Beat Motel Zine

What do a 13-year-old Phil Collins, a violent music manager dangling people off balconies, and a psychedelic album packaged in a tobacco tin have in common? They are all part of the completely unhinged history of The Small Faces.
In this episode of Beat Motel, Andrew and Gimby (yes, he's back) dig into the story of Steve Marriott—arguably the greatest white soul singer the UK ever produced—and how his career peak might have actually been playing the Artful Dodger in 1960. We talk about Don Arden (Sharon Osbourne's notoriously terrifying dad), fixing the charts with mod networks, paying for suits with stolen royalties, and why putting an LP in a round tin is a structural disaster for record shop shelves. There's also some completely unnecessary sidetracks about Sting's real name, Rod Stewart's tight trousers, and a random bloke named Chris walking into the studio mid-record.
Amazing additional voice clips provided by Voiceover Artist Martin Whiskin - https://www.martinwhiskin.co.uk/
YouTube Video Description
The bizarre history of the 1960s mod scene and the absolute chaos behind the music industry.
In this episode, we chart the rise and fall of The Small Faces, from their childhood theatrical roots to becoming rock icons—all while getting completely fleeced by their management.
Discover how future stars like Phil Collins and Davy Jones are linked through a single West End musical, how chart-fixing actually worked in the 60s, and why Don Arden was known as the 'Al Capone of Pop' (hint: it involves dangling rival executives by their ankles from four floors up).
🚀 Binge more chaotic music chat here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vWvEIcKhJxA&list=PLwnzX0gT6IrcZqrF2Xslb19NiBRgd9rj9
Timestamps / Chapters:
00:00 The Best White Soul Voice in the UK
05:30 Steve Marriott, Phil Collins, and Oliver!
16:40 Davy Jones and The Beatles on Ed Sullivan
24:30 What Exactly is a Mod "Face"?
31:30 Meeting in a Music Bar & Rehearsing with Iron Maiden
44:00 Don Arden: The Al Capone of Pop
53:30 Ripped Off on Carnaby Street
58:30 The Balcony Incident (Ankle Tones)
01:08:00 Ogdens' Nut Gone Flake & The Round Tin Disaster
01:19:30 Enter Rod Stewart & The Faces
01:29:00 The Grim End of Steve Marriott
01:36:00 Gimby's Pop Quiz
Amazing additional voice clips provided by Voiceover Artist Martin Whiskin - https://www.martinwhiskin.co.uk/
#smallfaces #stevemarriott #60smusic #modculture #rockhistory
Citations
Fact 1: Steve Marriott and Phil Collins both played the Artful Dodger in the West End production of Oliver!
https://fishtailparkas.com/steve-marriott-the-immortal-artful-dodger/
https://www.discogs.com/release/5650375-Steve-Marriott-Ian-Carmichael-Joyce-Blair-David-Hovell-Mike-Sammes-Oliver-The-Original-1960-New-Thea
https://hipquotient.com/from-artful-dodgers-to-artful-rockers/
https://www.jackwild.info/theatre-work/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Artful_Dodger
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phil_Collins
https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0550203/
Fact 2: Davy Jones played the Artful Dodger in the West End and transferred to Broadway, appearing on The Ed Sullivan Show the same night as the Beatles
https://www.ibdb.com/broadway-cast-staff/davy-jones-491918
https://broadway.fandom.com/wiki/Oliver!
https://ovrtur.com/production/2883682/trivia
https://www.masterworksbroadway.com/blog/oliver-is-golden/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Consider_Yourself
Fact 3: Seeing the Beatles on the Ed Sullivan Show inspired Davy Jones to pursue pop stardom
https://theweek.com/articles/477499/davy-jones-19452012
https://www.wbur.org/hereandnow/2012/03/01/davy-jones-broadway
http://www.meetthebeatlesforreal.com/2014/02/the-other-performers.html
https://www.edsullivan.com/davy-jones-on-the-ed-sullivan-show/
https://www.billboard.com/articles/news/502986/monkees-singer-davy-jones-dead-at-66
Fact 4: Davy Jones received a Tony nomination (not a win) for Best Featured Actor for his Broadway debut in Oliver! (1963)
https://www.broadway.com/buzz/160327/davy-jones-tony-nominee-and-member-of-the-monkees-dies-at-age-66/
https://www.biography.com/musicians/davy-jones
https://www.britannica.com/biography/Davy-Jones-British-singer-and-actor
https://playbill.com/article/davy-jones-member-of-the-monkees-and-a-tony-nominee-for-oliver-dead-at-66-com-187950
https://www.ibdb.com/broadway-cast-staff/davy-jones-491918
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Davy_Jones_(musician)
Fact 5: Small Faces formation -- Marriott and Lane met at J60 Music Bar in 1965; the band name combined their physical stature with mod slang for a style leader
https://rock.fandom.com/wiki/Small_Faces
https://memories.fandom.com/wiki/Small_Faces
https://www.goldminemag.com/articles/the-small-faces-story-was-just-one-chapter-for-the-band/
https://www.thesmallfaces.com/biography/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Small_Faces
https://www.psaudio.com/blogs/copper/about-faces-and-the-small-faces/
Fact 6: Steve Marriott's voice was a cited influence on Robert Plant, Paul Stanley, Ozzy Osbourne and others
https://iconoclassicrecords.com/artist/steve-marriott/
https://www.alternativenation.net/paul-stanley-shocked-by-sxuality-of-robert-plant/
https://faroutmagazine.co.uk/the-rock-singer-robert-plant-said-that-was-too-good/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steve_Marriott_discography
Fact 7: Don Arden, the Decca deal, and the exploitation of the Small Faces (including the Carnaby Street clothing accounts charged back against earnings)
https://grokipedia.com/page/Don_Arden
https://faroutmagazine.co.uk/don-arden-notorious-gangster-black-sabbath/
https://www.indiewire.com/news/general/r-i-p-don-arden-221732/
https://theelonetwork.weebly.com/the-don-arden-story.html
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Don_Arden
https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1563185/trivia/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Small_Faces_(1967_album)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Patterns_(Small_Faces_song)
https://bestclassicbands.com/small-faces-lineup-8-6-16/
https://rockandrollogist.wordpress.com/2020/10/29/don-ardens-offices/
https://www.thelineofbestfit.com/features/interviews/small-faces-interview-85478
https://www.artgalleryclothing.co.uk/the-small-face/
https://drownedinsound.com/in_depth/4144640-the-best-dressed-band-in-england-dis-meets-kenney-jones-of-the-small-faces-amp-the-who
Fact 8: Sharon Osbourne is Don Arden's daughter; Peter Grant learned the business under Arden before managing Led Zeppelin
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sharon_Osbourne
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Don_Arden
https://www.loudersound.com/features/sharon-osbourne-i-got-f-cking-loud-because-i-needed-to-be-heard
https://inthepitmanagement.wixsite.com/mysite/post/notable-artist-manager-relationships-led-zeppelin-peter-grant
https://www.billboard.com/music/music-news/warren-grant-interview-son-led-zeppelin-manager-peter-grant-documentary-7424097/
https://bravewords.com/news/legendary-led-zeppelin-manager-to-be-subject-of-new-documentary
Fact 9: Robert Stigwood -- who he was and why the Arden incident matters
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Stigwood
https://www.televisionacademy.com/bios/robert-stigwood
https://grokipedia.com/page/Robert_Stigwood
https://www.hypebot.com/legendary-manager-producer-robert-stigwood-passes/
https://alchetron.com/Robert-Stigwood
Fact 10: Ogdens' Nut Gone Flake -- Stanley Unwin narration, the Spike Milligan near-miss, Unwinese origins, and the tobacco tin packaging
https://ultimateclassicrock.com/small-faces-ogdens-nut-gone-flake/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ogdens'_Nut_Gone_Flake
https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Music/OgdensNutGoneFlake
https://www.loudersound.com/features/totally-gone-the-story-of-the-small-faces-psychedelic-masterpiece-ogdens-nut-gone-flake
https://www.psychedelicbabymag.com/2014/02/small-faces-ogdens-nut-gone-flake-1968.html
https://anorakthing.blogspot.com/2014/09/professor-stanley-unwins-uk-45.html
https://www.loudersound.com/features/small-faces-ogdens-nut-gone-flake-cover
https://www.thisdayinmusic.com/classic-albums/the-small-faces-ogdens-nut-gone-flake/
Fact 11: Why Marriott left the Small Faces -- the Frampton tension, songwriting resentment, the unplayable album, the chart flop, and the financial mess
https://www.mojo4music.com/articles/stories/why-the-small-faces-split-up/
https://www.thisdayinmusic.com/stairway-to-heaven/steve-marriott/
https://ultimateclassicrock.com/steve-marriott-leaves-small-faces/
https://whynow.co.uk/read/steve-marriott-small-faces-to-humble-pie
https://faroutmagazine.co.uk/tragic-death-small-faces-steve-marriott/
Fact 12: The Faces rebrand -- dropping the "Small", the "Quite Melon" near-name, and the US "Small Faces" album mistake
https://kenneyjones.com/music/the-faces/
https://www.theofficialfaces.com/biography/
https://americansongwriter.com/ronnie-wood-shares-the-story-of-how-he-and-rod-stewart-helped-form-the-faces-after-steve-marriott-quit-the-small-faces/
http://www.rocknrollspotlight.com/?p=529
https://www.bandsintown.com/a/15833-faces
Fact 13: The death of Steve Marriott -- 20 April 1991, Arkesden, Essex; the timeline, the wrong-turn detail, and the broke-and-distrustful context
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steve_Marriott
https://faroutmagazine.co.uk/tragic-death-small-faces-steve-marriott/
https://onlyrocknrollsite.wordpress.com/2016/04/21/the-tragic-death-of-steve-marriott/
https://www.upi.com/Archives/1991/04/20/Fire-kills-60s-pop-music-star-Steve-Marriott/3707672120000/
https://variety.com/1991/scene/people-news/steve-marriott-99126370/
https://www.deseret.com/1991/4/21/18916534/60s-pop-star-perishes-in-london-area-cottage-fire/
Fact 14: The Small Faces' influence on later British bands -- Weller/The Jam, Blur, Oasis, Ocean Colour Scene and the wider mod/Britpop lineage
https://likefm.org/podcast/64794/paul-weller (Weller naming "Tin Soldier" on Desert Island Discs)
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1418226.Here_Come_The_Nice (Weller's Small Faces songbook)
https://music.apple.com/us/playlist/the-jam-influences/pl.8a3af71fe28946eba47d1194e339d6f2
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Universal_(Small_Faces_song) (Blur homage)
https://secondhandsongs.com/performance/200144 (Marriott memorial "Tin Soldier" with Weller and Noel Gallagher)
https://www.pressreader.com/uk/stirling-observer/20170929/282046212293990 (All or Nothing musical lineage)
https://danielrachel.com/writings/ocean-colour-scene-moseley-shoals/
https://www.elsewhere.co.nz/absoluteelsewhere/3138/ocean-colour-scene-interviewed-1996-take-it-to-the-top/ (OCS covering "Song of a Baker")
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Riverboat_Song (the "Four Sticks" riff caveat)

In a desperate bid to look like we know what we are talking about, we have overhauled the format. This week, Andrew drags a bewildered Dr. Sam through 1980s Liverpool to discuss why a three time Oscar winner spent his youth hiding in a camouflage suit.
We are diving deep into:
The Scouse Trinity: Exploring the "Crucial Three".

Julian Cope's Fear of the Floor: Why he performed on step ladders because he felt the floor was too dangerous.

The Mysterious Drum Machine: The story behind the machine they called "Echo".

The Big Lie: How they admitted the drum machine story was just a way to mess with journalists.

"Caramelised Hair": The era of sugar-styling that attracted swarms of flies and smelled like a burnt bakery.

The Cosmic Gateway: The time Bill Drummond decided a manhole cover in Matthew Street was a cosmic gateway to Iceland.

It is peak 80s chaos, involving more sugar and camouflage netting than a primary school bake sale in a war zone.
Suggested Listening
"The Killing Moon": The one Ian McCulloch insists was written by God, though it is actually the intro to Space Oddity played backwards.

"The Cutter": The band at the absolute peak of their 80s powers.

"People Are Strange": The Joel Schumacher and Lost Boys payday produced by Ray Manzarek of The Doors.

"Over the Wall": A masterpiece from their very dark, silhouette-heavy period.

"Brussels is Haunted": The sound of the band in 2026, because they are still at it.

Viking metal is a sad parody of music. Or at least, that's how Andrew starts this episode before Sam drags him through a hedge of historical facts. In a bold new format where one of us actually prepares and the other just reacts with increasing confusion, Dr. Sam (our resident academic-lite) guides us through the reality of Viking influence on music. We cover why Wagner is responsible for the horn-helmet lie, why Led Zeppelin is basically a Viking recruitment brochure, and why the Harp Twins might be the most terrifying thing we've ever watched. We also learn that real Vikings probably sounded less like growling Swedes and more like barking dogs. If you've ever wanted to know about Viking divorce laws, fossilized worms, or why the Finns freaked everyone out, this is the rambling mess you've been waiting for.

Show Notes
Right, here we go. In this episode, Andrew and Dr. Sam tackle 'Foreign Music'—which is basically just a fancy way of saying 'songs where we don't understand the words'. We kick things off with an enormous tube of lube and some fizzy water that's apparently trying to destroy Andrew's teeth.
The lads dive into the archives to discuss why the British are so terrified of music that isn't in English, the mystery of Joe Strummer's 'garbled nonsense' Spanish on 'Should I Stay or Should I Go', and the revelation that Plastic Bertrand was basically a French Milli Vanilli on a trampoline. Dr. Sam tries to bring some 'academic' weight to the proceedings by reading high-brow philosophy about repetition, while Andrew just wants to talk about Nena's bass player and why subscription underpants are a recipe for disaster. Expect tangents on Star Trek moral codes, stealing cars you can't drive, and the universal truth that everyone eventually gets 'yogurt chucked up' at them.
Riffs of the Week
Dr Sam's Riff: Elvin Jones - 'The Prime Element'
Andrew's Riff: Rebekah - 'Synthetic Collapse'
Dr Sam's Track Choices
The Clash - 'Should I Stay or Should I Go'
Magma - 'Hortz fur dehn stekehn west'
Pixvae - 'La Fuga'
Mc Solaar - 'Qui seme le vent recolte le tempo'
Andrew's Track Choices
Plastic Bertrand - 'Ca plane pour moi'
Blur - 'To the End (La Comedie)'
Serge Gainsbourg - 'Bonnie and Clyde'
Nena - '99 Luftballons'
Email us: beatmotel@lawsie.com

Look, we tried to have a sophisticated chat about interwar music (the stuff between the two big global scraps) but obviously, it devolved into a conversation about penis tattoos and whether or not Reddit is a valid academic source.
Dr. Sam brings the "knowledge" (mostly from books he is actually holding, for once), and Andrew tries to figure out how to eat a Scotch egg without a plate while pondering the sexual deviance of 1920s novelty songs. We cover Duke Ellington's Mood Indigo, the absolute filth hidden in "I'm Going to Bring a Watermelon to My Girl Tonight," and why Robert Johnson might have just practiced really hard instead of selling his soul to the devil. It is a rambling journey through jazz, folk, and German Marxist theatre that somehow ends with Woody Allen and a two-fingered guitarist.
 

Riffs of the week
Dr Sam's Riff
Dog Faced Hermans - Jan 9
Andrew's Riff
Witch Post - Worry Angel
Dr Sam's track choices
Duke Ellington - Mood Indigo
Bonzo Dog Doo Dah Band - I'm Gonna Bring a Watermelon to My Girl Tonight
Brecht - Instead-Of Song
Harlem Hamfats - Let's Get Drunk and Truck
Andrew's track choices
Laurel and Hardy - Trail of the lonesome pine
Robert Johnson - Crossroad blues
Woodie Guthrie - This Land Is Your Land (1940)
Django Reinhardt & Stephane Grappelli - Minor Swing
Email us - beatmotel@lawsie.com