Lead Vocalist is a brilliantly curated, career-spanning, and historically fascinating conceptual retrospective anthology by the legendary British rock vocalist Rod Stewart, released in 1993 on the Warner Bros. label. Spanning 55 minutes across 12 masterfully executed tracks, this high-fidelity archive serves as a definitive musical thesis, tracing Stewart's evolutionary journey as one of rock history's greatest frontmen through his iconic collaborative runs with the seminal Jeff Beck Group and the rowdy, blues-drenched Faces, alongside his explosive solo breakthroughs. What makes this compilation an absolute treasure for collectors is the inclusion of four brand-new, cutting-edge studio tracks recorded specifically for this project, allowing Stewart to bring his signature raspy delivery to a brilliant, diverse slate of contemporary covers. The tracklist balances timeless, legendary rock anthems like Stay With Me and Cindy Incidentally with fresh, high-energy interpretations, highlighted by a soulful reading of Tom Waits's Tom Traubert's Blues (Waltzing Matilda), an unexpected, driving cover of Stevie Nicks's Stand Back, and a soaring rendition of The Rolling Stones' classic Ruby Tuesday. Exceptionally preserved in pristine lossless audio quality, this definitive volume stands as a mandatory cornerstone and an essential archive for global purists of classic rock history, elite vocal showmanship, and early-90s soft rock interpretation culture.

The Faces albums were scheduled for expanded reissues in 2008, roughly four years after the release of the definitive rarities-laden box set Five Guys Walk into a Bar…, but those plans were scrapped and the albums remained untouched for the next seven years. After that long wait came You Can Make Me Dance, Sing or Anything: 1970-1975, a five-disc box that contains expanded versions of the four Faces studio LPs - 1970's First Step, the twin 1971 masterpieces Long Player and A Nod Is as Good as a Wink…to a Blind Horse, 1972's Ooh La La - along with a disc of non-LP singles. These aren't quite the track listings from 2008 but they're close enough and, more importantly, they offer a bunch of songs that were not on Five Guys. While A Nod Is as Good as a Wink… is expanded by two BBC Sessions also heard on the box, the rest are given substantial additions…

The Faces were unanthologized on CD prior to 1999, but ever since Rhino's corking single-disc Good Boys…When They're Asleep…, the group has seen a number of different compilations of different sizes, of which Rhino U.K.'s 2012 set Stay with Me: Anthology is the fifth. At two discs, this has 2007's The Definitive Rock Collection as its closest cousin: they're both double discs that cover a tremendous amount of ground, but Stay with Me has a slight edge, weighing in at 36 tracks compared to Definitive's 30. Of those 30 tracks, 27 cuts are present and accounted for on Stay with Me – the missing numbers are "Open to Ideas," "Jodie," and "(I Know) I'm Losing You," the latter two cuts from solo Rod Stewart albums where he was backed by the Faces – and those other nine songs include some of the Faces' very best, including the roaring rocker "That's All You Need," Ronnie Lane's sweet, plaintive "Richmond," and the gloriously shambolic "On the Beach." Serious fans should pony up for 2004's Five Guys Walk into a Bar…, which is one of the great rock & roll box sets, but this double-disc set is like that box in miniature, containing the essence of the Faces in all their messy glory.

There has never been a better box set than the Faces' Five Guys Walk into a Bar…. There has never been a box that captures an artist so perfectly, nor has a box set taken greater advantage of unreleased and rare material, to the point where it seems as essential and vital as the released recordings. Simply put, there's never been a box set as necessary as this, since it tells the band's entire tale and explains exactly what the fuss is all about. Unfortunately, some explanations are in order, since the Faces never made it big, resigned to cult status in America and Britain alike. Nevertheless, if you love rock & roll with an all-consuming passion, you may consider the Faces the greatest rock & roll band ever.

It wasn't all over but the shouting, but the Faces sure weren't thriving when they released their last album, Ooh La La, in 1973. The problem, of course, was Rod Stewart, who had turned into a superstar, causing innumerable tensions within the band. He had yet to decamp to America, had yet to turn to pop instead of rock & roll, but he was on the cusp of that sea change. Nevertheless, on the record at least, it didn't seem like being with the Faces was a strain on him; it still seemed that he enjoyed a good night out with the boys, and Ooh La La is precisely that: a good night out, one that's blessed with some very memorable moments.

On their second album Long Player, the Faces truly gel – which isn't quite the same thing as having the band straighten up and fly right because in many ways this is album is even more ragged than their debut, with tracks that sound like they were recorded through a shoebox thrown up against a couple of haphazardly placed live cuts. But if the album seems pieced together from a few different sources, the band itself all seems to be coming from the same place, turning into a ferocious rock & roll band who, on their best day, could wrestle the title of greatest rock & roll band away from the Stones.

The Faces' third album, A Nod Is as Good as a Wink…to a Blind Horse, finally gave the group their long-awaited hit single in "Stay with Me," helping send the album into the Billboard Top Ten, which is certainly a testament to both the song and the album, but it's hard to separate its success from that of Rod Stewart's sudden solo stardom. In the mere months that separated Long Player and A Nod, Rod had a phenomenal hit with "Maggie May" and Every Picture Tells a Story, his third solo album, something that would soon irreparably damage the band, but at the time it was mere good fortune, helping bring them some collateral success that they deserved.

Faces live at the L.A. Forum, Inglewood, CA, 5th March 1975.