Maggie May was a song written by Rod Stewart and musician Martin Quittenton and recorded by Stewart's band The Faces in 1971.
It told the story of a younger man becoming obsessed with an older woman as his lover and was written from Stewart's own personal experiences.
The song was initially released in the UK as a B-side to the single "Reason To Believe" but DJs became more fond of the flip-side and, after two weeks in the chart, the song was re-classified with "Maggie May" as the A-side.
In October 1971, the song went to No.1 in the UK and simultaneously topped the charts in the USA. The corresponding album, "Every Picture Tells A Story", achieved the same feat at the same time - a first for any act.
The song launched Stewart as one of the great rock 'n' roll superstars and launched him fully as a solo artist. While he has sold millions of records and had countless hits around the world, it is still "Maggie May" for which he arguably is best known.
A famous live performance of the song on Top Of The Pops saw the Faces joined onstage by DJ John Peel who pretended to play the mandolin.
The song re-entered the UK charts in February 1976 but only made No.31. No other act has released the song as a single, though both Blur and Wet Wet Wet have recorded versions of the song.