Small Faces - Itchycoo Park

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Steve Marriott – vocals, guitar, harmonica, keyboards (1965–1968, 1975–1978; died 1991 in a house fire)
Ronnie Lane – bass guitar, vocals, guitar (1965–1969, 1975; died 1997)
Ian McLagan – keyboards, vocals, guitar, bass (1965–1969, 1975–1978; died 2014)
Kenney Jones – drums, percussion, vocals (1965–1969, 1975–1978)


Not bad for a band of mods singing about taking acid in the park. Of course, much like what the aforementioned Beatles had done with Sgt. Pepper, the Small Faces had created a song, and later an full-length album, that was very hard to reproduce live. This was the beginning of an era where the studio was becoming an instrument, just as important as any guitar or drum. Like the tunes on Pepper, the song features some revolutionary techniques that marked the era and would influence other eras too. Specifically, “Itchycoo Park” was one of the first tracks to feature a technique called phasing or flanging; that is, two recordings of the same lines playing at the same time while also being slightly delayed from one another. This is what gives the track its otherworldly quality. It’s almost a shame that this band ended by 1969. Almost, because they morphed into The Faces, when Rod Stewart and Ron Wood late of the Jeff Beck Group joined remaining members Ronnie Lane (AKA ‘Plonk’), Kenney Jones, while Mac, creating something equally special. Marriott went onto form Humble Pie with Peter Frampton, and the 1970s commenced accordingly. Neither band gained much traction on the scale of the Stones or Bowie. Yet, “Itchycoo Park” and Ogden’s Nut Gone Flake have both been heralded as masterpieces by critics and prominent music papers.