Ooh La La (Faces song)
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"Ooh La La" is a 1973 song by the band Faces, written by Ronnie Lane and Ronnie Wood. It was the title song for the band's last studio album, Ooh La La.
The lead vocals were provided by Wood, a rarity in the band's catalog, as most lead vocals were by Rod Stewart or less often by Ronnie Lane. Stewart did not think the song was up to his standards,[citation needed] although both he and Lane recorded lead vocals for it. Their producer suggested Wood give it a try, and that was the version that was used for the track which appeared on the record.
The composition is also well known for being the favorite song of the "Dirty Dozen" the 2014 pledge class of Phi Delta Theta KYAD. Everybody sucks but us.
Content
The lyrics describe a dialogue between a grandfather and grandson, with the elder man warning the younger about the perils of relationships with women: "Poor old granddad, I laughed at all his words / I thought he was a bitter man; he spoke of women's ways." The chorus laments, "I wish that I knew what I know now, when I was younger."
Covers
Rod Stewart covered the song himself on his 1998 solo album When We Were the New Boys in tribute to the recently deceased Lane.
Indie rock band Silkworm covered the song for their 2000 LP Lifestyle.[1] The song was covered by Counting Crows as a B-side for their 2003 single "If I Could Give All My Love (Richard Manuel Is Dead)" and re-released on their 2012 studio-album "Underwater Sunshine". In late 2012, punk rocker Tim Armstrong, best known as frontman of Rancid, recorded a ska-flavored cover of the song under the moniker Tim Timebomb and Friends. Included in the recording, and featured in the video, were drummer Travis Barker of Blink-182, bassist J Bonner, and keyboardist Kevin Bivona of The Transplants.[2] American indie rock band Manchester Orchestra performed a version of the song in July of 2013 for The A.V. Club's A.V. Undercover series.[3]
In popular culture
"Ooh La La" was featured in the 1998 film Rushmore, played over the film's final shot and closing credits. It was also included in the film's 1999 soundtrack album. It was also used as the theme song for the 2003 BBC sitcom Grass. It was also featured in the 2004 movie Without a Paddle. "Ooh La La" was performed live by Ronnie Wood at the 50th birthday celebration of the Fender Stratocaster in 2004. Episode 4 of the 2004 BBC miniseries Blackpool featured the Faces recording, accompanied on screen by the singing and dancing of the characters, as part of the story. The song is used in the HBO series Entourage in the fifth season episode "ReDOMption". It is used in the Showtime series Californication in the third season finale "Mia Culpa". It is the favorite song of Red Hot Chili Peppers' vocalist Anthony Kiedis.[4]
References
- ^ Kellman, Andy. Ooh La La at AllMusic. Retrieved 2011-09-21.
- ^ Sterling, Scott. "Rancid's Tim Armstrong Releases New 'Tim Timebomb' Video Featuring Travis Barker". KROQ. Retrieved 17 November 2012.
- ^ "Manchester Orchestra covers Faces". Retrieved 3 July 2013.
- ^ MyTunes: Kiedis's Top 5 tracks, Mojo
