Faces – Five Guys Walk into a Bar…

Faces was the original Slacker band. Their music is deliberately sloppy, yet they are fantastic rock musicians—sloppiness was an aesthetic choice. They were the British contribution to proto-punk. As rock was getting serious, Faces were defiantly goofy. Their vibe is the apex of intoxication: a well-crafted buzz just before one too many.

Jeff Tweedy (Wilco) states in the liner notes:

The Faces’ importance as punk prototypes cannot be questioned; they never appeared to take anything too seriously. Cutting all potential pathos with a wink and a healthy shot of rubbing alcohol— pinky raised, no less. Like the ne’er-do-well that can’t even keep a straight face while his clothes are being tossed out on the lawn. Always falling apart and having a great time at it. I love ’em and doubt seriously if we could have had a Sex Pistols much less a Replacements without them.

Face’s photographer Tom Wright rejects the drunk and sloppy characterization. In the liner notes to this box, he says:

The Faces drank, no doubt about it, but to the point of sloppiness? Show me the moment. I have seen a hundred shows, sound checks, and late-night jams, and sloppy is a word that doesn’t fit… anywhere. That would be like calling the kid who could ride a bicycle with”no hands” while shooting you the finger and yelling something funny a sloppy rider. The Faces were so good they made it look easy.

The band was:

Rod Stewart on vocals. Stewart was fresh out of the Jeff Beck Group and had a solo deal, but his solo career had yet to take off. With the Faces, he was just a bloke. If you are turned off by the pop star he became, this is Rod as the best bar band singer of all time. By the time the band ended in 1975, Stewart’s success had eclipsed the Faces, but he was never finer than in the early 70s with Faces and on his solo albums (that were basically Faces albums).

Ronnie Wood is on guitar. Woody is one of my favorite rock musicians. He was in the Jeff Beck Group with Stewart. He was a major player on the early Stewart solo albums. A decent percentage of his solo albums are awesome. More recently, he has been the other guitarist in the Rolling Stones (since 1975).

Kenney Jones on drums. Kenney was with the Small Faces and replaced Keith Moon in The Who—an excellent rock drummer – slow but in time – an elegant stumble.

Ian McLagan on keyboards. In addition to Small Faces and Faces, he has been a sideman for the Stones.

Ronnie Lane is on bass, playing various other instruments and occasionally being the lead vocalist. Lane was the heart and soul of the band. Lane played in Small Faces and Faces but quit Faces in 1973. He was replaced in Faces by Tetsu Yamauchi. After Faces, he collaborated with other musicians, leading his bands and pursuing a solo career. In 1977, he was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. Charity projects and financial contributions from friends, former bandmates, and fans supported him. After living with the disease for 21 years, he died in June 1997, aged 51.

In summary, it was one hell of a lineup.

Five Guys Walk into a Bar… is an excellent compilation of the band—a five-hour (sixty-seven-track) history lesson on the band via selections from their four studio albums, outtakes, side projects, assorted rare single A and B-sides, BBC sessions, and rehearsal tapes. It was released as a four-CD box set in 2004.

I bought this when it came out and gave it a serious listen on a road trip with my teenage son. Fortunately, he dug it, and I knew I had succeeded as a parent. I was vaguely familiar with Faces’ catalog but very familiar with the band members’ careers after Faces. I was a receptive student.

Ian McLagan lovingly produced the box set. He brilliantly curated the Faces’ vault of recordings from rehearsals, the studio and live. Ian’s guiding principle in selection: his gut. Most compilations are chronological, but Ian prefers to play DJ. Many compilations of this magnitude are tedious listens. Five Guys Walk into a Bar… works perfectly – it is not a boring listen. I effortlessly slammed through the four discs over two evenings – zero boredom – just amazement.

I highly recommend compilation. Unfortunately, it is not available on streaming services. However, I see it on Discogs and eBay for as low as $40.

The live material is on streaming:

A subset of the live material is on the Record Store Day release: