Rod Stewart has revealed the one song he would love his legacy to be remembered for – and it’s not the hit many would expect.
The British rocker, 80, who shot to fame in 1971 with his breakthrough album Every Picture Tells a Story and its chart-topping single Maggie May, is one of the best-selling artists of all time.
Throughout his six-decade career, Rod has wowed crowds with hits such as Do Ya Think I’m Sexy, Tonight’s the Night (Gonna Be Alright), and Sailing.
But when it comes to his proudest musical achievement, the singer points to a lesser-known, more poignant track.
Speaking in 2011, Rod admitted that a socially-conscious song from the height of his career in the 1970s might just be his crowning achievement.
He told Dean Goodman: ‘If I was to say one song I was really proud of, it would be The Killing of Georgie. Because it dealt with a very difficult subject in 1976, which is a long time ago.’
Rod Stewart has revealed the one song he would love his legacy to be remembered for – and it’s not the hit many would expect (pictured in June)
The British rocker, 80, who shot to fame in 1971 (pictured) with his breakthrough album Every Picture Tells a Story and its chart-topping single Maggie May, is one of the best-selling artists of all time
The track, a two-parter featured on his seventh solo album A Night on the Town, tackles the subject of homophobia, a topic rarely addressed in music at the time.
The song tells the tragic story of a man who is beaten and murdered for his sexuality.
And Rod later revealed the narrative was loosely based on the real-life experience of a friend.
The track opens with the lyrics: ‘I these days of changing ways/ So called liberated days/ A story comes to mind of a friend of mine/ Georgie boy was gay, I guess/Nothin’ more or nothin’ less/ The kindest guy I ever knew.’
Discussing his link to the true story, Rod told the Guardian in 2016: ‘I only knew him fleetingly. He would play songs for us and say, “Have you heard this?”
‘I remember him turning us on to Sam and Dave singing “Night Time Is the Right Time”. I can tell you, he was a hell of a good-looking guy.’
He admitted that while the story rings true, he wasn’t a part of it at the time: ‘I wasn’t on the scene when it happened, so I embellished a bit.’
The revelation comes after Rod’s wife Penny Lancaster gushed that her husband is ‘so youthful he’s a machine’ as she opened up about their relationship earlier this week.
Throughout his six-decade career, Rod has wowed crowds with hits such as Do Ya Think I’m Sexy, Tonight’s the Night (Gonna Be Alright), and Sailing (pictured 1978)
But when it comes to his proudest musical achievement, the singer points to a lesser-known, more poignant track – The Killing of Georgie (pictured 1976)
The track, a two-parter featured on his seventh solo album A Night on the Town, tackles the subject of homophobia, a topic rarely addressed in music at the time
The TV personality, 54, has been married to the rocker for 18 years but was forced to convince his six children that she wasn’t a gold digger when they first met.
When the couple first met, Penny was 27-years-old and Rod was 53, with two marriages behind him.
Despite their age gap, the Police Constable revealed to Saga Magazine that the Maggie May hitmaker has promised to give her ‘another 20 years’.
Penny said: ‘Rod’s so youthful, he’s like a machine. You can’t stop him. He’s the one that says, “We’re going out tomorrow night” or “Should we go to Paris this weekend?” I’m like, “We were out last night!” he has ideas about how he’ll wind down, but he’ll never stop.
‘We’re already looking at tours next year and the year beyond. On his 80th birthday, he said to me, “I’m going to give you another 20 years”.’
The Loose Women panellist also revealed that when she first met Rod, she ‘wasn’t a fan’ of his but the singer soon ‘sucked her in’ to his life.
However, his family’s initial reaction to their relationship was quite strong as Rod had six children by four women.
Penny added: ‘They were, “What’s her angle?” I was just… “I like the guy!” Whatever decisions Rod made with exes, I was always very inclusive with them, making sure they didn’t see me as a threat.’
The revelation comes after Rod’s wife Penny Lancaster gushed that her husband is ‘so youthful he’s a machine’ as she opened up about their relationship earlier this week (Penny pictured in June)
Rod put his first child up for adoption, Sarah, 61, whom he welcomed with his ex-girlfriend Susannah Boffey when he was just 17. He later formed a relationship with her.
He had a daughter, Kimberly, 47, and son, Sean, 45, with his ex-wife, Alana Stewart and a daughter, Ruby, 38, with his ex-girlfriend Kelly Emberg.
While married to his ex-wife, Rachel Hunter, the Faces frontman had two more children, Renee, 33, and Liam, 30.
Penny and Rod later welcomed sons Alastair, 19, and Aiden, 14.
