Legendary rocker/crooner gets a station plaque on the eve of his Glastonbury set.
Sir Rod Stewart has been honoured with a new plaque at Twickenham station. Why Twickenham? It was here in 1964 that the future Sir Rod's talent was first acknowledged, while he was busking on the platform.
And not by any old music scout, either. Stewart was supposedly discovered by the great blues singer Long John Baldry, whose Eel Pie Island gig Stewart had just attended. While waiting for the train home, Stewart started singing and playing the harmonica, little realising that Baldry was listening in. Baldry offered him a gig on the spot, and a legendary music career had begun.
As the plaque notes, Stewart is also a lifelong fan of rail transport. Something of an obsessive, in fact. The octogenarian singer has appeared on the front cover of Railway Modeller magazine, after spending decades working on an intricate model of a city railway.
South Western Railways unveiled the new plaque ahead of Sir Rod's 'legends slot' performance at Glastonbury (set for Sunday 29 June).
As it happens, Eel Pie Island is also hosting one of its artists' open studios this weekend.
Those interested in the area's exceptional music history should visit the Eel Pie Island Museum, and get hold of Andrew Humphrey's excellent book Raving Upon Thames (affiliate link).
Images courtesy of South Western Railway.
