Rod Stewart - "Every Picture Tells A Story" (1971) - Mercury Records
Hello Friends,
We've got some classic Rod The Mod on the turntable tonight!
Every Picture Tells A Story is Stewart's third record as a solo artist. It would be his first number one record in both the U.S. & England. It features Ronnie Wood on guitars, Ian McLagan on organ, Andy Pyle on bass and Micky Waller on drums.
Of course, its a great album. Practically a greatest hits record! Think of it as a Faces record in all but name actually! (Even Kenny Jones and Ronnie Lane make "cameo" appearances!)
Its a blend of varying styles of rock, country, blues, r & b, gospel & folk, as well as a blend of originals and covers.
Side One kicks off with the Stewart & Wood-penned title track, "Every Picture Tells A Story" followed by the ballad, "Seems Like A Long Time" (which sounds a lot like "Handbags & Gladrags, part 2") and also featuring a KILLER Ron Wood guitar solo.
Stewart then rocks a swampy barroom version of the Elvis Presley hit, "That's All Right". Pub rock at its absolute finest!
Things simmer down considerably with his respectful (if not a little middle-of-the-road sounding) take on "Amazing Grace".
The side concludes with a then-unreleased Bob Dylan track, the acoustic "Tomorrow is a Long Time". Very good and very rootsy. This is Rod Stewart for Wilco fans, friends.
Side Two kicks off with "Henry", a short classical guitar piece featuring Martin Quittenton, that blends right into the Stewart & Quittenton-penned classic rock masterpiece, "Maggie May" which, incidentally, contains one of our all-time favorite rock lyrics: "The morning sun when it's in your face really shows your age..." Ouch!
Side Two kicks off with "Henry", a short classical guitar piece featuring Martin Quittenton, that blends right into the Stewart & Quittenton-penned classic rock masterpiece, "Maggie May" which, incidentally, contains one of our all-time favorite rock lyrics: "The morning sun when it's in your face really shows your age..." Ouch!
Stewart's folksy "Mandolin Wind" is next, followed by the utterly amazing, "(I Know) I'm Losing You", a ballsy, rocking-take on The Temptations 1966 Motown hit.
The album concludes with a cover of Tim Hardin's folky classic, "Reason To Believe".
Stewart's raspy vocals are the real story here. Hitting all the right notes through a variety of song styles. An amazing record featuring an amazing collection of musicians!
Classic!
Classic!
RATING: 4.5 getting enough of the things that keep a young man alive out of 5
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