If you walked into a London pub in 1969, you might have seen five guys who looked like they’d just tumbled out of a boutique on King’s Road and into a vat of Newcastle Brown Ale. They weren't just some local bar band. They were a chemistry experiment. When people ask who was in The Faces, they usually expect a short list of names, but the answer is actually a story about what happens when two of the most influential 60s bands—The Small Faces and The Jeff Beck Group—collide and decide to prioritize having a good time over almost everything else.
They were loud. They were sloppy. They were incredibly talented.
The core lineup that defined the band consisted of Rod Stewart on vocals, Ronnie Wood on guitar, Ian McLagan on keyboards, Ronnie Lane on bass, and Kenney Jones on drums. It was a "best of both worlds" situation. You had the instrumental backbone of The Small Faces meeting the charismatic frontman and guitar hero from Jeff Beck’s camp. It shouldn’t have worked as well as it did, yet for a few years in the early 70s, they were arguably the best live act on the planet.
The Small Faces Minus Steve Marriott
To understand the roster, you have to look at the wreckage of 1969. Steve Marriott, the powerhouse singer for The Small Faces, had walked off stage during a New Year’s Eve gig, fed up with the band’s "teen idol" image and wanting to do something heavier (which became Humble Pie). That left Ian McLagan, Ronnie Lane, and Kenney Jones without a leader.
They were short. Literally. The "Small" in their name came from the fact that they were all under 5'5".
When they started looking for replacements, they didn't just find musicians; they found tall ones. Ronnie Wood, who was struggling in the disintegrating Jeff Beck Group, started hanging around. He brought along his friend, a raspy-voiced singer named Rod Stewart. Suddenly, the band wasn't "small" anymore, so they dropped the adjective and became simply The Faces.
The transition was jarring for some fans. The Small Faces were mods—sharp suits, psychedelic pop, tight arrangements. The new version was something else entirely. They were "lads." They wore scarves, shaggy hair, and kept a literal bar on stage during their performances. Honestly, the beer was as much a member of the band as the musicians were.
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Rod Stewart: The Frontman With One Foot Out the Door
It’s impossible to talk about the lineup without addressing the elephant in the room: Rod Stewart’s solo career. While he was the lead singer of The Faces, he was also a rising solo superstar. His album Every Picture Tells a Story hit number one at the same time the band was trying to establish their own identity.
This created a weird dynamic.
On stage, they were a brotherhood. But on the charts, "Rod Stewart" was a bigger brand than "The Faces." Fans would show up to see the band, but they were really there for "Maggie May." The rest of the guys—especially Ronnie Lane—felt the sting of being treated like a backing band for a solo artist.
Despite the tension, Rod’s voice was the perfect grit for Ronnie Wood’s slide guitar. They had a telepathic connection. When you listen to tracks like "Stay With Me," you hear a band that is perfectly in sync precisely because they feel like they might fall apart at any second. It was high-wire rock and roll.
Ronnie Lane: The Soul of the Group
While Rod was the face and Ronnie Wood was the flash, Ronnie "Plonk" Lane was the heart. If you want to know who was in The Faces and actually gave them their folk-rock depth, it’s him. Lane wasn't just a bassist; he was a brilliant songwriter with a poetic, slightly melancholic streak that balanced out the band's rowdy persona.
Songs like "Ooh La La" or "Debris" show a completely different side of the band.
Lane eventually grew tired of the "Rod Stewart and The Faces" billing. He quit in 1973, which many purists cite as the beginning of the end. Tetsu Yamauchi, formerly of Free, stepped in to play bass for the final stretch, but the chemistry was forever altered. Lane went on to form Slim Chance and lived a famously bohemian life before tragically succumbing to Multiple Sclerosis years later.
Ronnie Wood and the Rolling Stones Connection
Before he was a Rolling Stone, Ronnie Wood was the quintessential Face. His guitar style was messy in the best way possible. He didn't play with the clinical precision of a Jimmy Page or the bluesy purism of Eric Clapton. He played like he was having a conversation with the rest of the band, full of jokes and interruptions.
When The Faces finally called it quits in 1975, Wood didn't have to look for work for long. Keith Richards had already been eyeing him. He fit the Stones' "weaving" guitar style perfectly. In many ways, the spirit of The Faces lived on through Wood’s tenure in the Stones—that sense of loose, infectious joy that prevents rock music from becoming too pretentious.
Why the Lineup Matters Today
The Faces were a bridge. They took the blues-rock of the 60s and turned it into the stadium-filling "cock rock" of the 70s, but they did it with a wink. They never took themselves too seriously.
- Ian McLagan became one of the most sought-after session keyboardists in history, playing with everyone from Chuck Berry to Bruce Springsteen.
- Kenney Jones had the impossible task of replacing Keith Moon in The Who after Moon’s death in 1978.
- Tetsu Yamauchi brought a different, sturdier groove to the later live recordings, though he remains a footnote compared to the original five.
The tragedy of the band is that they only released four studio albums. They spent too much time in the pub and not enough time in the studio. But those four albums—especially A Nod Is as Good as a Wink... to a Blind Horse—are masterclasses in vibe.
Actionable Insights for Music Fans
If you’re just discovering the band and want to understand their sound beyond the names on the sleeve, here is how to dive in:
Listen to "Ooh La La" first. Not the Rod Stewart cover, but the original version featuring Ronnie Wood on lead vocals. It captures the vulnerability that made the band special.
Watch the 1974 Edmonton concert footage. You’ll see the "on-stage bar" in action. It’s the best way to understand the visual chaos that defined their lineup.
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Track the songwriting credits. Notice how the songs written by Ronnie Lane differ from the ones credited to Stewart/Wood. The tension between Lane’s folk sensibilities and Stewart’s rock-and-roll swagger is where the magic happened.
Explore the "Five Guys Walk into a Bar..." box set. It’s the most comprehensive look at their rehearsals and B-sides, showing that even their "mistakes" were often better than other bands' polished hits.
The Faces were never about perfection. They were about the community of the five men on stage. When you look at who was in The Faces, you aren't just looking at a list of Rock and Roll Hall of Famers; you’re looking at the last great "gang" in rock history. They played like they liked each other, and for a few years, that was enough to conquer the world.