Title: Maggie May by Rod Stewart - Songfacts
Headings: by
Rod Stewart

by Rod Stewart
Songfacts®:
Comments: 54

Content: Running 5:46, it was considered an oddity with no hit potential and nearly left off the album. Stewart's record company, Mercury, didn't think it was a hit either, so used it as the B-side of the " Reason To Believe " single. Disc jockeys liked "Maggie" better, so they played it instead, forcing Mercury to put it out as a single. The first station to flip the single and play it as the A-side was WOKY in Milwaukee. Ray Jackson, a British musician who played in the band Lindisfarne, played the mandolin on this song and on a few others for Stewart. In 2003, Jackson threatened legal action against Stewart, claiming he deserved a writing credit for his contribution. Jackson, who says he made just the standard £15 session fee for his work, stated: " I am convinced that my contribution to 'Maggie May,' which occurred in the early stages of my career when I was just becoming famous for my work with Lindisfarne, was essential to the success of the record." Stewart employed Jackson on subsequent recordings, but didn't hear about his beef with the composer credit until the '80s. Stewart's retort (through a spokesman): "