A Nod is As Good As a Wink to a Blind Horse

Faces

Product Details

• Audio CD (September 14, 1993)
• Original Release Date: 1971
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Warner Bros / Wea
• ASIN: B000002KDW
• In-Print Editions: Audio CD  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (28 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #6,394 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

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Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

Sixties Britpoppers the Small Faces begat the Faces, the reshaped '70s version. Of course, the latter-day incarnation of the band was best known for its lead singer, Rod Stewart, and his unique, squalling voice. The players, meanwhile, displayed Stones-ish sensibilities, which makes sense given that guitarist Ron Wood left the group to join Jagger, Richards, and the boys. Faces didn't release a great number of albums, but during their tumble on the rock charts, they made some truly great songs, several of which are found on this, their consensus classic. "Stay with Me" sounds like a barroom brawl set to music, and "Miss Judy's Farm" puts one in mind of a garage band that lucked out and found a studio and a (somewhat) sober producer. A Nod... is the most representative recording of a band that helped shape hard rock and punk for years to come. --Lorry Fleming

Product Description

Japanese only SHM-CD (Super High Material CD - playable on all CD players) pressing. Warner. --This text refers to an alternate Audio CD edition.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

21 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Faces at the Top of Their Form, January 14, 2000

By	Steve Vrana (Aurora, NE) - See all my reviews (TOP 100 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

Not to take anything away from the vocal pipes of Rod Stewart or the other rooster-do'd newcomer to the previous Small Faces, but the real star of this band was the late Ronnie Lane.

His rollicking "Last Orders Please" and the heartbreaking "Debris" were classic Faces (and songs that would stay in Lane's solo repertoire until MS finally claimed him in 1997).

Ron Wood's no-frills guitar playing helped propel rockers like "Miss Judy's Farm," "Too Bad," "That's All You Need" and the band's only Top 40 hit "Stay with Me" (#17). The band also does a nice turn on Chuck Berry's "Memphis."

This album, along with Long Player--both released in 1971, show why this was one of the few bands that really mattered in the wake of the dissolution of the Beatles. This is plain and simple rock 'n' roll, and nobody could rock like the Faces. If you weren't around to hear it when this album was first released, you owe to yourself to get it now to find out what you missed. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars C'mon..., August 14, 2006

By	running_man (Chesterfield Twp., MI) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)

...what are you reading this for? You know what to expect when you buy a disc produced by Rod Stewart's Faces: at least four or five hard-rocking party numbers ('Miss Judy's Farm', 'Stay With Me', 'Memphis', 'Too Bad', and 'That's All You Need') featuring Rod's raspy vocals, and heavy, pulsing guitar and bass lines courtesy of Ron Wood and Ronnie Lane; two or three irresistible love ballads ('Love Lives Here', 'Debris'); and to top it all off, some honky-tonk or boogie numbers ('You're So Rude', 'Last Orders Please'). 'A nod is as good as a wink to a blind horse...', released in November of 1971, charged up to number six on the US album charts, and stands as the most commercially successful of the bands' four albums.

While there isn't always great depth to the lyrics offered up by the three R's... Rod, Ron, and Ronnie, no one can deny that they often cut straight to the chase. On 'Miss Judy's Farm', Rod paints vivid scenario's such as "I was just eighteen and all I needed was to get my way". Ironically, on 'That's All You Need', Stewart sings, "...my kind of music... you knew it wasn't gonna be simple..." when "simple" is exactly the form of music this band revels in. That particular song drifts along on a masterful lead guitar riff that makes it one of the most under-appreciated epic rock tracks. The second side of 'A nod...' (on the original vinyl version) opened with one of the bands' most successful single releases, 'Stay With Me', which climbed to number eight on the national charts in January of 1972. Despite being mercilessly overplayed on both the AM and FM frequencies, 'Stay With Me' has proven powerful enough to overcome overexposure. Stewart's barroom delivery takes lines like "I hear you're a mean old Jezebel" and transforms them into terms of endearment. A honky tonk piano track and grinding rhythm guitar propel the number into a fantastic instrumental coda embracing several faux finishes. 'Too Bad' chimes in with a tale involving a twelve foot tall butler, a colored queen, and sweaty girls over an up-tempo, party-rock beat. Their cover of Chuck Berry's 'Memphis' plods along in the beginning, but confidently gains intensity as Rod tells the familiar tale about a phone call from southside Memphis Marie, all of six years old.

Among the better ballads are 'Love Lives Here', offering a melodic combination of guitars, piano, and organ, and Ronnie Lane's 'Debris', supported by more solid guitar and piano interaction. While less entertaining than the surrounding fare, 'You're So Rude' blends a rocking rhythm guitar riff with a tight electric lead guitar, and tops it off with a harmonica in the coda. Perhpas the weakest track among the nine performed is the side one closer, 'Last Orders Please', a break-up tale dropping some worn cliche's such as "you've got yours and I've got mine".

I was a senior in high school the year that 'A nod...' hit the shelves, and the disc proved to be one of the first to hit the platter at each and every party that brought closure to that most important of all years. Whenever I see that cover (which always made me think of this as a live disc, which it isn't), surrounded by that distinct dark brown border, waves of memories and emotions from my youth surround me. For that reason, my own perception of the quality of this disc may be biased, but with each subsequent listen I feel vindicated that it isn't just my associations to it that make 'A nod...' a rock and roll classic. As many good times as this album must have witnessed in the early 1970's, it remains vital enough to produce many more to come.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars The Faces' best record, March 27, 2005

By	Docendo Discimus (Vita scholae) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)

"A Nod Is As Good As A Wink...To A Blind Horse" is the Faces' third album in just two years, and it is their most consistent record alongside 1973's "Ooh La La".

Filled with crunchy electric guitars, blooze-n-boogie piano, and deep, bluesy grooves, it boasts the group's only significant hit, the superb, fiery rocker "Stay With Me". But there are numerous other highlights, including the strutting "Miss Judy's Farm", a rollicking cover of Chuck Berry's "Memphis", and the piano-driven hard rock of "Too Bad"...everything is worth a listen, actually.
"A Nod Is As Good As A Wink..." rocks like very few other records of the early seventies, and this fine record proves what a great, underrated rock n' roll outfit the Faces were.