That had its definite advantages, but when it came time to wrangle the songs into shape in the studio, it could also make things difficult — especially when they elected to self-produce, as they did during the Long Player sessions. Had Me a Real Good Time' was a typical boozy Faces rocker - loose and not particularly melodic, but fun in a shambling kind of way. They were clearly superstars, but the arrogance you'd normally associate with such a band was largely absent. Very Good: The record has obviously been played many times, but displays no major deterioration in sound quality, despite noticeable surface marks and the occasional light scratch. Opening up with some acoustic slide guitar from Wood, it took awhile for 'On the Beach' to show it's true colors, but by the time Lane's whiny voice kicked in it was clear this was a nifty alt-folk number that Lane would begin to pursue in earnest when he went solo.

It's nice when someone picks up on the little things you try and do, when they point them out in reviews, you realize you got your point over. Although Stewart's vocals were arguably the most immediately identifiable aspect of the Faces' sound, the band didn't really have a leader, per se — their distinct chemistry was wholly dependent on each member's equal contributions, and they functioned, more or less, as a creative democracy.This practice led to increased murmurings of discontent in some quarters that Stewart's management was keeping the best Faces studio performances for Stewart's solo projects, to the detriment of the band as a unit. Opening track Bad 'n' Ruin has a great vocal performance by Rod Stewart, who overall is a bit more of a presence this time around - but don't worry, this was back in the day when a prominent Rod Stewart was a benefit and not a detriment to a song.

Rod's first 3 solo album's were produced while he was safe in the fold of the "Faces" often trying his new material out on audiences while on tour with them. Their first two albums, First Step (1970) and Long Player (1971), lacked a hit single, but their third album, 1971's A Nod Is As Good As a Wink.The album was reissued in the mid 1970s as part of the double album 'Two Originals of The Faces' with record one being 'First Step'. Music is highly subjective to each individuals taste so trying to rate this as the best "Faces" album is just silly!

And it frustrates me cause I know that every single contributor to this record is capable of more exciting things, so who's to blame for this album being such a bore? At one time I was feeling like that, well, being stuck away was going to be my position for the rest of my life. The remaining Small Faces— Ian McLagan (keyboards), Ronnie Lane (electric bass, vocals), and Kenney Jones (drums and percussion)—were joined by guitarist Ronnie Wood and singer Rod Stewart, both from the Jeff Beck Group, and the new line-up was renamed Faces. Unfortunately they never got much airplay in the States in their time and they were shamefully overlooked. The main reason (in my opinion) for the success of "A Nod's As Good As A Wink To A Blind Horse" was due to the presence of Glyn Johns.

Among their most successful songs were "Had Me a Real Good Time", their breakthrough UK hit " Stay with Me", "Cindy Incidentally" and " Pool Hall Richard". Notes of dates for the live tracks use the US dating system - songs were performed and recorded on 10 November 1970. While the latter track was eventually compiled to CD with the release of the Five Guys Walk into a Bar.