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)
Only A Hobo
Rod Stewart Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I spied an old hobo, in the doorway he lay
His face was all covered in the cold sidewalk floor
I guess he'd been there for a whole night or more
He was only a hobo, but one more is gone
Leaving nobody to carry it on
Leaving nobody to sing his sad song
A blanket of newspaper covered his head
The step was his pillow
The street was his bed
One look at his face
Showed the hard road he'd come
And a fistful of money
Showed the coins that he'd bummed
He was only a hobo, but one more is gone
Leavin' nobody to sing his sad song
Leavin' nobody to carry it on
Only a hobo, but one more is gone
Does it take much of a man
To see a whole life go down
To look on the world
From a hole in the ground
Too late for your future
Like a horse that's gone lame
To lie in the gutter
And die with no name
He was only a hobo, but one more is gone
Leavin' nobody to sing his sad song
Leavin' nobody to carry it on
Only a hobo, but one more is gone
The lyrics of Rod Stewart's song "Only A Hobo" is a poignant depiction of the life of a homeless person, who is lying on the street in a state of utter desolation. The song is a commentary on the fragility of life, the fleeting nature of time, and the reality of poverty in society. The opening lines introduce us to the singer- an old hobo who is lying on the cold sidewalk floor. The use of the word "spied" is significant as it suggests that the singer is an object of curiosity or perhaps disdain for the singer. The second line, "in the doorway he lay" evokes the sense of despair and hopelessness, as the hobo has nowhere else to go.
The chorus of the song is particularly poignant, as it suggests that the death of the hobo marks another passing of a human being, leaving no one to carry on his legacy, and no one to sing his sad song. The line "only a hobo, but one more is gone" is particularly powerful, as it highlights the invisibility of the poor and marginalized in society. The image of the blanket of newspapers covering the hobo's head and the street being his bed suggests the squalor of his existence. The final stanza of the song is particularly affecting, as it suggests that the hobo's life has no significance or meaning, and that he will die without any recognition or acknowledgment.
Line by Line Meaning
As I was out walking on the corner one day
While I was strolling on the corner one day
I spied an old hobo, in the doorway he lay
I noticed an elderly beggar lying in a doorway
His face was all covered in the cold sidewalk floor
His face was buried in the freezing ground
I guess he'd been there for a whole night or more
I presumed he had been there for an entire night or beyond that
He was only a hobo, but one more is gone
He was just a homeless person, but now one more has passed away
Leaving nobody to carry it on
Leaving no one to continue his legacy
Leaving nobody to sing his sad song
Leaving no one to tell his tragic story
Only a hobo, but one more is gone
Only a beggar, but one more has departed
A blanket of newspaper covered his head
His head was covered with a blanket made of newspapers
The step was his pillow
He used a step as his pillow
The street was his bed
He had the street as his bed
One look at his face
Observing his face
Showed the hard road he'd come
It was evident that he had endured a difficult path
And a fistful of money
He had a handful of coins
Showed the coins that he'd bummed
Displaying the coins that he had begged for
Does it take much of a man
What kind of person does it take?
To see a whole life go down
To witness an entire life collapse
To look on the world
To observe the world
From a hole in the ground
From a pit in the ground
Too late for your future
It's too late to plan your future
Like a horse that's gone lame
Like a horse that can no longer walk
To lie in the gutter
To die on the street
And die with no name
To pass away without being recognized
He was only a hobo, but one more is gone
He was only a homeless person, but now one more has passed away
Leavin' nobody to sing his sad song
Leaving no one to tell his tragic story
Leavin' nobody to carry it on
Leaving no one to continue his legacy
Only a hobo, but one more is gone
Only a beggar, but one more has passed away
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: BOB DYLAN
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Trip Lucid
As I was out walking on a corner one day,
I spied an old hobo, in a doorway he lay.
His face was all grounded in the cold sidewalk floor
And I guess he'd been there for the whole night or more.
Only a hobo, but one more is gone
Leavin' nobody to sing his sad song
Leavin' nobody to carry him home
Only a hobo, but one more is gone
A blanket of newspaper covered his head,
As the curb was his pillow, the street was his bed.
One look at his face showed the hard road he'd come
And a fistful of coins showed the money he bummed.
Only a hobo, but one more is gone
Leavin' nobody to sing his sad song
Leavin' nobody to carry him home
Only a hobo, but one more is gone
Does it take much of a man to see his whole life go down,
To look up on the world from a hole in the ground,
To wait for your future like a horse that's gone lame,
To lie in the gutter and die with no name?
Only a hobo, but one more is gone
Leavin' nobody to sing his sad song
Leavin' nobody to carry him home
Only a hobo, but one more is gone
Songwriter: Bob Dylan
Joe Chiocca
When I was 11, my older HS-aged sister bought me Gasoline Alley for my Birthday!
I LOVED it- a fantastic band, and a true showcase of all the talent inside Ron Wood! A masterpiece, IMO
Nick Manning MBE
I love this song, I feel it should be re released by someone ..What a fantastic true to life story in a song..Sir Rod is the best
S Lynch
Nick Manning MBE - don’t know if you know about Rod Stewart’s The Mercury Recordings, it’s an old (now) but it had quite the selection. This is on it. I love Dylan’s version, too, but this version kills me
Frankincensed
Back when artists really wrote about the struggles of life with real feeling and real instruments. A day gone by.
Leigh Hancock
Yes and went on to be awarded a Nobel Prize!
ThePowergoats
Artists still do this. It's just not mainstream.
Max Deplorable
@ThePowergoats Actually NO. Artists don't write songs like Only A Hobo. Guys like Dylan don't fall of the milk truck every day
Jason William Lee....
Wish he'd make a full album of Dylan songs..
Jupitorious
a truly class voice, Rod knew what he was doing, and wanted the mansions, he got them... Well done you deserved it all
Josiah Quincy
yeah , the music business - glad for him- but these early cuts are pure /priceless.