An Appreciation For Status Quo

Even the band themselves try to forget that. Not because Brian Wilson was inv0lved, just the fact the finished result wasn't great. The two cover versions albums were not good and they said so themselves in the Hello Quo documentary.

 

One of the big problems Quo have is that the early classic stuff (Ma Kelly to Quo Live) is so revered as audiences believed the band belonged to them. Then in the UK they became a hit machine and became very commercial. Then a lot of people said the older stuff was all that mattered by them.

Lancaster had a pink fit over Rockin all over the world and then Marguerita time. The latter was meant to be a solo Rossi track. Lancaster hated it and was embarrassed that it made it into a Quo album. The personal divide between Rossi and Lancaster also divided the fans, some of whom reject the current line up as 'cabaret Quo'. That is quite unfair as they do a fantastic job on the whole. Their last few albums have been proper returns to form, but those who 'hate it when their friends become successful' forever harp on about the commercial aspect of the band, but who wants to release an album nobody will buy?

 

Largely I agree with you (the cabaret attribute might have been fitting in the late 80s and the 90s but not in this century) but Hello! is still their most successful album. The problem - as has been pointed out by an article I read recently - was that the scene changed and there were only two viable ways for Quo to continue - focus on the heavy aspects and ride the heavy metal wave or inject more pop elements. Due to Francis' preferences, we got the latter option.
I also think that especially Francis cringes at the idea of being pigeonholed into some narrow aspect of all the band have represented even in their first years.

 

Never heard that they want to forget it. I only know they were very excited because of their appreciation for the Beach Boys. Yes the cover albums in general weren't good but there must have been a reason why this track appeared on compilations.

 

Not specifically that track, just the albums themselves.

 

Ah, okay.

 

I think it would have been criminally wrong and self-destructive for Quo to have turned into a museum piece, turning out endless narrow variations on the same album. And thankfully they have NEVER done that, though the music press still have them down as repetitive three chord wonders. Francis loves country music and has steered Quo towards that at times, though they fail miserably to actually sound 'country' (except perhaps on 'Invitation').

'Hello!' remains their highpoint, along with a lot of 'Piledriver', though I have a very soft spot for the 'Ain't complaining' album and 'Heavy traffic'.
Their legion of fans is divided into two camps, those who think the Frantic Four (hate them having to use that - why not just refer to it as Status Quo) and nothing else was the real Quo and the rest of us, who think that Quo is whatever Rossi and Parfitt choose to do now.

 

Would love for Quo to release a full-on album with songs in the classic country style.

 

I believe Lancaster is the one who went back into the studio and re-recorded Quo songs the way he thought they should be done sometime in the 80s. However, I have nothing negative to say about Lancaster, as he has apparently reconciled with Rossi and the two are on good terms. The reunion tours produced some excellent live recordings, so no complaints here.

 

Quo with The Beach Boys!

 

The first Quo LP I ever got was 1+9+8+2, same year is was released. Later I got Blue for You, On the Level & If you can't Stand the Heat. I'd say that for me that's all the Quo I need, they have released so many albums it's really a challenging task to get into all of them The lineup orignates from 1962, incredible guys!

 

BBC Radio 1 imposed a blanket ban on Status Quo after that awful record. Even though it made the UK charts, they refused it play it. Quo tried to sue the BBC for being "ageist" but without any success!

 

alan ended up going australia and was part of the party boys.

 

Not just the US 45, every other one I've heard sounds great.

 

The first gig I ever went to was on the EOTR tour in 1984 and have seen them more than a few times since - though probably not this century.

 

Everyone should hear Hello! and Piledriver. Quo and On the level are also outstanding albums. I have to say they have aged exceedingly well.

 

the same endless fan argument over bands like Kiss and Queen. "XYZ band is whoever the two remaining original members say it is" and then others saying, no way, it cant be XYZ band without (insert name of missing member).

 

Since the Aquostic (Stripped Bare) album was released on Oct 17th 2014 it has got a lot of very good reviews, even from the die-hard Quo fans who are used to their usual harder stuff. The BBC Radio 2 concert from the Roundhouse in London (which was their first ever acoustic gig) also got a lot of good feedback from the fans. Rick said in an interview after the concert that he never reads reviews online. I'm guessing this is because he doesn't want to read negative comments, but he really should read the reviews of Aquostic... he may be very surprised.

They also hinted that an Aquostic (acoustic) tour may happen next year but didn't say for sure. It would depend on the fan's reactions to the album.

 

I still think Seals And Crofts ripped off the chords from "Matchstick Men" when they wrote "Summer Breeze". I still love both songs, but when I heard Matchstick Men, I thought "You gotta be SH****N me!"

 

Well the reunion was billed as the Frantic Four renuion by the band themselves and by their official website. Rossi refers to the Frantic Four on the 77 live album so it's nothing new. That that lineup reformed tells you there's a difference between them and current Quo. The Quo without Spud and Nuff just isn't the Quo - enjoy their current albums all you want, but both of them contributed so much to the band's signature sound so whatever Rossi and Parfitt record without them is the Quo in name only.

 

Anyone here in the UK watching the In Concert show on BBC Red Button?

 

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00rr8bv

 

Awwwww Rossi just warms my heart. Can't help it.

 

First heard of these guys with the brief promotion of their 1980 LP which was remixed for this market. The tracks Whatever You Want and Living On an Island got some West Coast radio exposure for a while but without the big push from the label and N American touring, they never got the big sales.
Too bad, considering Living On An Island is right up the alley of the kind of rock that the Little River Band, REO Speedwagon and April Wine were playing here and reaping success in platinum spades.
Actually much of Quo's 70s output is in the same vein as Grand Funk, Foghat and Aerosmith, who sold like hotcakes in the 70s.