The Faces Singer Writes: 1973

Melody Maker, January 13, 1973

The Faces singer writes exclusively in the MM every month...

ROD STEWART

AL JOLSON'S one of my favourite singers. At the end of my last column, I said I'd talk about him and what he means to me. Here's how it all came about:

I was very young when Jolson died. That was in 1950. My whole family used to collect Jolson's records, they had them all on 78s, whereas I have got them on LPs. Everything I used to hear was Al Jolson or Danny Kaye. Crosby never used to get a look in.

So it really rubbed off on me a ot. Then when I was old enough I was taken to see his films. Not Jolson's films, th ones about Jolson with Larry Parkes The Jolson Story and Jolson Sings Again. And that's when it really hit home that was well before I had any idea I was going to come into this business myself. I got so bowled over by him.

The more I read about him, and I've read several books on him, I sort of flatter myself and try to compare myself to him. I've got one thing in common with him. That's that I can't bear seeing empty seats at a gig we're playing. I have terrible dramas about that. Jolson used to have that one. There's a lot of things, but I don't suppose there's a comparison between me and him it's probably just that all entertainers have got their phobias like that.

The last book I was reading a thing by a guy called Michael Freeland* isn't one of the best books. But there are some incredible facts in there. Like the story about his meeting with Al

Capone at the time he was getting really big in New York. Jolson, that is, not Capone. He stepped outside his dressing room, was escorted to a big black limousine, taken off and put into a room. Then, in walks this little scar-faced yob. "My name's Al," he

says. And he made Jolson sing for him for two and a half hours. An incredible story and apparently the only time the two Al's met.

It's incredible when you think that he had no mike and could reach an audience of 2,000. When we played the Edmonton Sundown there were 3,000 in but we also had 3,000 watts of pa to help us out. So there's a lot to be said for those old stars. There's no one like that, I admire as much as Jolson. He blots out everyone as far as I'm concerned. Next time I'm in New York, I'd love to look up some of the places where Jolson played the Winter Gardens, the Palace.

LOVE theatre much I more so than cinema. I always get a nice box seat. Then I can see what's going on round the back. When you see there are three or four plays running in town which have been going for three years and never had an empty seat you have to agree that theatre is still a viable form. Not that it's likely to ever really appeal to the kids. It's still too snobby, still a bit of the old white scarf and top hat.

Theatre has undoubtedly influenced rock in the last few months. The whole thing has taken on a theatre look. Or is it just showmanship? As long as camp rock's not flogged to death it could last.

Then again, it could go the same way as the rower power bit. Too many people can jump on the bandwagon. Mind you, it's a difficult bandwagon to jump on. And it all depends on what you call camp. But then there's too much intellectualising of rock today. Christ! I wish this business wouldn't be SO serious.

But I think rock and roll's a culture now. What is culture? It's age as much as anything. And rock's old enough now to be called a culture- like the cinema back through the years-old Cecil B and all his extravaganzas.

I HAD a lifelong ambition come true a few weeks back when I met Dennis Law

(when Manchester United were playing Leeds). He's been like a hero to me for years and years and years. I went downstairs to the dressing room to meet him, because he'd been taken off at half time. He'd been half kicked to death and his knee was swollen. It was the first time in my life I really didn't know what to say. Usually, I would always know what to say. I wouldn't care who it was whether it was the Queen or Enoch Powell. But with that guy, I didn't know what to say. I was SO overwhelmed by it all. As it turned out he was a really beautiful guy. Meeting him was probably the best Christ-mas present I had, that and the set of bagpipes I got.

But as a game, I'm bored with talking about football, bored with reading about football. Football's become a sick sport just lately, it really has. I'm sort of ashamed to tell anybody that I even like watching football because I'm ashamed of the game, ashamed of what it's become. It's not a sport any more it's buying and selling of flesh now.

The game's not attractive to watch attendances have proved that. They're dropping off terribly. Of course, tele-vision's probably the main offender there. Still, it was great meeting old Dennis.

Rod Stewart was speaking to Peter Burton