Ron Wood & Ronnie Lane - Mahoney's Last Stand: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack (Reissue, Remastered) (1976/2018)

In the 1971/72 timeframe Faces bass player Ronnie Lane was apparently approached to write a soundtrack for a film. Originally entitled Mahoney's Estate and starring Alexis Kanner and Sam Waterston, the film seemingly disappeared ina heartbeat (no, I haven't seen it and judging by the movie poster I'm not sure I want to see it). Written and performed by Lane and fellow Face Ronnie Wood, the resulting soundtrack got tangled up in various legal disputes and didn't actually get released until 1976. In spite of an all-star cast and strong reviews from the critics, hardly anyone actually heard the Glyn Jones produced "Mahoney's Last Stand" when it finally saw the light of day. I can actually recall seeing stacks and stacks of the heavily discounted album at my local record store (showing my age here).

As mentioned, Lane and Wood were still in The Faces when they agreed to record material for this soundtrack album. The Faces association was pretty clear via the all-star cast including Faces keyboardist Ian McLagan and by the collection's easy-going, slightly sloppy feel. If you've every heard any of Lane's Faces-era solo sides, or Wood's solo material, you'll be familiar with the collection's blend of country, English folk, and rock moves. Not meant as a criticism, but listening to the instrumental heavy collection you got the distinct impression that neither Lane, nor Wood felt the need to come to the table with their A-team song catalog. That wasn't meant to imply the collection was a complete throw-away. Tracks like 'From the Late to the Early' and the instrumental 'Just a Moment' had an easy-going charm that should hold consider appeal to Faces aficionados. Moreover, you probably didn't buy this album to hear Lane and Wood's ragged vocals ...~RDTEN1