Rod Stewart
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Rod Stewart (born 10 January 1945 in London) is a British rock singer and songwriter. He made his recording début in 1964 and has gone on to become one of the most successful acts in music history. In his early career, he was associated with Long John Baldry and, together, they were members of groups called the Hoochie Coochie Men and Steampacket. Stewart and his friend Ronnie Wood joined the Jeff Beck Group in 1967 and played on the Truth and Beck-Ola albums. In 1969, Stewart began a dual career as a solo artist and as lead singer of Faces, formerly Small Faces, joining Wood, Ronnie Lane, Ian McLagan, and Kenney Jones.
Stewart's career really took off in 1971 when he released his most famous single, Maggie May, which became a massive hit globally, topping the popular music charts in several countries including Britain and America. He remained with Faces until 1975 and has since guested with them on several occasions. His success with Maggie May was consolidated by several hit albums including Gasoline Alley (1970), Every Picture Tells a Story (1971), Never a Dull Moment (1972), Atlantic Crossing (1975), A Night on the Town (1976), Foot Loose & Fancy Free (1977), and Blondes Have More Fun (1978). He had further chart-topping singles with You Wear It Well (1972), Sailing (1975), Tonight's the Night (1976), and Da Ya Think I'm Sexy? (1978).
Stewart was less successful in chart terms through the 1980s and 1990s but he remained a popular stage attraction and once appeared before an audience of over three million people in Rio de Janeiro, at a free concert on the famous Copacabana Beach. In 2002, he decided to record an album of classic songs from the Great American Songbook of the 1930s and 1940s. This was released as It Had to Be You: the Great American Songbook and it was a huge transatlantic success. Stewart has followed up with four more releases on the same theme, reviving classic works by the likes of Cole Porter, George and Ira Gershwin, Hoagy Carmichael, Jerome Kern, Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart, Ray Noble, Sammy Fain, Gus Kahn, and others.
Stewart has been diagnosed with thyroid cancer, cured by surgery in May 2000; and prostate cancer in 2017. He is in remission from the latter. He had to redevelop his voice after the thyroid operation and effectively learn how to sing again. He has become involved in cancer charities by raising funds for them, with the particular goal of finding cures for children with cancer.
He has always been an avid follower of football and, in his teens, had a trial with Brentford. Until he became involved in music, his ambition was to be a professional footballer. Although he is a Londoner, he has Scottish ancestry and supports both Celtic and Scotland. He is a well-known model railway enthusiast who has developed two large-scale layouts based on real-world American and British railways of the 1940s.
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