Once the recording of Ooh La La was completed, the album's credits optimistically suggested an intention to work with Johns again in the future, with the comment: 'Produced by Glyn Johns (see you in a year)'. to a Blind Horse (the band's first two albums were, in contrast, lengthier self-produced affairs). As a result of this situation, Ooh La La was, according to Ian McLagan, ' Ronnie 's album', with founder member Lane's contributions setting the tone of the LP's quieter, more reflective second side.ĭespite the difficult circumstances of the recording sessions, producer Glyn Johns held the group together, helping to placate internal tensions (as he had with the Beatles during their Get Back sessions) his efforts enabled the Faces to record a focused, concise album in the manner of its predecessor, A Nod Is As Good As a Wink. The production of the album would continue to be hampered by the singer's apparent lack of commitment to the project, with Stewart not appearing in any capacity on three of the LP's ten released tracks. Stewart himself was reportedly distracted enough by his newfound stardom that he missed the first two weeks of recording sessions for the latest Faces album entirely. Only three months after the album’s release Ronnie Lane quit the band, precipitating their eventual break up in 1975.By the end of 1972, following the critical and commercial successes of Rod Stewart's solo albums, the singer had become increasingly distanced from some of his Faces bandmates, who were frustrated by the fact that by this point they had come to be perceived by the public (and even by some concert promoters) as little more than Stewart's backing band for live work. It is the only solo lead vocal that Wood recorded with the Faces, because, according to Ian McLagan, ‘It was too high or low for Ronnie - I can’t remember which….And Rod said it was in the wrong key for him.’ Wood remembers the band ‘taking the piss out of me….Ahh, he can’t reach the notes–what a terrible barrage to work against.’ However, the song’s popularity stands testament to how well it did work.

The instrumental track, ‘Fly in the Ointment’, is credited to Wood, McLagan, Lane and Jones and is the only track by the four musicians to be included on an album.Įnding the album is one of the band’s best known and loved tunes, the title track, Ooh La La, written by Ronnie Wood and Ronnie Lane. The album also contains three tracks written by Wood, Stewart and McLagan – ‘My Fault’, ‘Borstal Boys’ and the group’s biggest UK hit single, ‘Cindy Incidentally’, which reached number two in the charts. The writing partnership of Wood and Stewart, which had flourished during A Nod is as Good as a Wink…To a Blind Horse, would only produce the one song, the cheeky and typically raucous rocker ‘Silicone Grown’, whilst a new partnership of Lane and Stewart would provide ‘Flags and Banners’ and ‘If I’m on the Late Side’. With Lane at the helm, the record features two of his solo efforts, the ballad ‘Glad and Sorry’, with vocals by Lane, Wood and McLagan and the mid-tempo keyboard groove of ‘Just Another Honky’. As Ian McLagan would explain in the liner notes to the Faces box set, “Rod wasn’t there a lot, but Ronnie had his songs together already.” As a consequence, Ronnie Lane’s influence on Ooh La La became stronger and, according to Ian McLagan, it became “Ronnie’s album”.

Tensions in the band were reaching boiling point at the time of the recording, with Rod Stewart’s increasingly successful solo career taking him away from the band, even missing the first two weeks of recording sessions. The cover was designed so that when the top edge was pressed down Gastone’s eyes would move to the side, while his mouth dropped into a creepy smile. The album cover depicts a photo of ‘Gastone’, a stage character created by 1920s Italian comedian Ettore Petrolini. Recorded at London’s Olympic Studios between September 1972 and January 1973 and produced by Glyn Johns, the album reached number one in the UK charts and number twenty-one in the US. Ooh La La is the fourth and final studio album by the Faces. MUSIC / The Faces / Studio Album OOH LA LA

Rod steward oh la la