Steve Marriott life and times
One of rock’n’roll’s greatest heroes, from the Mod days of Small Faces to Humble Pie and beyond – Steve Marriott life and times.
Derek Shelmerdine author of Rock’n’Roll Unravelled
is a guest on The Frank Carlyle Show.
Hear the show live on Facebook – 17 July 2023
Derek Shelmerdine’s look at Steve Marriott
starts around 8.15 pm (UK)
Check out which of the artists/bands talked about in the show
are on tour now…
PODCAST
To hear the show again… watch this space…
Steve Marriott life and times
One of the true giants of rock’n’roll – Steve Marriott.
His career started out in music theatre, when he played Oliver in London’s West End in 1960. Three years later he released his first solo single Give Her My Regards. By 1963 he was in a band called The Frantiks, which became The Moments.
1964 was an interesting year for Steve Marriott, he nearly formed an R&B duo with David Bowie, David and Goliath. He also played harmonica on 365 Rolling Stones by the Andrew Loog Oldham Orchestra. Slightly later, Andrew Oldham played a big part in Steve Marriott’s career.
THE SMALL FACES
The Small Faces played their first gig at Kensington Youth Centre in East Ham on 6 May 1965. The band’s name came from this gig. Jimmy Winston’s girlfriend said after the gig, “you’ve all got such small faces”.
They signed with Don Arden in June 1965 and in September, Whatcha Gonna Do About It gave them their first UK hit single, peaking at #14.
In August 1966, their fourth single, All or Nothing gave them their first and only UK #1. At the end of the year, they also changed management, from Don Arden to the Harold Davidson Organisation. That was short lived. In early 1967 they moved from the Decca label when they signed up with new manager Andrew Loog Oldham and his Immediate label.
In August 1967 Itchycoo Park was their eighth UK hit. A few months later it made the American Billboard Hot 100. Their only Billboard Top-40 in the band’s lifetime. Their most famous album, Ogden’s Nut Gone Flake – with Stanley Unwin, charted in the summer of 1968. It was their first and only UK #1 album.
However, all was not well in the band. On 31 December 1968 Steve Marriott stormed off-stage during a gig at Alexandra Palace in London.
HUMBLE PIE
The Small Faces reached the end of the road in March 1969. Following this, Steve Marriott teamed up with ex-Herd guitarist Peter Frampton, ex-Spooky Tooth bassist Greg Ridley and ex-Little Women drummer Jerry Shirley to form Humble Pie.
Highly rated but not very successful commercially, Peter Frampton left after their fourth album, Rock On in the spring of 1971. This was the only hit album to include Peter Frampton.
Clem Clempson replaced Peter Frampton, from Bakerloo and Colosseum, in October 1971.
Humble Pie split up in early 1975, after their eighth studio album, Street Rats
STEVE MARRIOTT LIVE AND TIMES – THE REST OF THE 1970s
In mid-1975 Steve formed his own band, Steve Marriott’s All Stars.
The following year he released the solo album Marriott. The album credits one side as, “With British Band” and the other side, “With American Musicians”.
The Small Faces re-formed in mid-1976 and released two albums, Playmates and 78 in the Shade, in 1977 and 1978 respectively.
More déjὰ vu followed in 1979, when Humble Pie also re-formed.
STEVE MARRIOTT LIVE AND TIMES – THE 1980s
In mid-1981 Humble Pie split up, after releasing two albums, On to Victory and Go for the Throat.
Steve Marriott’s new band, Pack of Three recorded Live at Dingwalls on 6 July 1984.
Later in the 1980s he formed another band, Steve Marriott and the DTs and released another solo album, Thirty Seconds to Midnight.
STEVE MARRIOTT LIVE AND TIMES – THE 1990s AND BEYOND
In 1990 he was on the road and using the name Pack of Three again.
Another reunion followed. In early 1991 he was back with Peter Frampton. They recorded two tracks, The Bigger They Come and I Won’t Let You Down. Peter Frampton’s album, Shine On: A Collection included both tracks when it was released in the autumn of 1992.
Sadly, Steve Marriott died in a house fire on 20 April 1991.
In 2012 Small Faces and Steve Marriott were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
Rock’n’Roll Unravelled – the book
With its unique three-part structure, Rock’n’Roll Unravelled tells the story of Rock’n’roll from its roots to mid-1970s punk. Not just the music but also the influencing factors, such as the Vietnam War and Civil Rights struggle
