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Thursday 4 December 2014

Ian McLagan - 12th May 1945 -3rd December 2014


Former keyboardist of The Small Faces Ian McLagan passed away yesterday in the USA after a stroke, he was 69 years old.

Kenney Jones remains the only living member of the classic line-up of the Small Faces.

McLagan had a very varied musical journey. In 1965 he was hired by the Small Faces as replacement for Jimmy Winston. During his "probation period" he received £30 a week and after passing the test received £20 a week like the rest of the band!

When Steve Marriot left the band in 1969 two new members were added, Rod Stewart and Ronnie Wood and they then became The Faces. When The Faces broke up in 1975 McLagan went on to back a real who's who of musical talent. Not before reforming the original line-up of the Small Faces though. They would go on to record a couple of albums together but the old magic was not really there at all and the musical landscape had changed rapidly with the advent of Punk.

He would play on 'Miss You' by The Rolling Stones and would do studio and tour work for them. His session skills were used to the max by artists like Bob Dylan, Jackson Browne, Joe Cocker, Chuck Berry, Bonnie Raitt, Frank Black, and Bruce Springsteen, to name but a few. He was also a member of Billy Bragg's backing band The Blokes. He was a founding member of The Empty Hearts along with Clem Burke of Blondie and appears on the latest album by Lucinda Williams ('Where The Spirit Meets The Bone').

On top of all his session work he also released albums of his own and played live with The Bump Band.

A little taste of the music that Ian McLagan has been involved in down through the years.

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