This week a dream came true: I interviewed keyboardist Ian 'Mac' McLagan and drummer Kenny Jones for the very first time. Members, of course, of one of the truly GREAT London bands of all time, the Small Faces, who summed up the Mod lifestyle and gave us some of the most exciting, vibrant pop of the 60s. It was a blend of music that began by being heavily influenced by the R&B and Soul sounds coming out of America, but then evolved into a very individual, British take on psychedelia.
whopping | Popmeister and Faces keyboardist Ian 'Mac' McLagan |
Mac and Kenny came in to promote the release of 'The Ultimate Collection', a whopping 50-track, ace new compilation that features the standout cuts from the band's work on Decca and then Andrew Loog Oldham's Immediate label. Apparently, because of legal problems in the past, it's the first time these tracks have been collected together on one double album - and appropriately enough, the sleeve notes are done by Paolo Hewitt.
He's a long standing fan of the combo who's also in the process of putting the finishing touches to a book about the band's late, charismatic singer Steve Marriott.
excess
Paolo's been a friend (or fiend?!) of mine for eons and back in the mid 80s, he kindly invited me to Denmark Street to meet Mr Marriott, whom he was interviewing for the NME at the time. Suffice to say I got down there faster than a rat up a drainpipe, and we met up outside the old Giaconda cafe, an old Faces hangout in Tin Pan Alley. Steve was in sparkling good form, regaling us with stories of the band's illustrious, colourful past. He looked as though the years of excess had taken their toll, but still had that naughty twinkle in his eye and a mischievous laugh that wouldn't have gone amiss in a Carry On film.
classics
 | Where it all began...The Ultimate Collection gathers together 50 of the band's classic tracks |
Listening again to this CD has confirmed once again the talent and influence the Small Faces once wielded - just ask people like the Sex Pistols, Weller and Blur for starters. Songs like 'All Or Nothing', 'Here Comes The Nice' and 'Itchycoo Park' are veritable classics in my book, and it's no wonder the band are spoken of in the same breath as the Fabs, the Stones, the Who and the Kinks. Catch it all in the interview with Mac and Kenny, which we broadcast last Saturday (24 May) on 94.9 - available on your PC NOW!
 listen hear the Small Faces and 'All Or Nothing' from The Ultimate Collectionclick here(listen in Windows Media Player - need help?)
listen hear 'Itchycoo Park' from The Ultimate Collectionclick hereadd your opinion
email me direct at:yourlondon@bbc.co.uk more music
shepherds bush masters: the who
the interview vault
useful links
ian mclagan: official site
room for ravers: small faces fan site
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