The Small Faces were indeed small… all of them were between 5’4″ and 5’6.” They would later grow when the taller Rod Stewart and Ronnie Wood joined and they became the Faces.
Lazy Sunday came off the classic album Ogdens’ Nut Gone Flake. The Small Faces didn’t intend to release this song. Steve Marriott was against his manager Andrew Loog Oldham’s decision to release this as a single and that was one reason why he left the group shortly afterward to be replaced by Stewart. The band didn’t take the song seriously and made it into a joke. Steve sang some of the voices with a cockney accent.
They were touring Germany and they picked up a music paper and saw it was not only released but a hit. Steve wanted a tougher image for the band, and this was more of a novelty pop song.
This song is not a good example, but Steve Marriott may have had the best voice of all his peers. Robert Plant and Paul Rodgers have cited Marriott as an influence. Personally, I would take him over those two and that is saying a lot.
The Small Faces also recorded this critically acclaimed concept psychedelic album in 1968 with their new record company Immediate Records. They never followed it up and only performed it once live in its entirety on a television show called Colour Me Pop. It spent 6 weeks at number one on the UK Album Charts.
Lazy Sunday peaked at #2 in the UK, #42 in Canada, and #114 in the Billboard 100.
This song was written by Steve Marriott. Marriott and Ronnie Lane did most of the writing. Their songs were clever and catchy. This band should have been bigger than they were… With the right record label, manager and push, they might have broken through.
Kenney Jones: “Steve had been a child actor, he was the first Artful Dodger in Lionel Bart’s Oliver in the West End. He brought back that theatricality to this.”
Ian McLagan: “When Steve came in with this it was slower. We started taking the piss out of it while he was out of the room. The ‘Root-ti-doo-ti-di-day’ thing stop and he laughed when he came back in and heard us. So we cut it like that. It was a piss take!”
Lazy Sunday
A-wouldn’t it be nice to get on with me neighbours?
But they make it very clear, yhey’ve got no room for ravers
They stop me from groovin’, they bang on me wall
They doing me crust in, it’s no good at all, ah
Lazy Sunday afternoon
I’ve got no mind to worry
I close my eyes and drift away-a
Here we all are sittin’ in a rainbow
Gor blimey, hello Mrs. Jones, how’s old Bert’s lumbago? (he mustn’t grumble)
(Tweedle-dee) I’ll sing you a song with no words and no tune (twiddly-dee)
To sing in the khazi while you suss out the moon, oh yeah
Lazy Sunday afternoon, I’ve got no mind to worry
Close my eyes and drift away-a
Root-de-doo-de-doo, a-root-de-doot-de-doy-di
A-root-de-doot-de-dum, a-ree-de-dee-de-doo-dee (doo-doo, doo-doo)
There’s no one to hear me, there’s nothing to say
And no one can stop me from feeling this way, yeah
Lazy Sunday afternoon
I’ve got no mind to worry
Close my eyes and drift away
Lazy Sunday afternoon
I’ve got no mind to worry
Close my eyes and drift a-
Close my mind and drift away, close my eyes and drift away
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I believe this song was Small Faces best, or was it “Itchycoo Park”? Nevertheless, it was very enjoyable – and sung in Cockney.
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I love the Cockney voice. My favorite is probably Itchycoo Park but I do like this one. I like Tin Soilder also.
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I did not know this song, but found it interesting that this was what caused Steve Marriott to leave the band.
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They did it as a joke and all of a sudden it was released…they were not happy.
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I didn’t know they were so petit, giving them the name! Not a terrible tune but not one that I would imagine won them a whole lot of fans … interesting video though considering the time period.
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A lot of people know them by two songs… Itchycoo Park and this one which is a damn shame.
I know I’m in the minority with this….but replacing Marriott with Stewart at best was a wash but I would put Marriott higher….though he is not as famous of course….I’m talking just in voice.
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Itchycoo Park is the one I automatically think of with them.
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Another one of those Slade and T Rex bands…Itchycoo Park was their one big hit here…they had a lot over there.
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I love this tune, Max. I didn’t know the Small Faces were physically on the shorter side. Rod Stewart doesn’t exactly strike me as a tall guy either. Not sure about Ronnie Wood.
In any case, I suppose height is all relative. And regardless of any physical properties, there’s no doubt they were pretty big artists. If Rod Stewart only had remained on the blues rock and rock track…
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Yes that is why they switched from small to just Faces…they were much taller than the rest.
I agree with that. If they would have had an honest manager….The Small Faces would have been popular in America.
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I’ve heard this song dozens of times and never taken any notice of the words before!
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It’s a funny song…and I love the cockney voice the most.
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Novelty or not it was a fave of mine as a 10 year old so im still fond of it 🙂 i prefer itchycoo park tho, so good it went top 10 again in 1976
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Oh I loved it
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This is a fun little number- I liked Tin Soldier’ ‘Afterglow’ and ‘Here Comes The Nice’ more, but this was the hit- this and ‘Itchycoo Park.’
I believe the lyrics might be sanitised, or I misheard ’em- I always thought the ‘Sing at your party while you souse at the moon’ was ‘To sit in the karzi and suss out the moon.’ Karzi being cockney for, ahem, ‘old cold outside convenience.’ Seeing someone running holding onto a bog roll on the video tends to add a bit of credence to the theory, maybe?
Still, I fink I could be wrong, coz I also fought summa the ovver words wuz ”Ullo Mrs Jones, how’s your birds lumbago?’
Jeez little Steve could sing though, whatever the words.
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What you said is probably right…you got me curious and I found another place for lyrics that said “To sing in the khazi while you suss out the moon, oh yeah”
Yea Steve would sing…one of my favorite voices of that era.
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You go from Lazy Sunday to Manic Monday to Tuesday’s Gone….lol
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Lol…
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Cute song. And, very, very British. LOL!
I still remember the report of Kim’s death in Austin, TX, in 2006.
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Yea I do also…I found that out right after it happened. I just read Moon’s bio.
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I used to have a CD copy of Ogden Nut’s Flake with the tin. Does anyone else get confused that the Kinks have a song titled Sunny Afternoon on their Face to Face album?
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I never thought of that! I could see that.
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I had no idea they were the Small Faces because they were all… small! Shame that Marriott didn’t appreciate it being released… Why record it in the first place? If I were a pop star (bit of a stretch, but…) I’d be happy with any hit single : )
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He wanted more of a hard blues sound for them…which he would get with Frampton in Humble Pie.
I don’t get that either…I get it was a joke but what were they going to do with it?
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I can understand his frustrations a little better now that it’s their best remembered hit, in the UK at least.
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Oh I thought Itchycoo Park would be…but I guess them both. I do like this
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Oh maybe… It’s close. Lazy Sunday is one I’ve know since I was young, so it’s the first one I think of
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All the best people are around 5′ 4″. Fact! 😉
I saw The Small Faces when they reformed for a tour in 1977 … just as Punk was breaking big time. They were amazing. I agree with you on Marriot’s voice – he and Graham Parker have the best in my opinion.
(The ‘Ogden Nut Gone Flake’ album also features the eccentric Professor Stanley Unwin speaking in his ‘gobblydegook’ language between the tracks .. all very surreal.) 🙂
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Again…I’m so jealous that you got to see them… you know you have a great voice when some members of your band are wondering if Rod Stewart can fill the gap.
I really like that album…I wish they would have built on it.
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