Millie Small, The Jamaican ska singer who rocketed up the pop charts in 1964 with ‘My Boy Lollipop,’ died on Tuesday in England after suffering a stroke, The sad news was announced by Chris Blackwell, her longtime friend and founder of Island Records.
Millie recorded three albums but it was while she was only 17 her biggest hit was released, the single features in ‘Rod Stewart’ folklore as it was rumoured for many years that Rod played the amazing harmonica solo on the classic song a fact that even Millie herself thought was true.
In fact Contrary to legend, the harmonica player was not Rod but Pete Hogman of The Pete Hogman Blues Band and Hoggie & The Sharpetones. Hogman told Song facts website some years back: “The backing for ‘My Boy Lollipop’ was recorded live in the studio. I played harmonica and Ernest Ranglin played a black Gibson. Several people have claimed to have played the harmonica break but I can promise you it was me, and it was all recorded in London. By the way, Rod Stewart has never claimed to have played that solo, in fact he has said it was me in the Bob Marley life story Catch A Fire.”
Strangely, Rod’s old bandmate Jimmy Powell from Jimmy Powell and The 5 Dimensions told Brum Beat in an interview “I recorded my first single in Birmingham – Sugar Babe (part one and two) which was the first rock ‘n’ roll single to come out of Birmingham, it was down at the old Decca studios with Chris Blackwell producing. Chris then wrote for me ‘Strangers On A Train’ and did some other recordings with me. I put Chris onto The Spencer Davis Group who were doing very well at the time but were not yet signed to a record label. It was after that that I did ‘My Boy Lollipop’ with little Millie Small. Chris gave me a Mini Cooper S as a wedding present!
But one thing is certain ..it wasn’t Rod.