"All or Nothing" is a song written by
Steve Marriott
Stephen Peter Marriott (30 January 1947 – 20 April 1991) was an English guitarist, singer and songwriter. He co-founded and played in the rock bands Small Faces and Humble Pie, in a career spanning over two decades. Marriott was inducted po ...
and
Ronnie Lane
Ronald Frederick Lane (1 April 1946 – 4 June 1997) was an English musician and songwriter who is best known as the bass guitarist and founding member of Small Faces (1965–69) and subsequently Faces (1969–73).
Lane formed Small Faces in ...
of the British
rock
Rock most often refers to:
* Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids
* Rock music, a genre of popular music
Rock or Rocks may also refer to:
Places United Kingdom
* Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...
band
Small Faces
Small Faces were an English rock band from London, founded in 1965. The group originally consisted of Steve Marriott, Ronnie Lane, Kenney Jones and Jimmy Winston, with Ian McLagan replacing Winston as the band's keyboardist in 1966. The band w ...
and released as a single in 1966.
The song reached
number one
Number One most commonly refers to:
* 1 (number)
Number One, No. 1, or #1 may also refer to:
Music Albums
* ''Number 1'' (Big Bang album), and the title song
* ''No. 1'' (BoA album), and the title song
* ''No.1'' (EP), by CLC
* ''n.1 ...
on the
UK Singles Chart
The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...
on 15 September 1966.
The song was also a major hit in both the Netherlands, where it reached number two and Ireland, where it reached number three. It was also the first song by the Small Faces to chart in the Republic of Ireland, as "
Whatcha Gonna Do About It
"Whatcha Gonna Do About It" is the debut single released by the English rock group Small Faces, released in the UK on 6 August 1965. The song peaked at number 14 in the UK Singles Chart, and stayed on chart for a total of 14 weeks. It reached ...
", "
Sha-La-La-La-Lee
"Sha-La-La-La-Lee" was the third song by English R&B-influenced group Small Faces, recorded in December 1965 and released on 28 January 1966, reaching number three in the UK Singles Chart. It was also the first single by the group to feature ...
" and "
Hey Girl" all failed to do so.
Song information
According to Kay Marriott, Steve's mother, Steve wrote this song about his split with ex-fiancée Sue Oliver, though first wife Jenny Rylance states that Marriott told her he wrote the song for her as a result of her split with
Rod Stewart
Sir Roderick David Stewart (born 10 January 1945) is a British rock and pop singer and songwriter. Born and raised in London, he is of Scottish and English ancestry. With his distinctive raspy singing voice, Stewart is among the best-selling ...
. Both statements are said to be correct.
The song was recorded at
IBC Studios
The IBC Recording Studios were independent recording studios located at 35 Portland Place in London, England. In the 1960s and 1970s, the studios become internationally famous after being used by recording artists like the Kinks, the Who, Bee Gee ...
in Portland Place, London. It appears on the
Decca Decca may refer to:
Music
* Decca Records or Decca Music Group, a record label
* Decca Gold, a classical music record label owned by Universal Music Group
* Decca Broadway, a musical theater record label
* Decca Studios, a recording facility in W ...
album ''
From the Beginning.'' A live version is found on the ''BBC Sessions'' album.
Following Marriott's death in a house fire in 1991, the song was played as the requiem at his funeral.
[
]
In popular culture
The song appeared in the soundtrack for the 2010 film ''
Made in Dagenham
''Made in Dagenham'' is a 2010 British comedy-drama film directed by Nigel Cole and starring Sally Hawkins, Bob Hoskins, Miranda Richardson, Geraldine James, Rosamund Pike, Andrea Riseborough, Jaime Winstone, Daniel Mays and Richard Schiff. ...
''.
Nigel Cole
Nigel Cole (born 1959) is an English film and television director.
Career
Cole began his career in the 1980s, directing current affairs shows and documentaries for Central Independent Television. Into the 1990s, Cole co-wrote the play ''Sod'' ...
's film is a dramatisation of the
1968 Ford sewing machinists strike at
Ford Dagenham
Ford Dagenham is a major automotive factory located in Dagenham, London, operated by the Ford of Britain subsidiary of Ford Motor Company. The plant opened in 1931 and has produced 10,980,368 cars and more than 39,000,000 engines in its histo ...
, where female workers protested against sexual discrimination and for equal pay.
The song is used as the theme tune (over the opening credits) on the 2012 BBC UK TV series, ''
The Syndicate
''The Syndicate'' is a British television drama series. It was written by Kay Mellor and is broadcast on BBC One. It sees five members of a betting syndicate win the lottery. Each series follows a different syndicate. The first series is set ...
'', about a group of lottery winners. Swedish pop band Tages did one of the earliest versions of the B-Side "Understanding", which appears on their 1966 album
''Extra Extra''. The
hard rock
Hard rock or heavy rock is a loosely defined subgenre of rock music typified by aggressive vocals and distorted electric guitars. Hard rock began in the mid-1960s with the garage, psychedelic and blues rock movements. Some of the earliest hard ...
band
UFO
An unidentified flying object (UFO), more recently renamed by US officials as a UAP (unidentified aerial phenomenon), is any perceived aerial phenomenon that cannot be immediately identified or explained. On investigation, most UFOs are id ...
covered the song as a bonus track on their album
No Heavy Petting
''No Heavy Petting'' is the fifth studio album by the British rock band UFO, released in 1976. It is the first UFO album to feature a full-time keyboard player as a member of the band, making this their first record as a five-piece band. While ...
. The punk band
X also covered the song on their 1985 album
Ain't Love Grand!.
Personnel
*
Steve Marriott
Stephen Peter Marriott (30 January 1947 – 20 April 1991) was an English guitarist, singer and songwriter. He co-founded and played in the rock bands Small Faces and Humble Pie, in a career spanning over two decades. Marriott was inducted po ...
– lead and backing vocals, electric guitar
*
Ronnie Lane
Ronald Frederick Lane (1 April 1946 – 4 June 1997) was an English musician and songwriter who is best known as the bass guitarist and founding member of Small Faces (1965–69) and subsequently Faces (1969–73).
Lane formed Small Faces in ...
– bass guitar, backing vocals
*
Ian McLagan
Ian Patrick McLagan (; 12 May 1945 – 3 December 2014) was an English keyboardist, best known as a member of the rock bands Small Faces and Faces. He also collaborated with the Rolling Stones and led his own band from the late 1970s. He was in ...
– Hammond organ, backing vocals
*
Kenney Jones
Kenneth Thomas "Kenney" Jones (born 16 September 1948) is an English drummer best known for his work in the groups Small Faces, Faces, and the Who. Jones was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2012 as a member of Small Faces/Faces ...
– drums
See also
*
Small Faces discography
Small Faces were an English British beat band formed in 1965 by Steve Marriott, Ronnie Lane, Kenney Jones, and Jimmy Winston (who was soon replaced by Ian McLagan). Heavily influenced by American rhythm and blues, they later evolved into a psy ...
References
* Paolo Hewitt/John Hellier (2004). ''
Steve Marriott All Too Beautiful''. Helter Skelter Publishing .
External links
The Darlings of Wapping Wharf Laundrette
{{DEFAULTSORT:All Or Nothing (Small Faces Song)
1966 singles
Small Faces songs
UK Singles Chart number-one singles
Songs written by Steve Marriott
Songs written by Ronnie Lane
1966 songs
Decca Records singles
RCA Records singles