Rod Stewart and Ron Wood brought a flash of Faces-era swagger to the Royal Albert Hall on May 11, performing at the King’s Trust Celebration concert and turning what was already a charity gala into the night’s loudest moment. In a receiving line, Stewart leaned toward King Charles and said, “Hello, Sir, may I say, well done with the Americans,” before adding, “You were superb, absolutely superb. You put that little ratbag in his place.”
The performance mattered because it was not just a nostalgia turn. Stewart and Wood joined Jools Holland & His Rhythm and Blues Orchestra for “Ooh La Laa” and “Good Rockin’ Tonight,” with Wood doing most of the vocal work on the former and Stewart taking lead on the latter. Stewart had already recorded “Good Rockin’ Tonight” with Holland in 2024 for their collaborative LP Swing Fever, but seeing him and Wood together at the Royal Albert Hall sharpened attention on a Faces reunion album that has been discussed for years.
The concert sat inside a much longer royal and musical tradition. The Prince’s Trust was founded by Charles in 1976 to support young people across England facing economic uncertainty, and the first fundraising concert for the charity was held at the same hall in 1982, with Kate Bush, Phil Collins, Pete Townshend, Madness and Robert Plant on the bill. Since then, follow-up Trust events have drawn names including Mick Jagger, Elton John, George Michael, Sting, Eric Clapton, Tom Jones and Mike and the Mechanics, but the mini Faces reunion was described as the highlight this year.
This year’s event also included performances by Rita Ora, Craig David and Anne-Marie, with George and Amal Clooney among those appearing. That wider cast gave the evening the feel of a celebration, but it was Stewart and Wood’s brief return to shared form that carried the sharpest appeal, because it hinted at a bigger project without promising one.
Kenney Jones, the Faces drummer, said in a recent interview with The Telegraph that the trio have already recorded 11 songs for a possible album. He said, “Not all of them are going to be right [for the album],” but added, “But most of them are good. I can’t see it coming out this year. But I can see it coming out next year. Everyone’s doing different things. We do little snippets [of recording] here and there. Then all of a sudden, the Stones are out [on tour] again, Rod’s out again…” Jones’ comments cut through the easy optimism around any reunion because they make clear the record exists only in fragments and remains subject to the competing schedules of men who still work like men in demand.
That timing matters. Stewart resumes his residency at Caesar’s Palace on May 27, then moves through amphitheaters and arenas across North America over the summer before returning to Las Vegas in August. Wood, meanwhile, arrived at the Royal Albert Hall with the kind of familiarity that only comes from decades of shared history, and the two men’s appearance together felt like a reminder that the Faces story still has unfinished business.
The Rolling Stones thread hovered nearby, too. The band has not played a show since July 2024, decided against touring Europe in 2025 and 2026 after venues were already on hold, and has no plans at the moment to play shows in support of its upcoming LP Native Tongues. Keith Richards once brushed off the idea of urgency with a line that fit the mood around old rock projects everywhere: “Oh, I mean, we can talk next year,”
For now, the answer to whether Stewart and Wood are anywhere near a new Faces album is simple: they have songs, they have momentum, and they have not set a date. The Albert Hall performance showed the chemistry is still there, but Jones’ own remarks suggest the record will arrive only when those moving parts finally line up.
