Ooh La La (Faces song)


"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, titled Ooh La La.
The lead vocals were provided by Wood, a rarity in the band's catalog as lead vocals were usually performed by Rod Stewart and less often by Ronnie Lane. Stewart and Lane both recorded lead vocals for the song but neither were reportedly satisfied by their attempts. Their producer Glyn Johns then suggested that Wood give it a try, and this version was used for the track on the album.

Content

The lyrics describe a dialogue between a grandfather and grandson, with the elder man's 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."

Personnel

In addition to being the closing title track of the Faces' final studio album, the Faces version of the song appeared as a U.S. single in May 1973. The first compilation the Faces version appeared was on the album Snakes and Ladders / The Best of Faces, and it was one of the few songs on that collection that fairly represented Ronnie Lane's songwriting for the band. It appeared again on the 1999 Faces retrospective Good Boys... When They're Asleep and then also on the 2004 four-disc box set Five Guys Walk into a Bar.... It appeared on the Ronnie Wood greatest hits compilation , where Wood stated in the liner notes that he always thinks of Lane when he plays it.

Certifications

Ronnie Lane versions

Lane soon recorded his own version after leaving the Faces in 1973 with his new group Slim Chance, featuring lyrics slightly altered from those he wrote for the Faces. Although Lane's studio version was never released during his lifetime, it appeared as the title track of the 2014 Slim Chance compilation Ooh La La: An Island Harvest. Lane did however regularly perform the song at concerts and on radio shows throughout his solo career, until he retired from the music business due to bad health in 1993.

Rod Stewart version

covered the song on his 1998 solo album When We Were the New Boys in tribute to the recently deceased Lane. It was released in May 1998 as the lead single from the album and became a top 40 hit in the U.S. and top 20 in the UK.

Charts

Other covers

Indie rock band Silkworm covered the song for their 2000 LP Lifestyle. Banjo player Danny Barnes covered the song on his 2003 release Dirt on the Angel. The song was covered by Counting Crows as a B-side for their 2003 single "If I Could Give All My Love " and re-released on their 2012 studio-album "Underwater Sunshine". In late 2012,, punk rocker Tim Armstrong, best known as front man 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. American indie rock band Manchester Orchestra performed a version of the song in July 2013 for The A.V. Club Undercover series. Canadian band Hey Rosetta! recorded a version in 2014. Folk act Redbird included a version on their album Live at the Cafe Carpe.

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 included in the film's 1999 soundtrack album. It was used as the theme song for the 2003 BBC sitcom Grass.