You can trace the cultural landscape of the 70s – by mirroring it to the music of Rod Stewart – the decade begins with the sublime British folk and American ‘roots-music’ influenced solo albums running parallel with the blues based swagger of his Faces recordings (a good time was had by all) – then he moves into a decent, if bland blend of blue-eyed soul and ‘bed me down’ ballads before jumping on the ‘look at me’ bandwagon of disco with “Da Ya Think I’m Sexy” – when that fizzles out, he finishes the decade off with the trashy “Hot Legs” – which paves the way for the big hair and bad fashion of the 80s. Thanks Rod, you had your finger on the pulse.
– Pat Thomas is the author of Listen, Whitey! The Sights and Sounds of Black Power 1965-1975.
