Stewart's music career began in 1962 when he took up busking with a harmonica. In 1963, he joined The Dimensions as a harmonica player and vocalist. In 1964, Stewart joined Long John Baldry and the All Stars before moving to the Jeff Beck Group in 1967. Joining Faces in 1969, he also maintained a solo career releasing his debut album that year. Stewart's early albums were a fusion of rock, folk music, soul music, and R&B. His third album, 1971's Every Picture Tells a Story, was his breakthrough, topping the charts in the UK, US, Canada and Australia, as did its ballad "Maggie May". His 1972 follow-up album, Never a Dull Moment, also reached number one in the UK and Australia, while going top three in the US and Canada. Its single, "You Wear It Well", topped the chart in the UK and was a moderate hit elsewhere.
After Stewart had a handful more UK top ten hits, the Faces broke up in 1975. Stewart's next few hit singles were ballads with "Sailing", off the 1975 UK and Australian number-one album, Atlantic Crossing, becoming a hit in the UK and the Netherlands (number one), Germany (number four) and other countries, but barely charting in North America. A Night on the Town (1976), his fifth straight chart-topper in the UK, began a three-album run of going number one or top three in the US, Canada, the UK and Australia with each release. That album's "Tonight's the Night (Gonna Be Alright)" spent almost two months at number one in the US and Canada, and made the top five in other countries. Foot Loose & Fancy Free (1977) contained the hit "You're in My Heart (The Final Acclaim)" as well as the rocker "Hot Legs". Blondes Have More Fun (1978) and its disco-tinged "Da Ya Think I'm Sexy" both went to number one in Canada, Australia and the US, with "Da Ya Think I'm Sexy" also hitting number one in the UK and the top ten in other countries. Stewart's albums regularly hit the upper rungs of the charts in the Netherlands throughout the 70s and in Sweden from 1975 onward.
After a disco and new wave period in the late 1970s and early 1980s, Stewart's music turned to a soft rock/middle-of-the-road style, with most of his albums reaching the top ten in the UK, Germany and Sweden, but faring less well in the US. The single "Rhythm of My Heart" was a top five hit in the UK, US and other countries, with its source album, 1991's Vagabond Heart, becoming, at number ten in the US and number two in the UK, his highest-charting album in a decade. In 1993, he collaborated with Bryan Adams and Sting on the power ballad "All for Love", which went to number one in many countries. In the early 2000s, he released a series of successful albums interpreting the Great American Songbook.
In 2008, Billboard magazine ranked him the 17th most successful artist on the "Billboard Hot 100 All-Time Top Artists". A Grammy and Brit Award recipient, he was voted at No. 33 in Q Magazine's list of the Top 100 Greatest Singers of all time. As a solo artist, Stewart was inducted into the US Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1994, the UK Music Hall of Fame in 2006, and he was inducted a second time into the US Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2012 as a member of Faces.
Full Wikipedia article: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rod_Stewart
Studio albums
An Old Raincoat Won't Ever Let You Down (1969)
Gasoline Alley (1970)
Every Picture Tells a Story (1971)
Never a Dull Moment (1972)
Smiler (1974)
Atlantic Crossing (1975)
A Night on the Town (1976)
Foot Loose & Fancy Free (1977)
Blondes Have More Fun (1978)
Foolish Behaviour (1980)
Tonight I'm Yours (1981)
Body Wishes (1983)
Camouflage (1984)
Every Beat of My Heart (1986)
Out of Order (1988)
Vagabond Heart (1991)
A Spanner in the Works (1995)
When We Were the New Boys (1998)
Human (2001)
It Had to Be You: The Great American Songbook (2002)
As Time Goes By: The Great American Songbook, Volume II (2003)
Stardust: The Great American Songbook, Volume III (2004)
Thanks for the Memory: The Great American Songbook, Volume IV (2005)
Still the Same... Great Rock Classics of Our Time (2006)
Soulbook (2009)
Once in a Blue Moon: The Lost Album (2010)
Fly Me to the Moon... The Great American Songbook Volume V (2010)
Merry Christmas, Baby (2012)
Time (2013)
Another Country (2015)
Blood Red Roses (2018)
The Tears of Hercules (2021)
'Til There Was You
Rod Stewart Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
But I never heard them ringing
No, I never heard them at all
Till there was you
There were birds in the sky
But I never saw them winging
No, I never saw them at all
Then there was music and wonderful roses
They tell me in sweet fragrant meadows
Of dawn and dew
There was love all around
But I never heard it singing
No I never heard it at all
Till there was you
Then there was music and wonderful roses
They tell me in sweet fragrant meadows
Of dawn and dew
There was love all around
But I never heard it singing
No, I never heard it at all
Till there was you
Till there was you
In this song, Rod Stewart seems to reflect on how meeting the love of his life has given him a newfound appreciation for the world around him. He describes how he never noticed the beauty of nature before, such as the bells on a hill and the birds in the sky, until he fell in love. He also mentions how he never heard the music and love that were always present until his lover came into his life.
The lyrics suggest that love has a transformative power, allowing us to see the world in a new light and appreciate things that were previously overlooked. The line "there was love all around, but I never heard it singing" is particularly poignant, as it highlights how easily we can take the people and things we love for granted. It is only when we find true love that we are able to truly hear the song that has been playing all along.
Overall, 'Til There Was You' is a touching love song that celebrates the power of love to open our eyes and hearts to the beauty around us.
Line by Line Meaning
There were bells on a hill
There were beautiful bells on the hill, but I didn't notice them.
But I never heard them ringing
I wasn't paying attention to the bells, so I never heard them ring.
No, I never heard them at all
I completely missed the bells, I didn't hear them even once.
Till there was you
Until you arrived in my life and opened my eyes and ears to the world around me.
There were birds in the sky
Birds were flying around in the sky, but I didn't notice them.
But I never saw them winging
I wasn't paying attention to the birds, so I never saw them flying.
No, I never saw them at all
I completely missed the birds, I didn't see them even once.
Then there was music and wonderful roses
Then, after you came into my life, I started to notice the beautiful things like music and roses.
They tell me in sweet fragrant meadows
These beautiful things tell me about the peaceful, fragrant meadows where they come from.
Of dawn and dew
They remind me of the beautiful morning time and the dew on the grass.
There was love all around
Love was present in the world, but I never felt it or noticed it.
But I never heard it singing
I wasn't listening for love, so I never heard it 'singing' or expressing itself.
No, I never heard it at all
I completely missed the love that was around me, I never felt it even once.
Till there was you
Until you arrived in my life and showed me what love truly is.
Contributed by Camden L. Suggest a correction in the comments below.