Happiness Stan
Small Faces Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning | Line by Line Meaning
two-square on your botty?
Then I'll begin
Once upon a time in the land of greens
Where the sky was silky soft
and full of coloured dreams
Deep inside a rainbow lived Happiness Stan
in a small Victoriana charabanc
Evening will be here quite soon
Stan can sit and watch the moon
Watching as the white light
slowly makes the night bright
Hours slipping by while time stands still
Think of black and black will think for you
It's covered Stan in bruises, of the darkness that he knew
For black has stolen half the moon away
The opening lines of Small Faces's song "Happiness Stan" introduce the listeners to a story. The singer asks if everyone is comfortably seated and ready to hear the tale. The story takes place in the Land of Greens, where everything is peaceful and dreamlike. In this magical world, Happiness Stan lives inside a rainbow, in a small Victorian horse-drawn carriage called a charabanc. As evening approaches, Stan settles in to watch the moon. As the night falls, he contemplates the passing of time and realizes that when you lose yourself in time, the moments can seem to last forever.
The second verse takes a darker turn. The lyrics suggest that if you think about darkness, you will attract it into your life. Happiness Stan has encountered the darkness himself and has been left bruised by it. The line "black has stolen half the moon away," speaks to the idea of evil forces that can rob us of the light in our lives. Though the song takes a dark turn in the second verse, the overall message is one of hope and magical possibility.
Line by Line Meaning
Are you all seated comfly-bold
two-square on your botty?
Are you all comfortably seated, sitting up straight on your bottom?
Once upon a time in the land of greens
Where the sky was silky soft
and full of coloured dreams
Deep inside a rainbow lived Happiness Stan
in a small Victoriana charabanc
In a magical land where the sky was beautiful, and dreams were full of color, Happiness Stan lived inside a rainbow, in a small old-fashioned horse-drawn carriage.
Evening will be here quite soon
Stan can sit and watch the moon
Watching as the white light
slowly makes the night bright
Hours slipping by while time stands still
Evening is approaching, and as Stan sits and watches the moon, he sees its white light gradually light up the night sky. Time seems to stand still as hours pass by.
Think of black and black will think for you
It's covered Stan in bruises, of the darkness that he knew
For black has stolen half the moon away
If you focus on darkness, it will consume you, just as it has consumed Stan, leaving him bruised mentally. The darkness has even managed to take half of the moon away, leaving the night incomplete.
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: RONNIE LANE, STEVE MARRIOTT
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
By late 1967 Read Full BioSmall Faces were an influential British mod/psychedelic band of the 1960s, led by Steve Marriott and Ronnie Lane with Kenney Jones and Ian McLagan (who replaced original organist Jimmy Winston). The Small Faces were all genuine East End mods . They were signed to Decca records initially and enjoyed major success across Europe between 1965 and 1967 with classic singles like "All or Nothing" and "Sha-La-La-La-Lee" before moving to a new label.
By late 1967, the band had felt constricted financially & creatively by manager Don Arden (father of Sharon Osbourne), and were lured by Rolling Stones' publicist Andrew Loog Oldham into signing with his new Immediate label. They soon recorded more expansive psychedelic sounding material including hit pop tunes like "Lazy Sunday" which was included with their UK number one classic concept album Ogdens Nut Gone Flake and "Itchycoo Park" which was their only stateside charting single.
The demise of the Small Faces arrived on New Years Eve 1968, when Steve Marriott walked off stage at The Alexandra Palace in London. Marriott felt that despite the success of the group, he was still not being taken seriously as a musician. He went on to achieve major status in the U.S.A with Peter Frampton in Humble Pie. The others continued as the Faces, opting to drop the "Small" after one LP as new recruits Rod Stewart and Ronnie Wood towered above their new band mates. Drummer Kenney Jones later joined The Who after the death of their drummer Keith Moon. As years went on, Marriott kept recording various lineups as Humble Pie but became somewhat of a caricature and casualty of rock excess. Tragically, Steve Marriott died in a house fire in 1991 and Ronnie Lane followed him in 1997 after a long battle with Multiple Sclerosis. Keyboardist Ian McLagan has continued to tour and record with his own band as well as with artists like Billy Bragg, The New Barbarians ( a group composed of Ian, Ron Wood, Keith Richards, Stanley Clarke, and Billy Cobham), and The Rolling Stones. According to announcements at the shows on the New Barbarians tour, the proceeds of the live gigs were going to pay Ronnie Lane's medical expenses associated with Ronnie's struggle with Multiple Sclerosis.
The Small Faces remain one of British rock's most important legacy acts, with their membership having links to so many other acts. Amongst the many bands they influenced were The Jam, Ramones, Oasis and X.
There are a number of locations around London linked to the Small Faces, many to be found in the East End where they grew up.
The J60 Music bar in Manor Park, an instrument shop where Steve Marriott first met Ronnie Lane
http://www.musicpilgrimages.com/articl/4012.php
Little Ilford park, also located in Manor Park, inspired the track Itchycoo Park, Steve and other kids in the East End used to play in this park when they grew up.
http://www.musicpilgrimages.com/articl/4002.php
In 1968 the Small Faces recorded a video for their track Lazy Sunday, Steve sings in his native East end accent and the video was shot in the East End using Kenney Jones parents' flat in Havering Street. The video ends with a shot of the nearby Thames.
http://www.musicpilgrimages.com/articl/4014.php
daisy kinton
ogdens nut gone flake was a bloody masterpiece.....in my opinion its one of the best albums of all time. i know you might not agree with me on this but i love everything on it.
Justin Simmons
I agree strongly
C Reidy
Totally agree. I have played Happiness Stan for my children and grandchildren. And post Mad John lyrics--they apply to today.
LJR
I and a trillion others from the ERA that mattered agree !!! :)
LOPEZ BARTUS David Víctor
It's a masterpiece.
MrCudderz
Best band of the 60s by a mile.. Superb sound and very talented.
Stewart Nicol as BILLY CONNOLLY
The most underrated, creative, musical, positive, psychedelic, etc etc writers of the late 60's - they just hit the nail on the Farckin' Head!!!!!
pf on YT
such a great band ... still influential today. rip Steve (2009-04-20)
MrElbino
The whole Ogdens' Nut Gone Flake album is just brilliant. I loved it 40 some years ago and love it today.
artois54
Yes, R.I.P Steve Marriot and Ronnie Lane!!!!! I'd give everything to hear you one more time live together. Eternal rest grant unto them, O Lord, and let perpetual light shine upon them. A hymn becomes you, O God, in Zion, and to you shall a vow be repaid in Jerusalem. Hear my prayer; to you shall all flesh come.