What was Ronnie Wood’s first band?
Ronnie Wood was a late addition to The Rolling Stones. It wasn’t until 1973 that the guitarist first collaborated with Mick Jagger and Keith Richards, helping them out with the track ‘It’s Only Rock ’n’ Roll (but I Like It)’ before eventually joining the group full-time three years later. But before that, Wood bounced from band to band as one of the most sought-after musicians in London.
The list of groups Ronnie Wood has been in is extensive. While Jagger and Richards have been in The Rolling Stones since they were barely adults, Wood had a whole career before joining the band. He cut his teeth on the London live circuit, jumping between different troupes as new ones popped up and dissolved or as he graduated in skill level, leading to bigger and better artists calling on him.
Right before joining the Stones, he was a member of The Faces, singing and co-writing their most popular song, ‘Ooh La La’. Before that, he played as part of the Jeff Beck Group, which seemed to feature all of the UK’s best musicians at some point or another. Wood also had a solo project that Jagger and Richards contributed to before they hired him as a full-time bandmate.
And even before all of that, Wood started out in a band called The Birds. No, not the Byrds, the Birds. But that confusion would come to be their downfall. Forming in 1965, Wood started the band with some of his mates from back home in Middlesex. They were influenced by the classic early rock and roll and R&B sound of the moment. They got their name out there by performing in a battle of the band-style contests that eventually let them catch the eye of Decca Records.
For a while, it seemed as though The Birds could make it. They signed with Decca and put out a handful of singles. However, right when they started to get attention, a Los Angeles-based troupe called The Byrds shot to success with their album of Bob Dylan covers. They were the act everyone was talking about, leaving the UK band in their shadow.
The Birds manager made it worse from there. Leo de Clerck decided to try and take legal action against The Byrds to stop them from using their name, but the result was that an onslaught of hate came their way instead from the American act’s fans. Shortly after, The Birds threw in the towel.
Has Ronnie Wood always been a bassist?
While Ronnie Wood is best known as a guitar player, serving as The Rolling Stones’ long-running rhythm guitarist, he’s also a bassist.
It has always served him incredibly well being able to play both. It meant that whether a band had an opening for a guitarist or a bassist, he could fill the role, allowing him to play a part in some powerful groups in his career. Well before joining the Stones, he joined the Jeff Beck Group as a bassist in 1967. Then he moved on to being in the Faces, contributing bass to their songs too, as well as playing guitar and helping to co-write many of the tracks. On his own solo albums, too, he would occasionally jump onto the bass, making the most of being a multi-instrumentalist.
There are some instances in the Stones’ discography where Wood picked up the bass, too, most notably on the single ‘Emotional Rescue’. However, it’s clear that while he’s always played the bass, the guitar is his true love. While he’s skilled at both, it’s on the six-string where his talent shines.
