Sir Roderick David Stewart was born on 10 January 1945 and is a British rock and pop singer and songwriter.
103 Facts About Rod Stewart
2.
Rod Stewart has had 10 number-one albums and 31 top ten singles in the UK, six of which reached number one.
3.
Rod Stewart has had 16 top ten singles in the US, with four reaching number one on the Billboard Hot 100.
4.
Rod Stewart was knighted in the 2016 Birthday Honours for services to music and charity.
5.
In 1964, Rod Stewart joined Long John Baldry and the All Stars before moving to the Jeff Beck Group in 1967.
6.
Roderick David Stewart was born at 507 Archway Road, Highgate, North London, on 10 January 1945, the youngest of five children of Robert Joseph Stewart and Elsie Rebecca Gilbart.
7.
Rod Stewart's father was Scottish and had been a master builder in Leith, Edinburgh, while Elsie was English and had grown up in Upper Holloway in North London.
8.
Rod Stewart was born at home during World War II, eight years after his nearest sibling.
9.
The family was neither affluent nor poor; Rod Stewart was spoiled as the youngest, and has called his childhood "fantastically happy".
10.
Rod Stewart had an undistinguished record at Highgate Primary School and failed the eleven plus exam.
11.
Rod Stewart then attended the William Grimshaw Secondary Modern School, Muswell Hill.
12.
The family was mostly focused on football; Rod Stewart's father had played in a local amateur team and managed some teams as well, and one of Rod Stewart's earliest memories was of the pictures of Scottish players such as George Young and Gordon Smith that his brothers had on the wall.
13.
Rod Stewart was the most talented footballer in the family and was a supporter of Arsenal FC at the time.
14.
Rod Stewart collected his records and saw his films, read books about him, and was influenced by his performing style and attitude towards his audience.
15.
Rod Stewart's father bought him a guitar in January 1959; the first song he learned was the folk tune "It Takes a Worried Man to Sing a Worried Song"; the first record he bought was Eddie Cochran's "C'mon Everybody".
16.
Rod Stewart left school at age 15 and worked briefly as a silk screen printer.
17.
Rod Stewart worked in the family shop and as a newspaper delivery boy.
18.
Rod Stewart then worked briefly as a labourer for Highgate Cemetery, which became another part of his biographical lore.
19.
Rod Stewart worked in a North Finchley funeral parlour and as a fence erector and sign writer.
20.
Rod Stewart began listening to British and American topical folk artists such as Ewan MacColl, Alex Campbell, Woody Guthrie, Ramblin' Jack Elliott, and especially Derroll Adams and the debut album of Bob Dylan.
21.
Rod Stewart became attracted to beatnik attitudes and left-wing politics, living for a while in a beatnik houseboat at Shoreham-by-Sea.
22.
Rod Stewart was an active supporter of the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament at this time, joining the annual Aldermaston Marches from 1961 to 1963 and being arrested on three occasions when he took part in sit-ins at Trafalgar Square and Whitehall for the cause.
23.
Rod Stewart became pregnant, but neither Rod nor his family wanted him to enter marriage; the baby girl was given up for adoption and Rod and Suzannah's relationship ended.
24.
In 1962, Rod Stewart began hanging around folk singer Wizz Jones, busking at Leicester Square and other London spots.
25.
On several trips over the next 18 months Jones and Rod Stewart took their act to Brighton and then to Paris, sleeping under bridges over the River Seine, and then finally to Barcelona.
26.
In 1963, Rod Stewart adopted the Mod lifestyle and look, and began fashioning the spiky rooster hairstyle that would become his trademark.
27.
Contrary to popular legend, during this time Rod Stewart likely did not play harmonica on Millie Small's 1964 hit "My Boy Lollipop".
28.
Powell did record and release a single during this period, though Rod Stewart did not appear on it.
29.
In June 1964, Rod Stewart made his recording debut on "Up Above My Head", the B-side to a Baldry and Hoochie Coochie Men single.
30.
Rod Stewart made some demo recordings, was scouted by Decca Records at the Marquee Club, and signed to a solo contract in August 1964.
31.
Rod Stewart appeared on several regional television shows around the country and recorded his first single in September 1964.
32.
The Hoochie Coochie Men broke up, Baldry and Rod Stewart patched up their differences, and legendary impresario Giorgio Gomelsky put together Steampacket, which featured Baldry, Rod Stewart, Brian Auger, Julie Driscoll, Micky Waller, Vic Briggs and Ricky Fenson; their first appearance was in support of The Rolling Stones in July 1965.
33.
Rod Stewart, who had been included in the group upon Baldry's insistence, ended up with most of the male vocal parts.
34.
Rod Stewart left Steampacket in March 1966, with Rod Stewart saying he had been sacked and Auger saying he had quit.
35.
Rod Stewart then joined a somewhat similar outfit, Shotgun Express, in May 1966 as co-lead vocalist with Beryl Marsden.
36.
Rod Stewart's sputtering solo career continued with the March 1968 release of non-hit "Little Miss Understood" on Immediate Records.
37.
The album featured Beck's masterly guitar technique and manipulated sounds as Rod Stewart's dramatic vocalising tackled the group's varied repertoire of blues, folk, rock, and proto-heavy metal.
38.
Rod Stewart co-wrote three of the songs and credited the record for helping to develop his vocal abilities and the sandpaper quality in his voice.
39.
In July 1969, Rod Stewart left following his friend Wood's departure.
40.
Ron Wood replaced him as guitarist in June and on 18 October 1969, Rod Stewart followed his friend and became the band's new singer.
41.
Rod Stewart then launched a US tour with the Faces.
42.
Rod Stewart sang guest vocals for the Australian group Python Lee Jackson on "In a Broken Dream", recorded in April 1969 but not released until 1970.
43.
Rod Stewart's payment was a set of seat covers for his car.
44.
Rod Stewart released Never a Dull Moment in the same year.
45.
Rarely has a singer had as full and unique a talent as Rod Stewart; rarely has anyone betrayed his talent so completely.
46.
Rod Stewart released the Atlantic Crossing album for his new record company, using producer Tom Dowd and a different sound based on the Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section.
47.
Rod Stewart's Holland-Dozier-Holland cover "This Old Heart of Mine" was a Top 100 hit in 1976.
48.
In 1976 Rod Stewart covered The Beatles' song "Get Back" for the musical documentary All This and World War II.
49.
Later in 1976, Rod Stewart topped the US Billboard Hot 100 for eight weeks and the Australian ARIA chart with the ballad "Tonight's the Night", with an accompanying music video featuring actress Britt Ekland.
50.
In interviews, Rod Stewart, while admitting his accompanying look had become "tarty", has defended the lyrics by pointing out that the song is a third-person narrative slice-of-life portrayal, not unlike those in his earlier work, and that it is not about him.
51.
Rod Stewart moved to a more new wave direction in 1980 by releasing the album Foolish Behaviour.
52.
Later in 1981, Rod Stewart added further elements of new wave and synthpop to his sound for the Tonight I'm Yours album.
53.
On 18 December 1981, Rod Stewart played the Los Angeles Forum, along with Kim Carnes and Tina Turner, in a concert broadcast worldwide via satellite.
54.
Rod Stewart was criticised by the anti-apartheid movement for breaking a widely observed cultural boycott of apartheid South Africa by performing at the Sun City resort complex in Bophuthatswana as part of his Body Wishes and Camouflage tours.
55.
In January 1985, Rod Stewart performed to a large audience at the Rock in Rio festival in Rio de Janeiro.
56.
In 1988, Stewart returned with Out of Order, produced by Duran Duran's Andy Taylor and by Bernard Edwards of Chic.
57.
In September 1988, Rod Stewart performed "Forever Young" at the 1988 MTV Video Music Awards at the Universal Amphitheatre in Los Angeles, and in 1989 he received a Grammy Award nomination for Best Male Rock Vocal Performance for the song.
58.
In January 1989, Rod Stewart set out on the South American leg of the Out of Order Tour playing to sell-out audiences throughout Americas.
59.
At the 1993 Brit Awards in London, Rod Stewart picked up the prize for Outstanding Contribution to Music.
60.
Rod Stewart brought back the Faces on stage for an impromptu reunion.
61.
In 1993, Rod Stewart recorded "All For Love" with Sting and Bryan Adams for the soundtrack to the movie The Three Musketeers; the single reached number one in the US and number two in the UK.
62.
Rod Stewart was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1994, presented by Jeff Beck.
63.
On 31 December 1994, Rod Stewart played in front of 3.5 million people on Copacabana beach in Rio, and made it into the Guinness Book of World Records for staging the largest free rock concert attendance in history.
64.
In 1995, Rod Stewart released A Spanner in the Works containing a single written by Tom Petty, "Leave Virginia Alone", which reached the Top 10 of the adult contemporary charts.
65.
Rod Stewart then signed to Clive Davis' new J Records label.
66.
In June 2002, Rod Stewart performed "Handbags and Gladrags" at the Party at the Palace held at Buckingham Palace Garden, a concert which celebrated the Golden Jubilee of Elizabeth II and featured stars from five decades of music.
67.
Rod Stewart concentrated on singing 1930s and 1940s pop standards from the Great American Songbook with great popular success.
68.
In 2004, Rod Stewart reunited with Ronnie Wood for concerts of Faces material.
69.
Rod Stewart won his first ever Grammy Award for this album.
70.
In late 2006, Rod Stewart made his return to rock music and his new approach to country music with the release of Still the Same.
71.
In November 2006, Rod Stewart was inducted into the UK Music Hall of Fame.
72.
On 1 July 2007, Rod Stewart performed at the Concert for Diana held at Wembley Stadium, London, an event which celebrated the life of Princess Diana almost 10 years after her death.
73.
On 22 December 2006, Rod Stewart hosted the 8th Annual A Home for the Holidays special on CBS at 8:00 pm.
74.
On 20 May 2009, Rod Stewart performed "Maggie May" on the grand finale of American Idol season 8.
75.
On 2, July 2009 Rod Stewart performed his only UK date that year at Home Park, Plymouth.
76.
Rod Stewart has mentioned plans for a compilation of covers of soul classics, the possible release of another edition of the Great American Songbook album and a country covers album.
77.
On 17 October 2009, Rod Stewart released the studio album Soulbook which was composed of covers of soul and Motown songs.
78.
On 14 November 2009, Rod Stewart recorded a TV program in the UK for ITV that was screened on 5 December 2009.
79.
On 19 October 2010, Rod Stewart released another edition of his Great American Songbook series titled Fly Me to the Moon.
80.
Rod Stewart headlined the Sunday show at the 2011 Hard Rock Calling Festival on 26 June in London's Hyde Park.
81.
On 7 June 2012, Rod Stewart signed a recording agreement with Universal Music Group.
82.
Rod Stewart released his first Christmas album, titled Merry Christmas, Baby, on the Verve Music Group label on 30 October 2012.
83.
In November 2012, Rod Stewart performed "Auld Lang Syne" from his Christmas album and his hit "Sailing" at the Royal Albert Hall for the Royal British Legion Festival of Remembrance, which was attended by Queen Elizabeth II.
84.
Later that month, Rod Stewart again performed at the Royal Albert Hall in front of the Queen during the 100th Royal Variety Performance, singing "When You Wish upon a Star".
85.
Rod Stewart had the number one song on this chart three times previously, the last being in 1993 with "Have I Told You Lately", giving him the second-largest hiatus between number ones in the history of the chart.
86.
On 10 December 2012, Rod Stewart was a guest singer on Michael Buble's television Home for the Holidays Christmas special.
87.
Rod Stewart was the tenth best-selling artist in Canada in the year 2012 according to year-end sales data from Nielsen Soundscan Canada.
88.
In February 2013, Rod Stewart was nominated for a Canadian Juno Award in the International Album of the Year category for his album Merry Christmas, Baby.
89.
In May 2013, Rod Stewart released Time, a rock album of his own original material.
90.
In September 2013, Rod Stewart presented his friend Elton John with the first Brits Icon award in a special show at the London Palladium, recognising John's "lasting impact" on UK culture.
91.
Rod Stewart quipped that John was "the second-best rock singer ever", before the two performed a duet on stage.
92.
Rod Stewart recorded vocals with Joe Walsh on the Frankie Miller album Frankie Miller's Double Take, which was released on 30 September 2016.
93.
On 28 September 2018, Rod Stewart released his 30th studio album, Blood Red Roses, on Republic Records.
94.
Rod Stewart collaborated with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra for the release of You're in My Heart in November 2019.
95.
Rod Stewart released his 31st studio album The Tears of Hercules in November 2021.
96.
In May 2000, Rod Stewart was diagnosed with thyroid cancer, for which he underwent surgery the same month.
97.
In September 2019, Rod Stewart revealed that he was diagnosed with prostate cancer in 2017, and has been given the all-clear after treatment.
98.
Rod Stewart presented Celtic with the trophy after they won the 2015 Scottish League Cup Final.
99.
Rod Stewart has a second, smaller layout at his UK home, based on Britain's East Coast Main Line.
100.
In 1982, Rod Stewart was car-jacked on Los Angeles' Sunset Boulevard while he was parking his $50,000 Porsche.
101.
Dominic Zaria, one of Rod Stewart's neighbours, praised the singer's action and said the lane had "massive crack" and can be dangerous when it's dark and wet.
102.
Sean Rod Stewart was required to pay compensation and to attend anger management, drug and alcohol treatment courses.
103.
Rod Stewart was appointed Commander of the Order of the British Empire in the 2007 New Year Honours for services to music.