The Small Faces
Steve Marriott: guitar, vocals
b. 30 January 1947, London;
d. 20 April 91, Arkesden, England
Ronnie Lane: bass
b. 1 April 1946, London;
d. 4 June 1997, Trinidad, Colorado, USA
Kenney Jones: drums
b. 16 September 1948, London
Ian McLagan: keyboards (after 1965)
b. 12 May 1945, Hounslow, England
d. 3 December 2014, Austin, Texas, USA
 
Where the Who identified themselves with the violent mods of the west side (Shepherd's Bush, Acton, etc.), the Small Faces were east side mods with more main stream appeal. They were "faces" in the mod sense and "small" in physical stature. Nevertheless, Marriott's distinctive voice and their sense of ensemble gave them an easily identifiable sound. Indeed, Marriott pushed them to have a heavier sound and the band evolved a musical identity that was at once distinctive, complex, and serious. One of their favorite devices was to repeat musical material, varying the texture and loudness of their performance.
< Marriott, McLagen, Jones, and Lane
1965   [SM 16-17; RL 17-18]
June. Lane, Jimmy Winston, and Jones formed the original band in East London, soon adding former child actor Marriott. Marriott had experience on the west side's stages (he appeared in Oliver) and had recorded unsuccessfully with Decca. With Don Arden as their manager, they signed and recorded with Decca. (See Joynson 1995:480-482.) Arden worked regularly with producer, Ian Samwell ("Move It") and convinced him to produce the Small Faces' record at the Decca studios (Twelker and Schmitt 34).
6 August. "Whatcha Gonna Do about It? [UK #14] / "What's a Matter Baby" [Decca F 12208] released.
Don Arden: the secret of their success and mine, was a sleazy trick of the trade known as "hyping." Dead easy if you're in the know, and not over-fussy about your methods. I just paid thousands of pounds to "fix" some of the charts supposedly compiled from the sales returns of record shops. I knew for certain sums, any record I was associated with could be elevated to the charts. ... It got to be a habit. I paid out anything from £150 to £500 a week to people who manipulated the charts and who in turn shared the cash with people organizing other charts so again for bills as to ensure they tallied. For instance, if I had a record at No. 18 in one, they would see to it that the same record appeared as either 16 or 17 or thereabouts, in the others. Neat little swindle, wasn't it? Of course, the Small Faces had no idea what went on. (Badman and Rawlings: 19)
31 October. The Marriott, Lane, and Jones decide that they have had enough of Winston's keyboard playing and stage antics. They have asked Ian McLagen to take over at the keyboards. Winston set out to lead his own band (Jimmy Winston and His Reflections).
1 November, London. "Mac" McLagen joins the Small Faces
5. November. "I've Got Mine" / "It's Too Late" [Decca F 12276] released
26 December. Marriott, Lane, and McLagan move in together at 22 Westmoreland Terrace
1966 [SM 17-18; RL 18-19]
14 January. "Sha-La-La-La-Lee" [UK #3] / "Grow Your Own" [Decca F 12317] released.
——. They attract some attention (appearing briefly in a film) and are active in London playing for East London mods in places like the Cavern Club (near Leicester Square).
6 May. "Hey Girl" [UK #10] / "Almost Grown" [Decca F 12393] released.
13 May. Small Faces [Decca LK 4790; UK LP #3] released.
5 August. "All or Nothing" [UK #1] / "Understanding" [Decca F 12470] released.
11 November. "My Mind's Eye" [UK #4] / "I Can't Dance with You" [Decca F 12500] released. Unfortunately, the version that Decca released was a demo that the Small Faces had supplied to Arden because he wanted to know what progress they had been making. The band decides to leave Arden.
1967 [SM 18-19; RL 19-20]
10 February. The Small Faces sign with Andrew Oldham.
24 February. Marriott, his girlfriend (Chrissie Shrimpton), and her flatmate are arrested and their flats searched.
3 March. "I Can't Make It" [UK #26] / "Just Passing" [Decca F 12565] released.
March: The Small Faces leave Decca for Andrew Loog Oldham’s Immediate Records. Decca retaliates by releasing material the band had already recorded, against the Immediate releases. (Compare what happened to the Who when they switched to Reaction Records.)
26 May. "Patterns" / "'E' to 'D'" [Decca F 12619] release.
May. From the Beginning [UK LP #17]
2 June. "Here Comes the Nice" [UK #12] / "Talk to You" [Immediate IM050] release.
2 June. From the Beginning [Decca LK4879; UK LP #12]
24 June. Small Faces [Immediate IMLP 008; UK LP 012; UK #1]
4 August. "Itchycoo Park" [UK #3] / "I'm Only Dreaming" [Immediate IM052] release.
1 December. "Tin Soldier" [UK #9] / "I Feel Much Better" [Immediate IM062] release.
1968 [SM 19-20; RL 20-21]
January. As he was about to leave on his honeymoon, police arrest Ian McLagan at the airport and charge him with possession of narcotics.
5 April. "Lazy Sunday" [UK #2] / "Rollin' Over" [Immediate IM064] release.
June. Ogden's Nut Gone Flake [UK LP #1]
28 June. "The Universal" [UK #16] / "Donkey Rides a Penny a Glass" [Immediate IM069] release.
October. Begin tour with the Who and Joe Cocker. During the tour, Marriott and Peter Frampton (who sat in on some dates) hatch the idea of a new band (Humble Pie).
November. "The Journey" / "Mad John"
31 December. New Year's Eve performance at the Alexandria Palace.
After the evening's performance (and an introduction to Alexis Korner), Steve Marriott announces he is leaving the band.
Kenny Jones: Steve went on stage that night in a bad mood and we knew something was up. He had been throwing real wobblers all week and then, half-way through the set, the just threw his guitar down and walked off, leaving us there like lemons. We looked at each other and, it was like, "Well, see ya!"
There was this almighty scream-up afterwards — Mac, he went mad, but Steve just simply said he couldn't do it anymore. He felt that we couldn't cross over from being a pop band into heavier music. He felt it was too difficult, which was wrong because we really had it all, and were going that way naturally. (Badman and Rawlings 1997:113)
 
The Official Small Faces Website A selected site on the Small Faces: Room for Ravers
McLagan Fan Site  
Psychedelia Schedule The Who
  23-mar-15