Author(s): Sean Egan (Contribution by)

Rock & Roll

'Stewart's lukewarm attitude to the idea of being a solo recording artist is understandable on one ground: he has never been a prolific songwriter. In 1970, Stewart was frank in discussing with Rolling Stone's John Morthland how difficult he found the process. "It takes me a long time to write a song", he said. "I write lyrics best … I don't pretend to be a songwriter, really. I try really hard, but it takes me about three weeks to write a song". Immediately post-Beatles, and for a long time thereafter, someone who could only write or co-write a handful of songs per year was not considered a heavyweight artist, no matter how great his singing voice. Stewart would help to change this perception simply by dint of managing to make albums that were clearly classics despite the fact that he had composed a relatively small proportion of them. Another feat that belied his absence of fecundity was writing a remarkably high quotient of great songs. That, though, was quite a way into the future'.