Faces Box: Five Guys Walk Into a Bar [Box set, Original recording remastered]

Faces | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (July 20, 2004)
• Number of Discs: 4
• Format: Box set, Original recording remastered
• Note on Boxed Sets: During shipping, discs in boxed sets occasionally become dislodged without damage. Please examine and play these discs. If you are not completely satisfied, we'll refund or replace your purchase.
• Label: Rhino
• ASIN: B0001Z2R96
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (74 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #7,021 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)
  • #38 in Music > Alternative Rock > Hardcore & Punk > Proto Punk
  • #89 in Music > Box Sets

Track Listings

Disc: 1

1. Flying

2. On The Beach

3. Too Bad

4. If I’m On The Late Side

5. Debris

See all 18 tracks on this disc

Disc: 2

1. Pool Hall Richard

2. You’re My Girl

3. (I Don’t Want To Discuss It) (Live/BBC)

4. Glad And Sorry

5. Shake, Shudder, Shiver (Rehearsal)

See all 18 tracks on this disc

Disc: 3

1. You’re So Rude

2. (I Know) I’m Losing You (Live/BBC)

3. Love Lives Here

4. I’d Rather Go Blind (Live)

5. Hi-Heel Sneakers/Everybody Needs

See all 17 tracks on this disc

Disc: 4

1. The Stealer (Live/BBC)*

2. Around The Plynth/Gasoline Alley

3. (Live/BBC)*

4. You Can Make Me Dance, Sing Or Anything(Even Take The Dog For A Walk, Mend A Fuse, Fold Away The Ironing Board, Or Any Other Domestic Short Comings)

5. I Wish It Would Rain (Live)

See all 17 tracks on this disc

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

England's Faces (1970-1975) wound up playing stadiums, but they always had a compact, pub-band feel. They were proud boozers, tuning up wasn't a major obsession, and Rod Stewart (in pre-disco prime) always sounded like he'd sung himself hoarse the night before. They kept the mood light, but ensemble work was deceptively tight, thanks to drummer Kenney Jones (later Keith Moon's replacement in the Who) and guitarist Ron Wood (post-Jeff Beck, pre-Stones), who'd switch between raunchy lead and raunchy rhythm roles between beats. Wood's blues-drenched slide work snuffed most of his rock competition, and helped define the band's wiry sound. But Faces offered more than teapot blues. Tuneful bassist Ronnie Lane's sweet voice and countryish melodies--think "Ooh La La," revived as the movie Rushmore's closing theme--both lightened and deepened the texture. Keyboardist Ian McLagan picked and sequenced 67 tracks, programming them out of chronological order, to flow like concert sets. Included are abundant rarities--out-takes, b-sides, rehearsals, BBC-broadcast excerpts--including live takes of songs Faces recorded under Stewart's name, like "Gasoline Alley" and "Maggie May." (A few tunes are heard in live and studio versions.) It's a very good selection of music that wears remarkably well. --Kevin Whitehead

Product Description

From 1969 to 1975 the Faces - Rod Stewart, Ian McLagan, Ron Wood, Ronnie Lane, and Kenney Jones - played their loose and joyful blues and soul-inflected rock 'n' roll with reckless abandon, consummate skill, and immeasurable charm. For those few years they were arguably the greatest band on the planet, and their influence has resonated ever since through the music of countless acts, from the Sex Pistols to The Replacements to The Black Crowes, and on and on. After the Faces dissolved in 1975, Stewart went on to solo superstardom, Wood to the Stones, Jones to The Who, McLagan to world - class session work and his own recordings, and Lane to acclaimed solo projects before he succumbed to multiple sclerosis in 1997. Greater than the sum of its parts, the Faces made now - immortal music for which there will never, ever be a last call.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

52 of 57 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Yes, Sit On My Faces!!!!, July 28, 2004

By 

"The Woj" (Downers Grove, IL) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Faces Box: Five Guys Walk Into a Bar (Audio CD)

This four disc retrospective is a must have for any Faces, Rod Stewart or Ronnie Wood fan (et alia). We're treated to all the best songs as well as previously unissued tracks including studio rehearsals and superbly recorded BBC live tracks. All digitally remastered by the "masters" at Rhino. These songs have never sounded better!
This set does not follow the standard chronological order of many box sets and does not fall prey to the expanded greatest hits package either. The tracklist was put together by Ian McLagan himself. Although the song order may seem a bit disjointed at first; it really keeps the listener interested and the music flowing quite well. No need to go into details about the band itself, because chances are if you're reading this you are already a Faces fan. A fan who wishes there was more Faces music out there for consumption. A fan who wishes Rod Stewart would "rock" again. A fan who hopes Ronnie Wood would quit posing and crank out the guitar again.
Well this set answers at least one of those wishes in a big way.
Don't let the price scare you off, you can not take the $$$$$$$ with you anyway. So add it to your cart and don't look back. you will not regret it!
One last thing...for a Faces "newcomer", you're best bet is to purchase the single disc album, "The Best Of Faces: Good Boys When They're Asleep". If after a few listens of that disc, you want more, then opt for this box. Some of the studio jams and very raw rehearsal tracks (borderline bootleg quality) on this four disc set might be a little much for the casual Faces listener. All in all the best box I've purchased all summer!

48 of 53 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Ron Wood, call your office!, January 6, 2005

By 

John Stodder "a.k.a. Juan La Princi" (livin' just enough) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Faces Box: Five Guys Walk Into a Bar (Audio CD)

I always liked the Faces years ago, when their career overlapped the great early years of Rod Stewart's solo career. It's great to have them back on four discs of hits, album cuts, live cuts, cover versions, rehearsals, B-sides and unreleased music. They weren't prolific album-makers, so all of this material gives them a presence in your CD changer they might not have had before.

Because of Rod Stewart's great success as a solo artist, the Faces always seemed like the other place to go to hear his music, and not the main event. But this box set puts it all in perspective. This was not Rod Stewart's band at all. It was Ron Wood's.

Hearing all this music in one place, you are overwhelmed with his unbelievably great guitar playing--perhaps the most creative guitar in rock. He does it all: Riffs, rhythm, solos, bottleneck, and on a few cuts playing completely by himself for stretches of intense expressiveness, like a dog howling at the moon. When he's called upon to be tender (like on many of Ronnie Lane's excellent songs like "Richmond" and "Debris"), Wood is like a painter. But he's also the driving force in hard rocking songs like "Miss Judy's Farm" and "Stay With Me." He never wastes a note!

Where is this Ron Wood now? He has been absorbed into the Rolling Stones, but I cannot think of one lick in any of the Stones' songs from the Ron Wood era where this amazing creative force gets a chance to breathe free. The Stones are Keith's show, and Wood does...what? Play a nondescript solo here and there, or play second rhythm guitar behind Keith's riffing. Don't get me wrong, Keith is great, too. But Ron Wood's talent is going to waste. After nearly 30 years, I wonder if he could even do this anymore.

The image of the Faces as a sloppy band is also put to rest when you hear all the live cuts. I know, I know, the Replacements and other punk-era bands call the Faces their model. Sorry, you guys. You couldn't keep up with this band for five minutes. The musicianship across the board is just too high.

19 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Best Reissue of 2004: Have Yourself a Real Good Time, January 16, 2005

By 

Steve Vrana (Aurora, NE) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Faces Box: Five Guys Walk Into a Bar (Audio CD)

As a longtime fan of the Faces, Rhino's 4-disc compilation is a treasure trove of hits (okay, they only had two bonafide hits), album tracks, b-sides, live tracks (most of them from BBC appearances) and rareties. In fact, of the 67 tracks, thirty are previously unreleased; and others have only now been available on CD, like a live version of the Temptations' "I Wish It Would Rain" (previously only available as the b-side of "Pool Hall Richard"), "Dishevelment Blues" (a flexi-disc single given out with the April 1973 issue of Melody Maker in the UK), "Oh Lord I'm Browned Off" (the b-side of "Maybe I'm Amazed"), and "Real Wheel Skid" (the b-side of "Had Me a Real Good Time").

All told, this is a glorious testament to one of the best bands of the early seventies. Produced and compiled by Faces' keyboardist Ian McLagan and dedicated to bassist Ronnie Lane, this is a labor of love from start to finish. While Rod Stewart was the focal point of the band, it was Lane who was the band's heart and soul. Lane wrote or co-wrote a third of the tracks, including classics like "Debris," "Last Orders Please," "You're So Rude" and perhaps my favorite Faces' song, "Ooh La La."

In addition to the terrific music, the 64-page booklet is packed with photos, track-by-track info, a complete discography, an essay by David Fricke, and testamonials by artists as diverse as the Sex Pistols' Glen Matlock, Slash and Rich Robinson, whose band The Black Crowes was greatly influenced by the Faces. There is also a touching tribute to Lane written by McLagan.

This box set serves as a reminder of just how great a rock 'n' roll band the Faces were. Even if you already own their four studio albums, this is a must-have purchase. [Running time: Disc 1 - 77:43, Disc 2 - 79:12, Disc 3 - 74:26, Disc 4 - 76:30] VERY HIGHLY RECOMMENDED