In his excellent autobiography, the late keyboard maestro Ian McLagan recalled with great affection his time with both the Small Faces during the 1960s and then with the Faces in the 1970s. The former gave way to the latter after the departure of Steve Marriott on New Year's Eve 1968. After a brief period of uncertainty, the three remaining Small Faces (Ronnie Lane, Kenny Jones and Ian McLagan) happened upon the erstwhile bass guitarist from the Jeff Beck Group. Ronnie Wood is now far more synonymous with the guitar but it was the bass which he played in that stellar line-up.
Well, almost stellar. Everyone knew about Jeff Beck following his time as lead guitarist with the legendary Yardbirds. Most people knew a lot about the drummer Mickey Waller who had first made his name with John Mayall's Bluesbreakers and even Cyril Davies' R&B All Stars before that. But what of the singer Rod Stewart. Even by the time he joined Ron Wood in the Faces, he was far from well known. Although he had been the lead singer for the Jeff Beck Group for their US tour in 1968, he hadn't exactly dazzled and was often found to be overawed by the larger American audiences. Tempus fugit. Sir Rod seems a far cry from those far off days.
The Faces are often cited as the first "pub rock" group and a Faces concert was never dull with a non-ending stream of innuendo, banter and laughter. They got on well for a while and the result was a stage presence second to none. But such unions seldom last too long. During the four years of the classic line-up with Ronnie Lane on bass, members of the band would often proclaim, "That's it, I'm leaving the group!". It was usually in mock protest and invariably ended up in the pub. All that changed on June 4th 1973 when Ronnie Lane said those words and acted upon them. Although another bass player was found, that was the beginning of the end for the Faces and in due course, Ronnie Wood filled the vacant guitarist spot with the Rolling Stones while Stewart carved out a solo career in the new genre of "Adult Orientated Rock". It was smart move.
A few weeks prior to Lane's departure, the Faces' single "Cindy Incidentally" had taken the number 2 spot in the UK singles charts off The Strawbs. The Strawbs had just achieved what would be their biggest hit with "Part of the Union". It is a curious song which has since achieved something of a cult status among various social groups. For a time, it was adopted as the unofficial anthem of the British Trade Union movement and that at a time when the British Trade Unions were far more powerful than they are today. It is still played at the conclusion of Philadelphia Union games in the US.
The Strawbs band members have always been rather coy about the seriousness of the song. At times, they have inferred it to be just a satire of the Trade Union movement. At other times, they have insisted that it was a pro-Union song. Either way, the lyrics are worthy of consideration. The chorus line is simple enough; You don't get me, I'm part of the Union repeated three times before a final defiant line of "Till the day I die". The verses of the song deal with the Government, bosses, pay and strikes with Union membership being the solution to them all.
As I write, the UK is all of a fluster about whether to remain a member of the European Union while the Act of Union of 1707 is being read the last rites back home. Being part of something is a complicated old business. Last year I was a member of the AA for breakdown recovery but this year I am with another provider for no other reason than price. So although I was aware of the benefits on offer, I was not convinced that they were worth what I was paying. I am currently a member of both the British Medical Association and the Medical Defense Union although I do wonder why for similar reasons. We all have many memberships which we dip in and out of and those rare memberships to which we adhere for most of our lives. For the first five years of my life, the UK was not a member of the European Union but it has been a member since January 1st 1973. A referendum in 1975 showed that the British people were 2 to 1 in favour of remaining as members. But that was 41 years ago and much has changed since then.
For one thing, the Union movement referred to by the Strawbs is a fraction of it's former self both in membership and power. For another, the manufacturing industries which it supported are threadbare compared to that time. Britain has since become the consumer economy so beloved of capitalists and it would be hard to cite the improvement. In those days, our students received a grant to go to University or, as I did in 1987, Polytechnic. For all the advancements in healthcare since then, the NHS was under less pressure in those days. Sure, we had times of great inflation too. But this was the time when many Britons started to venture abroad for their holidays in place of the traditional seaside. In those days, we had a British car industry whose days were numbered principally because they were not reliable enough. We had also just witnessed the abandonment of many of our branch lines most of which would be like gold dust now. Oh yes, and I very much doubt if Rod Stewart would have merited a knighthood in 1975...
Being part of a club can be tricky business and the UK had to re-apply for entry to the then EEC because the French President Charles de Gaulle was suspicious of the British being the Trojan Horse who would bring in the Americans. If we stop to consider the extent to which the UK and the US came to the rescue of France a few years earlier during the Second World War, it reminds us of just how fickle such groups can be. I would go further. As social media transcends our lives as never before, we find ourselves members of all sorts of virtual groups. But even in the virtual world, we still witness people leaving or being ejected from groups for a variety of reasons.
In a little over a week, the UK will have had it's chance to vote and irrespective of the outcome, life will resume for richer or for poorer, for better or for worse, in sickness and in health. But even when the die has been cast and the inevitable recriminations ensue, the next chapter is already well on the way to completion. Whether we stay or not, the Scots are quite clearly planning to exit the UK and break up the 1707 Union. History dictates that it will not take long for Wales to follow suit. Ulster aside, the Union will be dead. Some members will be members of the EU and some may not. But it will never be the same as it has been since 1707. Which just goes to show that the days are numbered for even the most staunch of marriages.
What I have found interesting is the lack of simple focus during the last few weeks from either side. Putting aside the name calling and finger pointing, neither side has yet convinced me what it is they seek to achieve. It has been fascinating to see Labour and Tory standing arm in arm on opposite sides of yet another divide. It would seem that the words of John Lydgate have once more borne fruit; You can please some of the people some of the time, you can please all of the people some of the time but you can't please all of the people all of the time. How true.
Well, almost stellar. Everyone knew about Jeff Beck following his time as lead guitarist with the legendary Yardbirds. Most people knew a lot about the drummer Mickey Waller who had first made his name with John Mayall's Bluesbreakers and even Cyril Davies' R&B All Stars before that. But what of the singer Rod Stewart. Even by the time he joined Ron Wood in the Faces, he was far from well known. Although he had been the lead singer for the Jeff Beck Group for their US tour in 1968, he hadn't exactly dazzled and was often found to be overawed by the larger American audiences. Tempus fugit. Sir Rod seems a far cry from those far off days.
The Faces are often cited as the first "pub rock" group and a Faces concert was never dull with a non-ending stream of innuendo, banter and laughter. They got on well for a while and the result was a stage presence second to none. But such unions seldom last too long. During the four years of the classic line-up with Ronnie Lane on bass, members of the band would often proclaim, "That's it, I'm leaving the group!". It was usually in mock protest and invariably ended up in the pub. All that changed on June 4th 1973 when Ronnie Lane said those words and acted upon them. Although another bass player was found, that was the beginning of the end for the Faces and in due course, Ronnie Wood filled the vacant guitarist spot with the Rolling Stones while Stewart carved out a solo career in the new genre of "Adult Orientated Rock". It was smart move.
A few weeks prior to Lane's departure, the Faces' single "Cindy Incidentally" had taken the number 2 spot in the UK singles charts off The Strawbs. The Strawbs had just achieved what would be their biggest hit with "Part of the Union". It is a curious song which has since achieved something of a cult status among various social groups. For a time, it was adopted as the unofficial anthem of the British Trade Union movement and that at a time when the British Trade Unions were far more powerful than they are today. It is still played at the conclusion of Philadelphia Union games in the US.
The Strawbs band members have always been rather coy about the seriousness of the song. At times, they have inferred it to be just a satire of the Trade Union movement. At other times, they have insisted that it was a pro-Union song. Either way, the lyrics are worthy of consideration. The chorus line is simple enough; You don't get me, I'm part of the Union repeated three times before a final defiant line of "Till the day I die". The verses of the song deal with the Government, bosses, pay and strikes with Union membership being the solution to them all.
As I write, the UK is all of a fluster about whether to remain a member of the European Union while the Act of Union of 1707 is being read the last rites back home. Being part of something is a complicated old business. Last year I was a member of the AA for breakdown recovery but this year I am with another provider for no other reason than price. So although I was aware of the benefits on offer, I was not convinced that they were worth what I was paying. I am currently a member of both the British Medical Association and the Medical Defense Union although I do wonder why for similar reasons. We all have many memberships which we dip in and out of and those rare memberships to which we adhere for most of our lives. For the first five years of my life, the UK was not a member of the European Union but it has been a member since January 1st 1973. A referendum in 1975 showed that the British people were 2 to 1 in favour of remaining as members. But that was 41 years ago and much has changed since then.
For one thing, the Union movement referred to by the Strawbs is a fraction of it's former self both in membership and power. For another, the manufacturing industries which it supported are threadbare compared to that time. Britain has since become the consumer economy so beloved of capitalists and it would be hard to cite the improvement. In those days, our students received a grant to go to University or, as I did in 1987, Polytechnic. For all the advancements in healthcare since then, the NHS was under less pressure in those days. Sure, we had times of great inflation too. But this was the time when many Britons started to venture abroad for their holidays in place of the traditional seaside. In those days, we had a British car industry whose days were numbered principally because they were not reliable enough. We had also just witnessed the abandonment of many of our branch lines most of which would be like gold dust now. Oh yes, and I very much doubt if Rod Stewart would have merited a knighthood in 1975...
Being part of a club can be tricky business and the UK had to re-apply for entry to the then EEC because the French President Charles de Gaulle was suspicious of the British being the Trojan Horse who would bring in the Americans. If we stop to consider the extent to which the UK and the US came to the rescue of France a few years earlier during the Second World War, it reminds us of just how fickle such groups can be. I would go further. As social media transcends our lives as never before, we find ourselves members of all sorts of virtual groups. But even in the virtual world, we still witness people leaving or being ejected from groups for a variety of reasons.
In a little over a week, the UK will have had it's chance to vote and irrespective of the outcome, life will resume for richer or for poorer, for better or for worse, in sickness and in health. But even when the die has been cast and the inevitable recriminations ensue, the next chapter is already well on the way to completion. Whether we stay or not, the Scots are quite clearly planning to exit the UK and break up the 1707 Union. History dictates that it will not take long for Wales to follow suit. Ulster aside, the Union will be dead. Some members will be members of the EU and some may not. But it will never be the same as it has been since 1707. Which just goes to show that the days are numbered for even the most staunch of marriages.
What I have found interesting is the lack of simple focus during the last few weeks from either side. Putting aside the name calling and finger pointing, neither side has yet convinced me what it is they seek to achieve. It has been fascinating to see Labour and Tory standing arm in arm on opposite sides of yet another divide. It would seem that the words of John Lydgate have once more borne fruit; You can please some of the people some of the time, you can please all of the people some of the time but you can't please all of the people all of the time. How true.
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