When Rod Stewart sings Da Ya Think I'm Sexy? the answer has to be "no."
At least that's the perspective of this writer, a heterosexual guy who's mostly in touch with his sexuality. But come on; he's no Adonis. And that trademark rooster hairdo? Puh-lease.
I am, of course, in the opinionated minority of Stewart's appeal to the tune of 250 million albums sold worldwide. Fans, both female and male, latched onto Stewart's unique look and distinctive rasp in the late '60s and haven't let go.
Stewart, one of the best-selling artists of all time, is at Rexall Place on Tuesday.
When Da Ya Think I'm Sexy? was released in 1979 - the first single from Blondes Have More Fun ... or do they? - it created a stir, partly because of the British rock star's outlandish self-aggrandizing. Or so it seemed, anyway.
Back then, Stewart, now 62, defended the tune, saying the lyrics' third-person narrative was inspired by life, though not necessarily his life.
Keeping with the likes of the Rolling Stones' Miss You, the Eagles' The Disco Strangler or Kiss's I Was Made For Lovin' You, Stewart's Da Ya Think I'm Sexy represented his dip into "rocker does disco."
Which was precisely the problem critics had with the single and, in a larger sense, the trajectory Stewart's career was taking. Primarily that he seemed to be falling into a creative rut that was exacerbated by following trends and fads, first with disco and eventually nu wave into the '80s.
Regardless, Stewart's self-important disco ditty was a massive success, going to No. 1 in the U.S. and U.K. Blondes Have More Fun ... or do they? sold four million copies and went to No. 1 on Billboard's album charts.
It would, however, be Stewart's last No. 1 album for 25 years.
If the '80s were unkind to Stewart, memories of the '70s most likely would have made up for it. After bouncing around with rock legends like Long John Baldry, Mick Fleetwood and the Jeff Beck Group, he settled in as the lead singer of the Faces in 1970.
Almost in tandem with Faces' album releases, Stewart began releasing solo efforts of his own, of which 1971's Every Picture Tells a Story marked his breakthrough. Maggie May, originally a B-side, sent the single and album to No. 1 in the U.S. and U.K. simultaneously - a chart first.
Eventually leaving the Faces, Stewart would go on to become not only one of the biggest acts of the 1970s, but eventually one of the best-selling music artists of all time. You Wear It Well, This Old Heart of Mine, Tonight's the Night and the aforementioned and infamous Da Ya Think I'm Sexy? were just some of his more than 60 hit singles.
Naturally, that success saw him living large during the 1970s, dating "hot legs" like model Dee Harrington and actress Britt Eklund. It may well have inspired other guys like him. Guys who came from working-class backgrounds, love soccer, recovered from thyroid cancer and may have also suffered with the indignity of bad hair.
He would go on to date a string of other models: Kelly Emberg, Rachel Hunter and, since 1998, Penny Lancaster. Stewart and Lancaster are to be married sometime this year. He has also fathered seven children.
Dating models isn't a bad rut to be in, but even now, in a career that's in its fifth decade, Stewart has still found himself prone to pursuing fads. The difference now is that not only are said fads actually old, the scheme has worked in Stewart's favour, revitalizing his career.
In 2002, he released It Had to Be You ... The Great American Songbook, covers of pop standards from the 1930s and 1940s by songwriters like Irving Berlin, Cole Porter, and George and Ira Gershwin. The album and its successors - The Great American Songbook 2, 3 and 4, respectively - placed admirably on adult contemporary charts around the world.
Last fall, continuing his trend of covers, Stewart released Still the Same ... Great Rock Classics of Our Time, which featured renditions of rock classics by the likes of Creedence Clearwater Revival, Bonnie Tyler, Bob Seger and Bob Dylan.
The last week has been a busy one for giants of pop hitting the City of Champions: Van Morrison, Meat Loaf and now Stewart.
And while we might respect the homages ol' Rod's been paying in the last few years, it's really his own back catalogue of hits fans will be turning up to hear.
Yes, even Da Ya Think I'm Sexy?
