For Kenney Jones, reclaiming the Small Faces legacy has been a lengthy battle, doggedly pursuing unpaid royalties and restoring the management of this beloved group’s back catalogue. “I don’t think any band’s been treated worse than the Small Faces,” Jones’s former bandmate Ian McLagan ruefully told Uncut in 2014. Jones’s achievements, then, are nothing short of heroic – as this month’s cover story attests. Nominally a celebration of the posthumous – and now radically expanded – The Autumn Stone album, our cover story explores the band’s tumultuous 1968, discovering along the way tantalising new insights into the music they made in their final year together. “It’s amazing how many songs we did in such a short space of time,” says Jones. “And how much we’ve touched people. Did I think it was going to last? It never entered my mind. But here we are, 60 years later, still talking about it.”
You’ll have also noticed, I’m sure, that print editions of this month’s issue also come with an exclusive Small Faces CD featuring a slew of rare mixes, alternate takes and live cuts. Everything a young mod could possibly ask for, in other words.
As usual, there’s an embarrassment of riches inside, from Slade to Keith Jarrett, Suzanne Vega to Oasis, Jonathan Richman to These New Puritans. While I wouldn’t normally single out any specific feature for your attention, do please check out Alastair McKay’s piece on Lou Reed’s fearsome Metal Machine Music, which makes for both incredibly funny and deeply insightful reading.
You’ll also find advice from Lou’s guitar tech on how to recreate Metal Machine Music in the comfort of your own home.
What will the neighbours think? Let’s hope they’ve got room for ravers after all.
