Rod Stewart – Every Picture Tells A Story

Parallel to his work with the Faces, Rod Stewart recorded solo albums in the early 70s, many of which were orchestrated by the Faces band members. After achieving a respectable success with Gasoline Alley, it was Every Picture Tells a Story that marked his breakthrough and reached number one in the charts in both England and the USA. Musically, little had changed compared to the previous album and the combination of rock, soul and country may have become a little more groovy, but it was the songs that made the difference.

Of course, the unforgettable Maggie May, the story of a seduction by an older woman, which was to inspire Suzanne Vega in the 90s, should be noted here. On Tomorrow is a Long Time, Stewart finds a new approach to the Bob Dylan song and on Reason to Believe, the organ becomes almost indispensable as an instrument for a rock ballad.

In a review for AllMusic, Stephen Thomas Erlewine wrote: "Without changing his approach much, Rod Stewart perfected his blend of hard rock, folk and blues on his masterpiece Every Picture Tells a Story."