By 1971, Rod Stewart was enjoying success as a solo artist, as well as the frontman of the band Faces. On October 2 of that year, Stewart topped the Billboard Hot 100 chart for the first time in his career with his signature solo tune “Maggie May.”
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“Maggie May” is an original composition that Stewart co-wrote with guitarist Martin Quittenton of the U.K. blues-rock group Steamhammer. The song appeared on Rod’s third studio album, Every Picture Tells a Story, which was released in May of 1971.
Stewart also initially issued “Maggie May” as the B-side of “Reason to Believe,” a cover of a 1966 song by U.S. folk artist Tim Hardin that he released as a single in July 1971. “Reason to Believe” stalled at No. 62 on the Hot 100, but DJs began flipping the single over and playing “Maggie May.”
“Maggie May” replaced Donny Osmond’s version of the 1962 Gerry Goffin/Carole King-penned pop tune “Go Away Little Girl” at the top of the Hot 100. It spent five weeks at No. 1 before it was knocked from the top spot by Cher’s “Gypsies, Tramps & Thieves.”
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Also on October 2, 1971, Every Picture Tells a Story also became Stewart’s first album to top the Billboard 200. The album supplanted Carole King’s landmark Tapestry at No. 1 on that chart, where it spent four weeks.
On October 9 of ’71, “Maggie May” began a five-week stint at the top of the U.K. singles chart.
About the Writing of “Maggie May”
“Maggie May” was inspired by Stewart’s own admittedly awkward first experience having sex with a woman. The incident, according to Rod, occurred in July 1961 when he was 16 years old at the Beaulieu Jazz Festival in Hampshire, U.K.
Writing about the encounter in his 2012 memoir Rod: The Autobiography, Stewart recalled, “[T]here on a secluded patch of grass, I lost my not-remotely-prized virginity with an older (and larger) woman who’d come on to me very strongly in the beer tent. How much older, I can’t tell you—but old enough to be highly disappointed by the brevity of the experience.”
The song came together at Stewart’s home in London while he was working on new material with Quittendon. Quittendon played some chords on guitar that Rod liked, and he began putting together a vocal melody while singing the words to the old English folk tune “Maggie Mae.” As he worked on original lyrics, Stewart used his fledgling sexual encounter as partial inspiration.
The Recording of “Maggie May”
“Maggie May” featured Quittendon on acoustic guitar. Stewart’s Faces bandmate Ronnie Wood played electric guitar, 12-string guitar, and bass on the track, while fellow Faces member Ian McLagan played Hammond organ. The song’s memorable mandolin parts were laid down by Ray Jackson, a member of the U.K. folk-rock band Lindisfarne.
The Legacy of “Maggie May”
“Maggie May” was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 2017. In 2021, the song was certified two-times platinum by the RIAA for sales of 2 million copies or units.
The tune also was ranked at No. 141 on Rolling Stone’s 2024 list of “The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.”
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