Rod Stewart Biography

Who is Rod Stewart, and why does he still matter? The raspy voiced London born songwriter and singer who came to define rock, soul, folk, and pop in a half century of hits from Maggie May to Tonight’s the Night to the Great American Songbook, and he still matters because his songs feel inhabited and human and his career insists on a bold fondness for reinvention.

Name Roderick David Stewart. Date and place of birth 10 January 1945, Highgate in North London. Family background The baby of the family of five children of Scottish father Robert and English mother Elsie, he was indulged as the baby of the family and surrounded by music and football.

Education Highgate Primary and William Grimshaw Secondary Modern and Middlesex Schoolboys centre half before music eclipsed dreams of a future in football.

Career A busker using a harmonica in 1962, he became a member of the Dimensions in 1963, and subsequently made his way to London’s dynamic rhythm and blues scene with Long John Baldry, Steampacket, and Shotgun Express. His period of good fortune arrived as the voice of the Jeff Beck Group in 1967 and subsequently, from 1969, as lead voice for Faces with Ronnie Wood whilst embarking on a solo career that included acoustic bite, mandolin colour, and soul grit.

His initial albums An Old Raincoat Won’t Ever Let You Down, Gasoline Alley, and Every Picture Tells a Story set the mold, with Maggie May reaching the chart top in the United Kingdom, the United States, Canada, and Australia.

Never a Dull Moment, A Night on the Town, and Foot Loose and Fancy Free kept him on constant radio play everywhere, whilst Sailing, Tonight’s the Night, You’re in My Heart, Hot Legs, and Da Ya Think I’m Sexy showed a performer at ease alternating from delicate ballads, hard edged rock bluster, and dance floor sparkle. In the eighties and nineties he branched into radio ready pop and soft rock in Young Turks, Baby Jane, Downtown Train, Forever Young, Rhythm of My Heart, and the Unplugged reinvention of Have I Told You Lately.

In the 2000s he startled a new generation with best selling Great American Songbook series and returned to penning on Time and Another Country.

Major accomplishments One of the biggest selling artists in the world with over one hundred million discs sold, he won a Grammy and Brit Award and is a double Rock and Roll Hall of Famer as a solo act and as a member of Faces.

He has ten UK number one albums and hundreds of top ten hits on both sides of the Atlantic.
Stewart recovered from thyroid cancer surgery in 2000, rebuilt his voice, and later released successful prostate cancer treatment in 2019, which added to his charity work for cancer charities.

An avid supporter of football teams he loves Celtic and the Scotland national team, he’s also an internationally renowned model railway builder who’s appeared on the covers of specialist mags for his massive Three Rivers City layout.
He was elevated to CBE in 2007 and knighted in 2016 for services to music and to charity.

In the streaming era he kept busy with orchestral reinterpretations, new albums like Blood Red Roses and The Tears of Hercules, and a 2024 swing album with Jools Holland.

In early 2024 his catalogue was acquired by Iconic Artists Group, underscoring his lasting value.
In late 2024 he wascheduled for the Glastonbury Legends slot in 2025 and he kept the las Vegas residency blockbusting residency throughout 2024 before focusing on hits tours.

Even periods of illness in 2025 that called for a few United States show cancellations were spoken of as a hiatus and not a finish, because his career story has ever been of grit, showmanship, and songs that transcend fashion.

Rod Stewart Top songs

1. Maggie May
2. Reason to Believe
3. You Wear It Well
4. Sailing
5. Tonight’s the Night Gonna Be Alright
6. The First Cut Is the Deepest
7. I Don’t Want to Talk About It
8. You’re in My Heart The Final Acclaim
9. Hot Legs
10. Da Ya Think I’m Sexy
11. Young Turks
12. Baby Jane
13. Some Guys Have All the Luck
14. Infatuation
15. Downtown Train
16. Forever Young
17. Rhythm of My Heart
18. The Motown Song
19. Have I Told You Lately live Unplugged
20. Handbags and Gladrags
21. In a Broken Dream with Python Lee Jackson
22. All for Love with Bryan Adams and Sting

Rod Stewart Discography

1. An Old Raincoat Won’t Ever Let You Down 1969
2. Gasoline Alley 1970
3. Every Picture Tells a Story 1971
4. Never a Dull Moment 1972
5. Smiler 1974
6. Atlantic Crossing 1975
7. A Night on the Town 1976
8. Foot Loose and Fancy Free 1977
9. Blondes Have More Fun 1978
10. Foolish Behaviour 1980
11. Tonight I’m Yours 1981
12. Body Wishes 1983
13. Camouflage 1984
14. Every Beat of My Heart 1986
15. Out of Order 1988
16. Vagabond Heart 1991
17. A Spanner in the Works 1995
18. When We Were the New Boys 1998
19. Human 2001
20. It Had to Be You The Great American Songbook 2002
21. As Time Goes By The Great American Songbook Volume II 2003
22. Stardust The Great American Songbook Volume III 2004
23. Thanks for the Memory The Great American Songbook Volume IV 2005
24. Still the Same Great Rock Classics of Our Time 2006
25. Soulbook 2009
26. Once in a Blue Moon The Lost Album 2010
27. Fly Me to the Moon The Great American Songbook Volume V 2010
28. Merry Christmas Baby 2012
29. Time 2013
30. Another Country 2015
31. Blood Red Roses 2018
32. The Tears of Hercules 2021
33. Swing Fever with Jools Holland 2024

Rod Stewart Top albums

1. Every Picture Tells a Story
2. A Night on the Town
3. Atlantic Crossing
4. Foot Loose and Fancy Free
5. Blondes Have More Fun
6. Vagabond Heart
7. Unplugged and Seated
8. It Had to Be You The Great American Songbook
9. Time
10. Blood Red Roses
11. You’re in My Heart Rod Stewart with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra
12. The Tears of Hercules

Rod Stewart Awards

Brit Award for Outstanding Contribution to Music. Grammy Award for Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album for the third Great American Songbook set. Two-time inductee to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a solo artist in 1994 and as a member of Faces in 2012. UK Music Hall of Fame inductee. Hollywood Walk of Fame star. ASCAP Founders Award. World Music Awards Legend Award and the first Chopard Diamond Award in recognition of one hundred million plus sales. CBE in 2007 and a knighthood in 2016 for services to music and to charity. Several Juno nominations and numerous stretches at the top of the United Kingdom charts including ten number one albums.

Rod Stewart Singles

Rod Stewart FAQs