Faces (band)

Faces (band)
Name	Faces
Caption	Faces in 1971: Rod Stewart, Ronnie Wood, Ian McLagan, Kenney Jones, Ronnie Lane
Background	group_or_band
Origin	London, England
Years active	1969–1975, 2009, 2010–2011
Label	Mercury Records, Warner Bros. Records, Vertigo Records
Associated acts	Small Faces, The Jeff Beck Group, The Rolling Stones, The Who, Rod Stewart

Faces (band) formed in 1969 in London when members of Small Faces merged with musicians from The Jeff Beck Group. The group became known for a loose, blues-inflected rock sound that bridged rhythm and blues roots with garage rock, while members pursued parallel projects including solo careers and work with The Rolling Stones, The Who, and Rod Stewart. Faces achieved critical acclaim and commercial success in the early 1970s, releasing albums on Mercury Records and touring extensively across United Kingdom, United States, and Europe.

History

Faces were created after the breakup of Small Faces and the departure of Jeff Beck from The Jeff Beck Group, prompting a lineup shift in 1969 that combined former Small Faces members with musicians from Beck’s ensemble. Early activity included studio sessions at Olympic Studios and performances at venues such as Fillmore East and Isle of Wight Festival 1969, where their setlists drew on rhythm and blues, blues rock, and Merseybeat influences. Through the early 1970s the band recorded albums produced by figures linked to Mercury Records and licensed by Vertigo Records, while individual members collaborated with artists including Rod Stewart, whose solo career on Mercury Records ran concurrently. By 1975 internal strains, departures to join acts like The Rolling Stones and health issues led to the group's dissolution; later reunions in 2009 and 2010–2011 featured legacy performances at events such as Isle of Wight Festival 2010 and charity concerts involving guests from The Who and Eric Clapton-associated circles.

Members

Key personnel included former Small Faces rhythm section members who continued the lineage alongside recruits from The Jeff Beck Group: lead vocalist and solo star Rod Stewart, guitarist Ronnie Wood, bassist and songwriter Ronnie Lane, keyboardist Ian McLagan, and drummer Kenney Jones. Other associated musicians who recorded or performed with the ensemble include touring and session contributors tied to Mick Jagger, Keith Richards, Pete Townshend, Steve Marriott, Jeff Beck, and studio engineers from Olympic Studios and Abbey Road Studios-era sessions. Post-breakup, members integrated into bands and projects like The Rolling Stones, The Who, Blind Faith, and solo albums on labels including Warner Bros. Records.

Music and Style

Faces blended a raw, improvisational approach derived from blues rock, R&B, and skiffle traditions with a pub-rock ethos connected to Merseybeat and London club circuits. Their sound emphasized loose jams, prominent slide and rhythm guitar techniques associated with Ronnie Wood, gritty vocal delivery characteristic of Rod Stewart's solo work, and Hammond-organ textures reminiscent of sessions at Olympic Studios and production trends in early 1970s British rock. Critics compared their aesthetic to contemporaries like The Rolling Stones, The Who, and Led Zeppelin, while their songwriting drew on influences from Muddy Waters, Howlin' Wolf, and Bo Diddley, as filtered through the British rock idiom and pub-stage dynamics common to tours of venues such as Fillmore West and Royal Albert Hall.

Discography

Major studio albums were released on Mercury Records and Warner Bros. Records during the early 1970s, charting in markets including United Kingdom and United States. Notable LPs included releases that featured songwriting contributions from Ronnie Lane and vocals shared with Rod Stewart plus instrumental signatures of Ian McLagan and Ronnie Wood. The band's catalogue has been reissued on compilations alongside solo material by Rod Stewart and Ronnie Lane, and anthologies have been curated by labels with archival projects similar to those for Small Faces and The Rolling Stones archives. Session personnel often overlapped with musicians from The Jeff Beck Group, The Who, and studio scenes centered at Olympic Studios and Abbey Road Studios.

Live Performances and Tours

Faces built a reputation on energetic live shows at venues such as Fillmore East, Isle of Wight Festival 1969, and arenas like Royal Albert Hall, sharing bills with acts including Led Zeppelin, The Rolling Stones, and The Who. Their stage approach favored extended jams, audience interaction, and a raucous party atmosphere that influenced the pub rock circuit and later festival cultures exemplified by events like Glastonbury Festival and the Isle of Wight Festival 2010 reunions. Touring schedules frequently intersected with solo commitments of Rod Stewart and session work for Ronnie Wood with The Rolling Stones, complicating logistics and contributing to shortened tours and lineup substitutions.

Legacy and Influence

Faces are credited with shaping early 1970s British rock, impacting artists across pub rock, punk rock, and classic rock generations; their loose ensemble interplay influenced bands associated with The Rolling Stones and inspired musicians who later joined acts such as The Who and Queen. Alumni careers—most notably Rod Stewart's solo stardom and Ronnie Wood's tenure with The Rolling Stones—continued the group's visibility, while retrospective anthologies and reissues circulated through catalogs maintained by Mercury Records and Warner Bros. Records. Musicians and historians link Faces' stagecraft and repertoire to later revivals in blues rock and the back-to-basics movements that informed artists like Paul Weller, Oasis, and members of the Britpop era. The band's influence is preserved in tribute performances, archival releases, and references by members of The Rolling Stones, Eric Clapton, Pete Townshend, and critics chronicling British rock history.

Category:English rock music groups Category:Musical groups established in 1969 Category:Mercury Records artists