Steve Marriott
A soul singer trapped in a scrawny rocker’s body, Steve Marriott first sailed into the view with the Small Faces, a British group founded by bassist Ronnie Lane. Though best known in the U.S. for their 1967 pop hit “Itchycoo Park,” the band was revered in the U.K. for their rowdy mix of psychedelic blues and R&B. The band’s 1968 album, Ogden’s Nut Gone Flake, was a creative watershed for the Small Faces, and pushed Marriott to new heights with his writing, singing, and guitar playing. After jumping ship in 1969 to form Humble Pie with Peter Frampton, Marriott began to explore a tough, dual-guitar attack that clicked with fans on both sides of the Atlantic. Humble Pie’s Performance—Rockin’ the Fillmore and Smokin’ (on which Clem Clemson replaced Frampton) epitomize the brass-knuckle caress of Marriott’s grinding Junior and raspy vocals.