Some bands can do outstanding work for the entirety of their careers and never quite nab that giant hit. Faces easily could have endured that fate. The British rockers didn’t exactly cater to the mainstream with their scrappy, blues-based rock.
But then an opportunity fell into their lap thanks to the solo success of one of their members. The band took full advantage with the strutting rocker “Stay With Me”, a Top 20 hit on both sides of the Atlantic after its release in 1971.
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A Slow Build to Stardom
The original incarnation of Faces, aka Small Faces, enjoyed great success in the UK in the 60s, first as a pop act and then as pioneers in psychedelic rock. They even broke through in the US with their 1967 smash “Itchycoo Park”. When lead singer Steve Marriott left to join Humble Pie, the remaining three members (Ronnie Lane, Kenney Jones, and Ian McLagan) needed to pivot.
They brought in Rod Stewart as lead singer and Ronnie Wood to tackle lead guitar. We know now that Stewart and Wood became rock icons down the road. But in 1969, they weren’t quite established and didn’t exactly move the excitement needle with pop fans. To acknowledge things had changed, the group changed their name to Faces.
The blues backgrounds of Stewart and Wood changed the artistic direction of the band. They built some momentum through incessant touring. But they couldn’t quite gain any traction when it came to pop success on their first two albums. That’s when a girl named “Maggie May” helped change all that.
A Pleasant “Stay”
While he was fulfilling his duties with Faces, Rod Stewart was also stepping out on his own with solo albums. Like his band, Stewart didn’t initially find success. But “Maggie May”, a song that he didn’t think was all that great, turned into a sensation for Stewart in 1971, putting him at the top of the singles and album charts in both America and England.
As luck would have it, while “Maggie May” was scaling the charts, Faces were preparing their third album, titled A Nod Is As Good As A Wink…To A Blind Horse. Stewart and Wood collaborated on “Stay With Me”, a playful but potent rocker that displayed the band’s incredible chemistry, as the first single from that LP.
The world was waiting for more Stewart material when “Stay With Me” was released in late 1971. It landed at No. 17 in the US and No. 6 in the UK. Faces’ fortunes rose with Stewart’s, and, for an all-too-brief moment, the recognition they’d long deserved came their way.
Behind the Lyrics
“Stay With Me” takes a humorous look at a one-night stand. The narrator is OK with his conquest staying the night, but that’s it. “In the mornin’,” Stewart belts. “Don’t say you love me/’Cause I’ll only kick you out of the door.” He insults her looks and calls her a “mean old Jezebel” to ensure she gets the point.
In the final verse, he tries to soften the blow. “Yeah, I’ll pay you cab fare home,” he promises. “You can even use my best cologne.” But then he reminds her of her impending departure: “Just don’t be here in the mornin’ when I wake up”.
“Stay With Me” does as good a job as any song in Faces’ catalog of showcasing their raucous chemistry. Eventually, Stewart’s rising star doomed the band’s longevity. But his rising popularity also yielded the opportunity for their first widespread recognition with this firecracker of a track.
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