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)
Purple Heather
Rod Stewart Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And the leaves are sweetly turning
And the wild mountain thyme
Blooms across the purple heather
Will you go, lassie, go
If you will not go with me
I will never find another
All along the purple heather
Will you go, lassie, go
Lassie, go
I will build my love a tower
By the cool crystal waters
And I'll cling to her forever
Like the ivy to the heather
Will you go, lassie, go
And we'll go together
To pick wild mountain thyme
All along the purple heather
Will you go, lassie, go
Lassie, go
Will you go, lassie, go
And we'll go together
To pick wild mountain thyme
All along the purple heather
Will you go, lassie, go
And we'll all go together
To pull wild mountain thyme
All across the purple heather
Will you go, lassie, go
Lassie, go
Lassie, go
“Purple Heather” by Rod Stewart is a ballad about a young man and his love for a lassie. The lyrics convey the changing of the seasons, as the summer is turning to autumn and the leaves are changing color. The mountain thyme blooms across the purple heather, portraying the beauty of nature. The young man asks the lassie if she will accompany him to pick wild mountain thyme, as he would never find another to share this experience with. They would go together to pick wild mountain thyme along the purple heather, and build a tower by the cool crystal waters, to cling onto their love forever. The young man’s love is depicted as something that will last forever, like ivy to the heather.
The song has a melancholic tone, as the young man seems anxious about the future and uncertain about whether the lassie will remain with him. The lyrics “If you will not go with me, I will never find another,” captures the fear of separation and loneliness. However, the song also conveys a sense of longing and hope for the future, as the young man builds a tower and dreams of a future together. The repetition of “Lassie, go” at the end of each stanza builds a sense of urgency and desire, encapsulating the young man's burning passion and appeal to the lassie to choose love over everything else.
Line by Line Meaning
Oh the summer time is gone
The season of summer has passed
And the leaves are sweetly turning
The leaves of trees are changing color to autumn shades
And the wild mountain thyme
The beautiful, natural herb known as thyme that grows in mountainous regions
Blooms across the purple heather
The thyme flourishes and spreads within the natural landscape of purple heather
Will you go, lassie, go
Asking the woman (lassie) if she will accompany him on a journey
If you will not go with me
In case the woman does not agree to accompany him
I will never find another
He would not be able to find anyone else to join him
To pick wild mountain thyme
To collect the herb known as thyme grown in the mountains
All along the purple heather
To collect the thyme that grows along with the purple heather
I will build my love a tower
The man promises to build a tower for his beloved
By the cool crystal waters
The location of the tower will be near refreshing, clear water bodies
And I'll cling to her forever
The man wants to hold onto his beloved for eternity
Like the ivy to the heather
He wants to hold onto her as the ivy holds onto the heather
And we'll go together
They will embark on the journey together
To pick wild mountain thyme
To gather the herb known as thyme grown in the mountains
Will you go, lassie, go
Once again, he asks the woman if she will join him on this journey
And we'll all go together
There will be a larger group going to collect the thyme
To pull wild mountain thyme
To gather the herb known as thyme growing in the mountains by pulling it up from the ground
All across the purple heather
The thyme can be found all over the heather in the region
Lassie, go
Another plea to the woman to come along on the journey
Lassie, go
Final plea to the woman to agree to join him on this adventure
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: ROD STEWART
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Lucas Lima
@Harmony Desroches Right i agree with you, in the few months ago i listening to Gasoline Alley (1970) & Smiler (1974), i not listening to these albums before, Gasoline Alley is without doubts a masterpiece, and i found Smiler (1974) to be a totally underrated Rod Stewart album is amazing, i was little afraid to hear, because is one of most panned Rod Stewart album, actually was the first album of Rod Stewart to be critically panned, and to my suprise i found "Smiler" an amazing album.
And I already listen to Rod Stewart three last albums of original songs Time (2013), Another Country (2015) & Blood Red Roses (2018), and is a great comeback albums from Rod Stewart career, of those three maybe my least favorite is Blood Red Roses even being a great album too!.
Apart from Smiler (1974) album, albums like Foot Loose & Fancy Free (1977), Blondes Have More Fun (1978), Foolish Behaviour (1980), Body Wishes (1983), Every Beat Of My Heart (1986) & Out Of Order (1988) is also very underrated albums when i talk about underrated i talk about the critics, but also some part of the fans, Camouflage (1984) is a good album, nothing very great but with few really great songs & covers.
But albums like the saga of The Great American Songbook, Soulbook (2009), Merry Christmas (2012), i didn't heard yet, & also the first album An Old Raincoat Won't Ever Let You Down (1969).
And sorry for my bad english, i am from Brazil.
Harmony Desroches
@Lucas Lima - No worries about your English!
Smiler is such a great album!!
Being such a Stewart fan I think all of this albums are underrated, ha.
Blood Red Roses is my least favorite out of Time, Another Country, and it. It's a good album, but there are some songs that I haven't connected with.
I absolutely adore his Christmas album!
If you're a fan of his older work I highly suggest An Old Raincoat Wont Let You Down. Man of Constant Sorrow and Handbags & Gladrags are stunning songs.
Harmony Desroches
I love this song so much!! Years ago, when I was suicidal, I'd put it on repeat and listen to it for hours. Rod's voice and this melody saved my life. Thank you, Sir Rod Stewart. Thank you.
james mcginn
Rod as you know is a big soccer fan--i see him at games here in Scotland a few times a year with 1 or 2 of his kids . Keep Safe from Scotland .
Bonita Show
💝life is a beautiful thing🍃
Alan Kennedy
Bonita Show roachford
MJOTD !
When ever you feel down Harmony, just play this again, its truly a great song! stay safe.
United Space Pirates
Death sucks, dont reccomend it.
Tim Twait
As per usual, another song beautifully done. Been a Rod fan as long as I can remember. Still killing it!
nilza silva
Voz perfeita, melodia linda não doe os ouvidos de ouvir. Unico. Inesquecível.
Mary Lyles - Adair
Made me cry. Beautiful! Thank you Rod. Your voice speaks to my heart.
Lucas Lima
Really and sadly, "A Spanner In The Works (1995)" is a totally underrated album.
This album is amazing.