with Don Arden, the band’s controversial first manager, who had also managed Gene Vincent. Winston recalls that they should have realised their mistake in signing with him when they met Eric Burdon & the Animals walking out of his office, shaking their heads. Despite Arden’s reputation, the band members do credit him with getting them their first recording sessions and their first break.

“None of us knew how good and ahead of our time we were,” says Kenney Jones. Looking back on the rapid musical development in the three years covered by this DVD it is apparent that he is correct. This provides compelling evidence that the Small Faces were in the top echelon of bands in their brief but brilliant era.