He quit Faces in 1973 and formed his own band, Ronnie Lane's Slim Chance, in 1973 to record the hit single "How Come" (UK No. 11) and "The Poacher", then the album Anymore For Anymore, showcasing his own blend of British rock music, folk, and country music.
After initial success with the singles, he commenced a tour called "the Passing Show", touring the UK as a carnival, complete with tents, barkers, etc. Viv Stanshall, from the The Bonzo Dog Doo Dah Band, was a short-lived ringmaster (of sorts).
Lane moved to Island Records and issued Ronnie Lane's Slim Chance and One For The Road. In late 1976, he joined a short-lived reformation of the Small Faces, but quit after two rehearsals, to be replaced by Rick Wills (who currently plays alongside the former Small Faces drummer, Kenney Jones, in the Jones Gang). However, since Lane had already signed a contract with Atlantic Records as part of the reformed Small Faces, Atlantic informed him that he owed them an album. Pete Townshend recorded an album with Lane, titled Rough Mix, which was released in 1977. Rough Mix was lauded as contender for best album of the year by many critics, but the label did not promote it, and sales were thereby lacklustre. Rough Mix not only left Lane out of debt to the label, but it cemented his credentials as an unsung hero.[citation needed]
During the recording of Rough Mix, Lane was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis (his mother had also suffered, and died, from the disease). Nonetheless, he toured, wrote, and recorded (with Eric Clapton, among many others) and managed to release yet another album, See Me, which features several songs written by Lane and Clapton.
In 1983, his girlfriend, Boo Oldfield, contacted record producer Glyn Johns in the hopes of getting a concert going to help fund Action for Research into Multiple Sclerosis, a London-based organization. Johns was already arranging Clapton's Command Performance for Prince Charles, so they decided to book the Albert Hall for another couple of nights and hold a benefit. The resulting A.R.M.S. Concerts featured Eric Clapton, Jimmy Page, Jeff Beck, Steve Winwood, Bill Wyman, Charlie Watts, Kenney Jones, Andy Fairweather-Low, and more. With the addition of Joe Cocker and Paul Rodgers, they toured the U.S. It was during this time that Rodgers and Page started the band, The Firm.
Move to Texas
Lane moved to Texas in 1984, where the climate was more beneficial to his health, and continued playing, writing, and recording. He formed an American version of Slim Chance, which was, as always, a loose-knit conglomeration of available musicians. For much of the time, membership included Alejandro Escovedo. For close to a decade, Lane enjoyed his rock royalty status in the Austin area, and even toured Japan. Still, his health continued to decline, and his last performance was in 1992 at a Ron Wood gig. Also in the band that night was Ian McLagan. In 1994, Ronnie and his last wife, Susan, moved to the small town of Trinidad, Colorado. Jimmy Page and Rod Stewart generously continued to donate money for his medical care because there were yet no royalties from Small Faces' work. Through the efforts of Kenney Jones and Ian McLagan, the Small Faces were eventually able to secure ongoing royalty payments. By then, however, Steve Marriott had died in a house fire, and on June 4, 1997, Lane had succumbed to pneumonia.
In 2000, Paul Weller recorded "He's the Keeper", a song dedicated to Lane's memory. An album of live BBC recordings was about to be released to raise money for his care when Lane died. An album of live and in-studio recordings from Lane's Austin days was later culled, and released as Live in Austin. The place where he was born, Plaistow (in East London) named a street after him, fittingly called "Ronnie Lane", in 2001. In January, 2006, BBC Four debuted an extensive documentary about Lane, which had been in the works since 2000. They also aired vintage concerts by the Faces and Slim Chance. In October 2006 the documentary was also shown on BBC Two.
Lovely
Ronnie Lane Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
can get yer down. And each day that grows
one minute shorter. Keep your eyes well
off the ground
Well put your(??????) with money together
we can be so stronge well you can sing
then I'm sure I could be your song so
the floor well we can do it again because I know
I don't do better fortune's scatter all
with glare everything she's gonna work
out better don't you know we're in good hands
Lovely don't do better fortunes scatter all with glare
'Cause we can help each other from the floor
Well we an do again 'cause we've done it all before
The lyrics to Ronnie Lane's song Lovely relay a message of encouragement, hope, and reassurance to someone who seems to be struggling with life's struggles. The opening line "Lovely don't you falter but this old lie can get yer down" suggests that the person may be feeling overwhelmed by life's challenges, which threatens to pull them down. However, the subsequent lines "And each day that grows one minute shorter. Keep your eyes well off the ground" proffer a reminder that life is fleeting and that the person needs to stay focused and look up even when things seem to be going wrong.
The next set of lines seem to suggest that the singer has a solution to the person's problem. He says "put your(??????) with money together we can be so stronge" and that if the person sings, he could be their song. The singer offers an image of mutual support and encouragement, suggesting that if they work together, they can overcome whatever situation that they may be facing. The singer assures the person that things will work out better, invoking the phrase "we're in good hands."
The lyrics also suggest that the singer has walked the same path as the person he is singing to. He says "Well, we can do it again because I know. 'Cause we can help each other from the floor. Well, we can do it again 'cause we've done it all before." This suggests that the singer has had his fair share of difficult times but managed to overcome them. He is offering his experience as an encouragement to the person to keep persevering.
Line by Line Meaning
Lovely don't you falter but this old lie can get yer down.
Hey there, don't lose your spirit even when lies try to bring you down.
And each day that grows one minute shorter. Keep your eyes well off the ground.
As days pass by and time goes shorter, don't give up and rather keep your head high.
Well put your(??????) with money together we can be so stronge well you can sing then I'm sure I could be your song so sing it for me as we help each other from the floor well we can do it again because I know
If we pool our money together, we can be strong and achieve great things together. You are a great singer and I am here to support you. Let's help each other grow and fall together, knowing we can always get back up again.
I don't do better fortune's scatter all with glare everything she's gonna work out better don't you know we're in good hands
I don't need good fortune to be successful, and everything will work out because we are in good hands and have each other for support.
Lovely don't do better fortunes scatter all with glare
Hey, don't let the glitter of fortune distract you from what's important.
'Cause we can help each other from the floor. Well we can do again 'cause we've done it all before
We can always lift each other up and keep going because we've overcome obstacles together in the past.
Contributed by Christian T. Suggest a correction in the comments below.