Biographic - Sunday January 28, 2007 Comic Strip Licensing and Permissions

Transcript

Born Roderick David Stewart in London, on January 10, 1945, his first job in music saw him playing harmonica in an R&B band before he was recruited as a vocalist by Long John Baldry's Hoochie Coochie Men. Following stints with Steampacket and Shotgun Express, "Rod the Mod" joined The Jeff Beck Group, along with his good friend guitarist Ronnie Wood. The band enjoyed a lot of success in the U.S. but soon imploded. By late 1969, Roonie Wood was playing with the remnants of British pop outfit The Small Faces and Rod was recruited to the Ranks. Renamed The Faces, the band's brand of shambolic, good-time rock & roll quickly endeared them to U.K audiences. Meanwhile, Rod was also juggling a solo career, and in 197, it was his third solo album that gave him his major breakthrough. With "Every Picture Tells A Story" and the track "Maggie May" Rod made history by becoming the first artist by becoming the first artist to simultaneously top the album and singles charts on both sides of that Atlantic. More hits followed, but Rod's continued success eclipsed the popularity of The Faces, creating internal friction. The band broke up in 1975, with Ronnie Wood joined the Rolling Stones and Rod relocating to America. By the end of the decade, Rod was one of the world's biggest stars. Following a relative lull in the 1980s, he enjoyed a number of hits in the 1990s, and was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 1994. In recent years, his reworking of classic songs has given him great success, taking him to the top of the U.S. album charts for the first time in 25 years. A true rock legend, Rod Stewart has so far sold more than 250 million records.

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