The Small Faces-Ogdens´Nut Gone Flake (1968)

One of the quintessential mod groups was Small Faces, who, with four extraordinary albums, firmly established their influence and were the only band to challenge the kings of the genre, The Who. Formed in the mid-1960s, it all began when guitarist Steve Marriott, who already had the experience of releasing the commercially unsuccessful track "Give Her My Regards", met bassist Ronnie Lane by chance in a music shop. Their shared musical tastes soon inspired them to form a band, recruiting drummer Kenny Jones and keyboardist Jimmy Winston. Taking advantage of Winston's influence (his parents owned a famous pub), they rehearsed and played their first gigs there. Shortly after, in the summer of 1965, Decca produced their single "Whatcha Gonna Do About It", which became a significant hit on the British charts. However, it was their next single, "Sha La La La Lee", that would propel them to the top of the charts. Before this, Winston left the group and was replaced by Ian McLagan, a keyboardist with greater technical skill. With a string of more good songs charting, the group immersed themselves in early 1966 in recording their self-titled debut album, "Small Faces", which contained the aforementioned hits, as well as others like the bluesy "You Need Loving" and their cover of Sam Cooke's "Shake". By this point, the group had achieved the perfect balance, particularly with the Marriott-Lane duo, and the results were reflected in their numerous concerts throughout Great Britain. This was a time of heightened mod fervor, so it was no surprise that the group consistently sold out venues. A series of great songs, such as "All or Nothing", "My Mind's Eye", and "I Can't Make It", foreshadowed their second album, "From the Beginning" (1967). That same year, the track "Itchycoo Park" became the English response to the hippie utopias of American music arriving in Europe. Another album, also titled "Small Faces" (1967), preceded their masterpiece, "Ogdens Nut Gon Flake" (1968), a work heavily influenced by The Beatles' "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band", but far more psychedelic, experimental, and conceptual. However, it was precisely this last album that marked the beginning of the Small Faces' final mod phase, as they disbanded a few months later, but not before releasing some excellent tracks like "The Universal", "The Journey", and "Afterglow (of Your Love)". Shortly after, Jones and Lane recruited Rod Stewart and Ron Wood to form The Faces, a band with mixed success due in part to Stewart's lack of interest, as he had begun his solo career. Nevertheless, they achieved a number one hit with the album "Ooh La La" (1973). Marriott, meanwhile, embarked on a new adventure with his band Humble Pie, which would achieve great success in the following years. Years later, in the mid-seventies, Small Faces were revived by Jones, McLagan, and Marriott, who, along with bassist Ricky Willis, formerly of Peter Frampton's band, recorded two albums with little impact: "Playmates" (1977) and "78 In the Shade" (1978).