Rod Stewart, The #28 Artist of the Rock Era, Part Four

 

(Continued from Part Three)

In 1991, Stewart released the album Vagabond Heart.  "Rhythm Of My Heart" was another huge hit--#1 in Ireland, #2 AC and #5 Popular in the United States, #2 in Australia, #3 in the U.K. and #4 in Canada.  It landed in the Top 10 in most countries in the world.   

 

Rod invited the legendary Temptations to join him for "The Motown Song", #2 in Ireland, #3 AC and #10 overall in the U.S. and #10 in the United Kingdom.

 

Rod took the Robbie Robertson song "Broken Arrow" to #3 on the Adult Contemporary chart.

 

In 1993, Rod received the Legend Award at the World Music Awards.  He joined Sting and Bryan Adams for the song "All For Love" from the movie The Three Musketeers.

 Stewart and Ronnie Wood performed on the MTV Unplugged series.  The album Unplugged...and Seated reached #2.  Their version of Van Morrison's song "Have I Told You Lately" rose to #1 on the Adult Contemporary chart and #5 overall.  

In 1994, Rod was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.  His show on the Copacabana Beach in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil set a world record for the largest free Rock concert in history with 3.5 million fans on hand.

 

Stewart released the album A Spanner in the Works in 1995.  In 1996, Rod contributed "So Far Away" to the album Tapestry Revisited: A Tribute to Carole King. Stewart reached #2 on the AC chart.

Later in the year, Stewart released the album If We Fall In Love Tonight. The title song peaked at #4 among adults.

 

Rod released the album When We Were the New Boys in 1998, which reached #2 in the U.K.  Rod recorded a new version of the Faces song "Ooh La La", which peaked at #3 on the AC chart.

             Stewart's song "Faith Of The Heart" was included in the movie Patch Adams, starring Robin Williams.  It hit #3 on the Adult chart.   

Stewart was diagnosed with thyroid cancer in May of 2000 and underwent surgery for it.  He has worked to raise funds for The City of Hope Foundation charity, which works to find cures for cancer, especially those affecting children.

Stewart switched to Warner Brothers in 2000 and released the album Human the following year before signing with J Records.  He released the compilation The Story So Far:  The Very Best of Rod Stewart.

Stewart received the Diamond Award at the World Music Awards for achieving 100 million in sales.  Rod was invited to the Party at the Palace in 2002 which celebrated the Golden Jubilee of Elizabeth II at the Buckingham Palace Garden.

Stewart then turned his attention to singing from the Great American Songbook, for which he has enjoyed great success.  The series began when Rod released It Had to Be You, the Great American Songbook, number four on the Album chart in the U.S. and #8 in the U.K.

Rod released the album As Time Goes By:  the Great American Songbook 2, #1 in Canada, #2 in the U.S., and #4 in the U.K.  

 "Baby, It's Cold Outside" with Dolly Parton, hit #2 on the AC chart. 

In 2003, the musical Tonight's the Night, honoring Stewart, opened in 2003 in the London West End.  Rod reunited with Wood for concerts of material from their years with Faces before releasing Stardust:  the Great American Songbook 3, his first #1 album in the United States in 25 years.  It also topped the Canadian chart and hit #3 in the U.K.

Stewart won his first Grammy Award for the album.  He followed that up with the 2005 album Thanks for the Memory:  The Great American Songbook 4, a #2 album.  

In 2006, Rod released Still the Same...Great Rock Classics of Our Time, another #1 album.  At the end of the year, Rod hosted the 8th annual A Home for the Holidays on CBS television.

Stewart was appointed Commander of the Order of the British Empire in 2007 for his services to music.  He performed at the Concert for (Princess) Diana at Wembley Stadium in London.  Rod released the 4-CD compilation album Rod Stewart Sessions 1971-1998 in 2009, which consisted of outtakes and unreleased material.   

Stewart released the album Soulbook, which consisted of remakes of Soul hits.  He followed with a continuation of the Great American Songbook Series, Fly Me to the Moon...The Great American Songbook Volume V.

Stewart joined Stevie Nicks for a North American tour in 2011 and he headlined the Hard Rock Calling Festival in London.  Rod had a two-year residency at the Colosseum at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas, Nevada.

In 2012, Stewart signed a new recording contract with Universal and released his book, Rod:  The Autobiography.  In November, he performed before Queen Elizabeth II at the Royal Albert Hall for the Royal British Legion Festival of Remembrance and later in the month during the 10th Royal Variety Performance. 

 

In December, he released the album Merry Christmas, Baby.  Rod's version of "Let It Snow!  Let It Snow!  Let It Snow!" hit #1 on the Adult Contemporary chart.

Stewart appeared on Michael Bublé's television special Home for the Holidays.  In 2013, Rod released the album Time, the first that included his own songwriting in 20 years.  He said that writing his autobiography inspired him to write songs again.  Time went to #1 in the U.K., his first #1 on the Album chart since his Greatest Hits Volume 1 in 1979.

In 2018, Stewart released the album Blood Red Roses on Republic Records.

Stewart enjoyed a golden period in his native Great Britain, when he scored six consecutive #1 albums.  31 of his 62 hits have reached the Top 10 there, with six reaching #1. 

Rod was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1994.  He was knighted in 2016.  Rod has won one Grammy Award in his career.

Stewart has chalked up 53 hits in his career, with 16 of those reaching the Top 10 and 4 #1 songs.  On the Adult chart, he has 48 hits with 22 Top 10's and 4 #1's.  He has sold 78 million albums.